St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-07-14
WITH GRAIN TRADERS.
Collapse Of the Lester Corn Squeeze and
Also Peter MCGeoch's Big
Deal in Oats.
The Day on Change Very Quiet and
Entirely Void of Any Disturb
ing Element,
Beyond Guesses on the Visible supply
Statement, Which Will show
Decrease.
st. Paul the Center of Interest Among
Stock Dealers Wall Street
Gossip.
Chicago
Special to the Globe.

Special to the Globe.
CHICAGO, July 1S.-The cash corn held
by MesSrs. Norton X W0rthington and
Jackson Bros. and popularity supposed 10
be owned by the Lester clique, was all dc
llvered ont last week. That winds up what
has been known aS the Lester corn manlpu-
lation. Its collapse was the only note
worthy incident in the grain speculation OF
last week. Away back in March. before
there had hEen any crisis in the affairs oi
Mr.. GladStono'S cabinet and when all Specu-
latorS we've jocSjl,S along On pet schemes
of their Own. 81 ,,,;,,N,oStloO was gotten mp
in Testers ossS>c q, c,I,l com Tor the month
Of Man, The AoN},,,S> had been for long
while scattered, t>SrsysiSe, the dry goods
man. hS& ><,,e. y, \, ESC2ank had some
nOUe, AMI tSsssslH New Workers ana Lester
had another LIZ. The combination took in
all these Interests S0d made. altogether
haldiaS ~ lScl,al,> 5000. 900 bushels for
Nav delivery. There wasn't much cash
in the elevators and the receipts We're mod
crate. While the market was jogging
along with very little life. and while the
members Of the corn clique
WE'RE >CHEMING TO
stir the corn pit into life enough to permit
them 10 throw over load they had gotten
very sick Of along came the tremendous
Anglo Russian war furore and prices went
kiting. The May deliveries passed. There
had been a pretty goOd-Sized short
interest caught. and the clique pOcketed
something like cents buShel
on the holding. Then it determined to try
it again for June. The amount of cash
grain in store is kept small, and except for
the days right about the first of the month
the receipts continued light. For may.
June and July Il squeeze was experienced.
Delivery day approached. There was no
corner, no terrified bowling by shorts, and
no great kicks by the losers. If it had
been run at time favorable to good prices.
and if wheat had not been declining almost
all the time. a great deal of money would
have rewarded manipulatorS as clever as
these, but it is generally believed now that,
despite its clever management, Testers
corn clique lost more than it made and
finally
DROPPED ITS CASH CORN
because the prospect was very diScourag-
ing. 1t isn't certain, however, by any
means that, now that the clique has given
over its manipulation and delivered out Its
cash corn, that the price is going to
pieces. A good many believe that these
reasons will break the price. 1t often
times happens, however, that manipulation
acts on the market to depreSS rather
than stimulate. The fact that countrymen
have believed that John Lester would each
delivery day advance the price of corn for
seller the month has brought into Chicago
a good deal more corn than would have
come in naturally. The receipts have not
been large, even under that stimulus, and
it is possible that now they may
become so small and the shipping demand
so sharp that the clique, which had aban-
dOned the hope of bulling corn, may see the
prices sail away from them. Stranger
things have happened. Peter McGeoch
slyly slipped from under his oat deal with
out anybody knowing it. When w. r.
Harvey and Everingham were plugging the
crowd full of June oats on the last day of
that month they We're not only
FILLING UP THE SHORTS.
but getting rid of McGeOch'S cash stuff as
well. McGeoch did not make any money,
either. although he claims he lost none
The failure of both recent SqueeZes to
show profit makes plain how
enormous the expenses of any man
ipulation is. Carrying charges at rate
of l Is cents a buShel and interest and i'll
Surance, and last, but not least, brokerage,
make it imperative that the man who at
temptS a squeeze must expect either to
make his squeeze terrific one OF else
pocket loss. Both Lester and Mr.. Geoch
sold out their grain for more than they paid
for it. yet at a loss.
Spring wheat" says Mr.. Armour,
Clocks splendid in the Northwest. and there
will be big crop of it, if no accident hap
pens it." Everybody who was with Mr..
Armour on the St Paul trip came back
thinking the same way, even Bill
Nnunr aIe6 of tho nthar NN-hi
bulls. Wheat bears have received a great
reinforcement. "A little while ago" said
a broker at noon, Everybody in the pit
was bullish, and the market would not go
up. Now everybody is bearish, and ap-
parently, wheat won't go down."
THE MARKET
started at little decline. after some trad
ing on the curb at a considerable decline.
September wheat sold at 9014c and August
at SS16c Then the market became very
dull indeed, and with almost all the SCALP
erS watching the figures on pork and lard.
which were just about as active as pork and
lard were excited. Along toward noon, for
some not apparent reason, prices on grain
firmed up. The close on the afternoon
board was at the highest for the day at 81 &c
for July. $3.50 August, 19c September.
931Sc October 1t seems to be game
Vi I'LL Oui. dl DlCSclil. III IllG wheat
market. The shorts are numerous and
plucky, and absolutely refuse to come in
until they are compelled to, while the bulls
are equally determined the market shall go
down, merely to accommodate the other
party. and the two forces are so evenly bal
anced that neither side can have its own
way. Thus the market is in a rut. and
hangs and drags along in a way that is
pleasant and
SATISFACTORY TO NO ONE.
Crop reports from California are more
encouraging, and the same is true of spring
wheat this side of the Rockies. Winter
wheat is now in the shock and is being
stacked, and the cutting of spring has also
commenced in Iowa, Nebraska. Wisconsin
and Dakota. A decrease of the visible is
expected for tomorrow, and, influenced by
this fact. the market closed at the highest
point of the day.
Corn begins to show unmiStakable signs of
weakness for the longer futures, and with
good reason. The new crop is growing
finely all over the country, and the present
outlook for another big yield is very prom
Using. Liverpool was flat on corn and
cargoes were Sd per quarter lower. New
York and st. Louis also were both weaker
and lower, but our market opened steadily
or at best but Is C lower. and
HUNG FIRE
at these figures all through the session. AS
it is very provoking to try and trade on such
a market the majority of corn men sit
around and look on to see what the ''other
fellows are doing. No one wants to buy
for a rise. and few care to sell short with
such good shipping demand staring them
in the face. The close was quiet, Axe
July, 1910 August, 4655c September, ACC
October, 405sc May.
Oats for the months delivery were firm
and &c higher. under fair demand to fill
contracts and the impression that the mar