The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-09-29
Vigorous Efforts to Flood Chicago with Wheat
from other Cities and Compel Reduc-
,tion of the Old Spectators Figures.
Mr.. Hutchinson Realizes $675,0O0 as
Profits on Thursdays Transactions.
The Legitimate Effects of the Cornering
Method Appear in Personal Quarrels and
Defalcation in One of the City Banks.


satisfied with the whole barnysrd this morning.
They wanted the pasture, too There was none
to question their right to IT. in fact. the whole
field was conceded them. December wheat.
which closed last night ct 9Ss 09Ssc. opened
officially at 99sc, though. as q matter OF fact,
there were few sales at this price. and hardly
any between 992e and 81. the price TO which 1t
Immediately jumped. Five minutes after the
opening it sold at 81 00i, but there was an evil
dent disposition to draw It rather mild above
this figure September wheat was 81 81 bid on
the curb, but in the pit there were trades at
Sl25. Hutchinson said he had September
wheat for sale. but did not know the price of it.
He said ri thought ! would wait till about
noon to see what price the boys would pu. on it,
and also see how much wheat is coming from
Milwaukee to Chicago. I want the boys to get
good price for it."
While there an enormous trade iu De-
cember and October wheat, ihs greater part OK
the interest still conferred in September. Hutch
inson, when approached by the manager Of ths
quotation department of the board for a price,
said: ~ don't know anything about it. 1 win
give 81. 40 for it IL you have any for ssle.' He
afterwsrd said that he would fix aprice at which
he would sell at u o'clock and the poor Shorts
not knowing where else TO get the wheat, pa
| tiently waited for that time to arrive. Mean
| while St Louis was called upon for wheat. It
| is said that freight trains are already loaded
there and speeding this way on passenger
train time. There il also SAID to be little stuff
coming from Milwaukee and Detroit. 1t will
| take quick work on the part Of the inspection
department, the railroads and the elevator peo-
| pie 70 get the stuff into the warehouses and
| issue receipts on it this month.
| A Chicago paper speaking OF the predicameut
| which the ''shorts" In September wheat find
themselves in. says: There 10 just one salvation
for them. There is plenty of whsat in St Louis
10 FL the shortage, but the question is, "Can it
be brought here in time to be pected. switched
to the elevators, urloaded and a warehouse re-
cspt issued on il before the end Of the month";"
| Here Is where the shoe pinches. There arc
| many chances against it, The freight trains on
the Alton road will be pat on passenger train
time. and the grain inspection department. will
do all in their power TO hurry things u2 and soon
through all the other departments through which
! the grain will have to pass before 1t
| can gladden. the hearts OF the shorts" There
| are many obstacles in the way of successful
| carrying out OF all these plans Freiehtcars
are scarce. Perhaps this is not so much the
| ease on the Alton at present as on other roads.
! cut there Is a possibility II may cut a hsu
There 10 q bare possibility OF accidents beereen
| 81. Louis and here, q possibility that switch
| engines here may get disabled and oostruct
! things. and then again there may not be enough
! inspectors. State Inspector Price says that he
| has no extra men, and that he can't get them.
| Track inspectors are born, not made 1t takes
| twelve TO fifteen years to educate them TO the
| business, and then only one out of q bout fifteen
| makes good track inspector. INSPECTOR Price
| received notice yesterday that 100 cars would
| start from st. Louis last night Ii they
started it early in the evening they should have
had it here this morning, and inspected But
| the little sample bags did not make their ap-
4 Al ;t u 20 hot
they had not arrived. In tie meantime. wheat
| had got MP TO 81 90.
The other corners on Change are in October
| pork and ribs, October and November lard aud
September barley Armour is not to be out
done when corners are going around He Is
credited with owning nearly all Of the pork and
| ribs, and says that be can't get enough ribs to
supply his regular cash trade. Receipts OF hogs
| continue to run light, and IL is probable that X
there is enough of shortage out to make it
worth the squeezing, that the squeeze will come.
| There is, however, considerable time between
this and Oct 81 The lard deal
| all over the world. but II the packers get right
| down to business and tank everything but the
hair and toe-nails. as is the usual order in such
emergencies, quite a quantity OF the product
can be produced ere Nov 30, providing, CT
course, that the demand for pork and ribs does
not cut in on the production, as it probably will
Cotton-seei oil, which, when mixed with lard,
| used TO help the shorts out TO an appreciable
| present
spector. Nothing bus prime steam lard goes.
Fairbapk and Robert Warren presumably know
how much lard can be foated into consumption
through the regular chanDels OF trade. and
would not probably try to corner unless they
know what they were about
Al every circus has It's side-shows, so does
the barley corner compare with the yheat COR
per. There Is just 5000 bushels OF contract
barley in etore, and the shortage amounts to
10000 bushels Joe Waite. Of Elmandorf Il
Waite IL the manager. But it Is not known
who the unfortunate individual is whom he has
nailed to the cross. The galleries and corridors
Of the board were crowded with people, all
anxious 70 Get q glimpse of 'Old Hutch" Macy
of the gallery people brought their lunch, pre-
pared to stay all day. In the lower corridor.
gaping crowds stared at the old gentleman as he
took his periodical stroll across to the club to
take his usual weather observations through his
feld-glass At noon he offered to sell
wheat at 81. So and broker Seymour In the cash
crowd, was authorized to pay 81 49 for car lots.
One of the ''shorts," member OF a prominent
shipping firm, held him to the scratch oy bid
ding little below him for the grain.
One of the most sensational features OF TIE
day happened after the close of the board. when
Abel II. Bliss. Of the firm OF A. II. Bliss & Co..
one of the substantial commission firms of the
city, notified the Corn Exchange Bank that he
would at once withdraw his patronage and de-
posits. Charles l.. Hutchinson. the president
of the bank. who is also president of the Board
OF Trade, and o son of ''Old Hutch" immedi-
ately sent for Mr. Bliss and asked what was the
| matter. .'You have traded with us for o good
many years, Mr. Bliss" said President Hutch
iuson, land your father before you dealt with
u.s. / am at a loss TO know why you should SO
suddenly withdraw your patronage without any
| apparent cause
"Any man who runs q corner on the market"
replied Mr. Bliss, blazing up, "and squeezes the
life and blood out of the trade is better than
q thief. Your father, who owns 51 per cent OF
the stock of this bank. built just such corner,
and as said, I do not consider my money safe
in the hands Of thief; therefore | withdraw my
| patronage"
Mr. Bliss went on angriiy at some length, bat
denied that he was a loser by the corner. This
evening he said, when asked about the matter,
that he had no desire to create any had blood.
and would have said nothing to Hutchinson had
the bank president not asked for explana
tion. ~ am not the only one." added Mr.
Bliss, ''who has Withdrawn from the bank be
cause OF the old mans unprincipled actions.
know Of at least three who have pulled out
within the past week"
Mr. Bliss declined to state what his patronage
amounted to- but q confidential friend said the
cash deposits Of Bliss IL Co. amour ted to $60
O00 No statement concerning the ipciden,
could be had from President Hutchinson, save
the information that the Corn Exchange Bans
could GET along comfortably without the patron
age of Mr.. Bliss. the deposits Of the institution
being q million dollars in excess of the total q
year ago.
During the day "Old Hutch" drew out of tn,
clearing house check for eos. 900 as his profits
~