St. Paul daily globe., 1888-01-09
The COMMERCIAL WORLD.
Provisions Acted Queerly, Opened Nerv-
ous and Weakened Before
the Close.
Wheat and Corn Fairly Steady, but Made
a Break and Closed
Lower.
Transactions in the Financial Circles
of Wall Street.-The General
Quotations.
Special TO the Globe.

Special to the Globe.
CHICAGO Jan. 7-Provisions are acting
oueerly. The recent enormous buying of
pork by the Fowlers has set tongues to wag-
ging, and the conclusion arrived at by the
wise men of the pit who putin their time
theoriZing on motives is that the Fowlers
have found out that their ancient enemy,
Armour, has ''got the deal" again, and they
do not propose to be caught They have
been worSted so often by Armour that they
have ceased to find enjoyment in locking
horns with him and feeding his bank ae-
count, and they are now going with the pro-
cession. As part of this theory and in sup
port of ii is the statement that the heavy buy
ing bv Everhingham and other commission
merchants has been for Armour. Another
theory is that the Fowlers have concen-
trated themselves with the determination
TO give Armour battle, and
that they are going TO squeeze him,
The records showing that he is heavily short.
The Fowlers are very rich, and fight be-
tween them on one side and Armour, Ream
aud Cudahay on the other would be worth
watching. The audience that would witness
the performance would be immense and i'm
partial. On the other hand it is stated on
good authority that the buying by the Fow
lers was to cover shorts put out at the top.
Armour is getting under provisions, Armour
personally gives this statement a tiat-footed
denial, and those who are in his confidence
say he has not changed his position or
bought pound of product. He is not be-
liever in high prices ut this stage of the pro-
ceedingS. 1t was due TO the feeling that
Armour was under pork that the market was
firm to-day. The opening was nerv-
Gus, and May pork declined to S15.37l2.
1t subsequently advanced to $3.50, bat
weakened just before the close. Other product
was steady Estimated receipts of hogs for
Monday -, 900 head: Wheat and corn were
fairly steady around the opening but there
was an underione of weakness that grew
from bad 10 worse as the day advanced. The
government crop report was received about
noon. and on the strength thereof the heavy
weights made Il concerted attack on the mar
ket, breaking May wheat TO S37sc, and May
corn tc 54Ic,a depreciation of 1lsc in wheat
and Ice in corn.
Old Hutch took on an additional line of
wheat on the decline. He is said to be the
principal owner of cash wheat and to have
expressed a willingness to take all the wind
the crowd will sell him. Things are getting
into such shape that the old man and his
side-parner, Kent, may find it necessary to
put the screws on the shorts. genuine
Hutch wheat deal would be a novelty in
board OF trade annals.
ROUTINE REPORT.
CHICAGO. Jan. 9.-The markets on change
We're very quiet at the opening this morning.
The talk in he wheat pit was that the local
crowd was pretty nearly even, but was
afraid TO sell the market short. The local
traders were TO some extent deferred from
going short over sunday lest the expected
cold snap should do serious damage TO the
"
The fluctuations for the first hour were be-
tween 81 5S6l S5c, but the greater portion of
the time the market was steady at S4346l
S47Sc. May wheat broke down once to S375c
before the close, but CROUCH buying orders
were brought out 10 firm itup to S41sc where
ii closed. Corn opened with May at 54ss3
5iS4c was absolutely featureless and closed
with May at 54lsc. Provisions, owing to
light receipts of hogs at the yards, were
slightly higher at the opening. May pork
started at SI5.45, an advance of 56l7I2c.
During the first hour trading was on linn
lied scale and the market nervous, fiuctuat-
ing between Sl5.4J@ll5.57I2 for May pork.
Local operators traded with fair degree of
freedom. packers selling pork quite literally
1t times and the country. were buyers of
small lots. Shorts were disposed to cover
md the last sales were at an advance over
yesterday of 1Oc on pork, 2l.@5c OH lard
and short ribs. May pork closed at $3.50,
May lard sold at s.. S7l2@7.95 and closed at
s. 92l2; May short ribs sold at SIS. 02l2@
s.I0 and closed at $50.
THE QUOTATIONS,
The leading futures ranged as follows:
Wheat-No =, February. 1850. closing at
71S4c: March, 79c, closing at 7S12c; May,
s5c, closing at SlIsc. Corn-No. =, Febrii-
lry, 49ssc, closing at 4S4c; May, $3.50
51s4c closing at 54l8c Oats-No 3 Nav
347sc closing at 34asc. Mess Pork, per bbl-
February, SIS, closing at S15. 10; March.
f15 As, closing at $3.50. Lard. per 100 lbs
February, S765. closing at 81 72I2: March.
E.55@7.76l2, closing at S7.75@7.77l2; NAV,
$50, closing at 1922: Short Ribs, per 100
E7s2l2; March, s7s4, closing at s.. .e2Is;
Cash quotations We're as follows: Flour
quiet and unchanged; No. spring wheat,
77A6177l2c; No. 3 spring wheat, nominal;
No. corn, 4S7sc; No. . oats, 3l12@314c;
No. 2 rye, 62c; No. 2 barley. 73@S3c; No.
/, fax seed, SI.42G51 .42A: prime timothy
seed, S2.46@2.47; mess pork. per bbl, 81 4 95
oils; lard. per 100 lbs, S7.65@l767I2: short
ribs sides QOose). $50; dry sailed shoulders
(boxed), S610@6.15: short clear sides
lboxedl, So. 1G@9.15; whisky, distillers'
finished goods. per gal, 81. 10; sugars, cut
loaf, Ts4OSl2c: granulated, 1897. .69c.
Receipts-Flour, 1900 bbls; wheat.
10000 bu; corn, $4,000 bu; oats, 72,OOO
bu; rye, 5000 bu; barley. $4,000 bu. Ship
ments-Flour, 10000 bbls; wheat, SO, 600
bu; corn. 144,000 bu; oats, $4,000 bu;
barley, $1,000 bu. On the produce ex-
change to-day the butter market was un-
changed; creamery. 2S@31c; dairy, 25LM
26c. Eggs dull at 22@124c.