River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1886-06-24
The New YORK Produce Exchange.

when translated, and as it isn't English
1t must be slang.
The New York Produce Exchange.
What shall we eat, what shall we
drink, and wherewithal shall we be
lighted? are the three questions with
whose pleasant solution the New York
Produce Exchange charges itself. Seat
ed at the point on the Atlantic coast
where all lines of travel and traffic
converge, whittier cereals from the
boundless prairies and pastoral pro-
ducts from the Pacific coast are for
warded by Western merchants and
packers to New York dealers and com
mission firms for distribution among
the manufacturing millions of Europe
and the several commonwealth of the
American continent and archipelagoes,
it presents as varied aspects as its busy
traffic.
Merchants either purchase in the
West, or send from their own packing
houses in that region, or receive con-
signments, on which they make ad-
vances often equal to three-fourths the
market value of the provisions here Of
fered for sale. In the first and third
cases, bills of lading accompanied by
sight drafts are mailed 10 purchasers
or consignees while the goods are on
t+t, 81 s u. L.
ter, parties in interest not uIfrequent-
ly attempt to guard against loss from
fluctuation of prices by selling short in
the Chicago markell process per
fectly ineligible to the 'hedger' on
the turf.
In New York, consignments or pur-
chases of provisions pass into the Gus
tOdy of licensed and responsible paid
inspectors and warehOusemen, of whom
there are seven; and by whom the con-
ditiou, quality, standard, aud weight
of the different lots are duly certified,
or declared to be insufficient to fulfil
the requirements of the contract. Each
warehouse receipt must be for $50 bar
rels, containing an average of 200 lbs.
per barrel, unless otherwise stipulated.
All sales contemplate merchantable
meats. If 10 per cent of lot OF dry
sailed meat, or 20 per cent. of other
meats, be defective, they are excluded
from this category. Packers name
and location. number of pieces, and
! weight, together with the Inspector
brand, must be marked on each pack
age. Sales, in agreed lots of any size,
if for export or domestic consumption,
10 M
and deliveries from warehouse or from
the dock, as the goods arrive. Spec
ulative sales are in lots of 250 barrels,
or their multiples. Less business than
formerly is done in options, but the job
bling trade retains its old proportions.
Official but not private sales are re-
corded.
The Western system of grading grain,
recently adopted here. enables the
Western buyer who has accumulated
as much wheat in his warehouses as
he wishes to carry, and who knows
daily and almost hourly the market
prices in New York to telegraph to any
broker. and through him to sell for
future delivery the amount and grade
of wheat he may have on hand. He
then ships it 50 that it may arrive in
time to fulfil his contract. Certainty
and precision are thus given to his
business movements. He is relieved
from the compulsory speculation at
tendant upon consignments of whose
sale, price, and delivery he is perfectly
ignorant. The present terminal facil-
tiles for handling grain are so complete
that they have restored to New York,
mr. nfaah IN oil ~ Of
the grain trade on the Atlantic sea-
board. True, option dealing and some
Objectionable practices have come ia
with the new system but that is only
IN harmony with the universal fact that
every solid good is abused by unwise
and greedy men.
The grain trade proceeds under the
supervision of committee of tive-an
nspectOr-in-chief, registrar, and
committee of three on the delivery of
warehoused grain. The Committee on
Grain, of which at the time of this
writing Mr.. c. X. HickOX is chairman,
annually establishes the several grades,
supervises the nspector-in-chief and
his assistants, and fixes the fees which
(below S20.000) constitute the Grain
Inspection Fund, out of which salaries,
audited expenses, and claims for dam
ages are paid. OF the grades of grain
established in 1884, ten were of white,
amber, and red winter wheat, eight of
spring, and one of State wheat. More
or less of brightness, sOundness. dry
ness, plumpness, and cieanness deter
mines the grade. The word
Steamer" prefixed to grade de-
netes slight softness or dampness.
Corn has eleven grades, oats eight,
rye three, barley sixteen, pease three.
Heated or understandable grain is not
graded at all Standard samples of
all grades Of grain are kept at
the Produce Exchange. The duties
of the chief inspector and his deputies
are to inspect, grade and ascertain
the weights of all parcels going into
store as graded grain Cat the owners
risk. and for which transferable ware
house receipts are given; also to
inspect and ascertain the weight of all
deliveries from warehouse or railroad
depot. 4 daily copy of his record IS /
furnished TO the registrar, and returns ]
in duplicate to warehousemen and rail- I
road companies OF all receipts ard de- I
liveries of graded grain,
Business begins in the Pit at 10. /
80 A. ". BUYERS and sellers are indis- I
blended in the compact. /
throbbing surging mass. All offers and I
bids are on a unit basis of S0CO bushels +
wheat is the only grain in I.
mind. ''I'n give q I94l cents per
bushell for May wheat" is the bid of /
a nervous. active broker, emphasized /
by uplitted hand and moving fingers. 1
I'm sell at 3, is the quick rejoinder of 4
a neighbor. an give g." ''I'll sell