St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-08-25
By too Many Wheat Elevators that Charge
Exorbitant Prices for Storage
of Grain.
The Elevating Clique May Yet Succeed
in Driving the Grain Business to
New York.
Markets Showing n Disposition TO
Seek Lower Level in spite of
Storms and Rumors.
A Bearish Feeling in the Ascendency
on the Stock Exchange
Financial Matters.
Chicago.
Snepia1 TO the Globe.

CpCCldI W IlC biObG.
CHICAGO, Aug. 24.-There is stored now
at Chicago about one-quarter of bushel Of
wheat for each man, woman and child i'll
the United States, and apparently each
man, woman and child in the country is
willing that it should be kept at Chicago for
them right along. They'd rather have it
here at the price than at home. 1t used to
be one of the SuppOsitionS of the grain
trade that Europeans wanted American
wheat and couldn't get along without ii.
This has been abolished now, along with
that other one, that buShel of wheat and
a gold dollar are commercially interchange
able anywhere and at any time. Europeans
gaze at the enormous stock of Chicago
wheat as inditferently as the $4,000, coo OF
American men, women and children. No
body seems TO want it. Spectators are
even getting tired Of it for gambling pur-
poses. Even the Chicago elevator pro-
prietors are offering &c per bushel gratuity
to anybody who will take it out of their
houses-alarmed probably at their own ra-
pacity and willing to cOncede something in
order to avert an cutlery against themselves
now. Has not the rapacity of Chicago
elevator men had something to do with the
alarming condition of American trade?
There is as much competition as anybody
could reasonably ask for in the purchase and
sale of wheat. There is probably
SHARP ENOUGH COMPETITION
in the carrying of wheat. If these were
the two only inevitable charges which the
wheat had to carry it is certain that I'M
natural conditions of price or supply would
speedily correct themselves, but there is no
competition at all in storage of wheat. 1t
is remarkable, too, for there are more than
twenty different houses in Chicago with
twice as much elevator room as ever, so far,
has been needed. But this doesn't make
any difference. If buShel of wheat goes
into Chicago elevator for a minute it
must pay toll of IL cents.
If it stays in the house a
minute longer than ten days it must pay
another &c and so Oh the year round, with
the exception of winter months. In the
season when the owner of wheat in store
couldn't get out of house if he wanted
to, the elevator proprietor magnanimously
accepts &c a bushel for holding il.
There has been wheat taken out of a Chi
cagO elevator on which the accumulated
elevator charges have exceeded the market
value of the stuff and there is not now in
Chicago, of the II, 500, 900 bushels in store,
LOCO. 900 bushels in which all possible profit
has not been eaten up by the elevator
WAREHOUSE CHARGES.
If fifty respectable merchants were to
build fifty magnificent elevators, and were
to offer to take care Of the wheat and guar
antee security for One-half the present
charges they wouldn't help the situation at
all. Their fifty magnificent houses would
stand empty, and if all the owners of wheat
in Chicago wanted ever so much to patron
ize them they could not do it, The rail-
roads wouldn't carry the property to new
houses, in the first place, and in the second.
the elevating clique on the board of trade
would not make new warehouses regular.
Grain elevators are built and held by the
''inSiders" in the railroad corporations
If, for instance. the list of share
holders in the dispatch lines
Of the big lines and the list of shareholders
in the elevators are compared they will be
found TO contain the same names. The
Northwestern road puts its wheat in the
Munger, Wheeler 81 Co. elevator, because
every official with any present or past con-
nection with the Northwestern is a share
holder in the Munger, Wheeler q Co. cor
poration. The shipper Of wheat over this
road can't get his wheat into any other ele-
vator, because the Northwestern railroad
Will not take it there for him. There has not
been a legislature since elevatng became
important that did not hold one or more
representatives of the Chicago
WAREHOUSE CLIQUE.
There were three elevator shareholders
at the last session, with Oliver TAYLOR i'm
command. An effort was made to give
East st. Louis ''inspecton." 1t
is an Illinois town and is flied
with great elevators. The proprie-
tors wanted to have the benefit of state in
SpectiOn, so that No. , wheat there could
be sold in Chicago The elevator clique i'm
the legislature would not permit it; storage
rates at East st. Louis We're lower than al
Chicago. With an inspection officer at
East St Louis and with charges there less
than at Chicago the cliques monop-
oily would be gone. East st. Louis did not
get inspection" The legislature did not
even get chance to vote on the question.
The matter was hung up as unfinished
business" where a single objection from
single adroit representative of the bic
monopoly held it all the while 4 few years
ago there was put on foot a scheme to build
an elevator at South Chicago. where large
number of railroads centered and where land
was cheap. In it were Columbus r. Cum
mlngs and w. B. Howard and J. b. Lyon.
They couldn't get ''inSpection." They
spent money at Springfield. but the elevator
clique spent more. 1t would have
MADE COMPETITION,
and would have lowered the elevator
charges. That wasn't to be permitted. 1t
Wasn't. An elevator built two years ago at
cost OF $500, 600 by its last dividend paid
for itself. At the present rate of charges
it is an axiom with the clique that if a house
Is kept full for two years it pays for itself.
while the clique has been earning 50 per
cent. on its money. The grain trade of
America has been demoraliZed and half
ruined, just as whole nation has been
heretofore upset and half ruined by rotten
ness i'll single palace. ''What do | think
of the maTket?" said reputable shipper
of wheat. II don't think there is any hone
for 1t until the clique of eXtortionstS who
run the elevators and who have ruined the
trade by their pawnbrokers' charges is over
THROWN
The opening to-day everywhere on this
side OF the Atlantic was lower and the
markets were soft to fiabbneSs. On the
Chicago board of trade the price was lie off
and the feeling of the crowd of traders
IN the pit was exceedingly bearish.
The surprising steadiness of Euro
pean markets, in the face of the
dealings on this side of the seas
induced quite a number of bull leaders to
take hold cautiously. After a half hour of
watching this morning, and a modest de-
mand for property sprang up, the quick
turning room traders, who are
ALPHABETICALLY KEEN-SCENTED.
took fright at this early symptom of return
ing strength and started in to even up with