Morning journal and courier., 1889-04-30
THAT CORNER IN CATS.

How Collins Got the Better of Aims
 cow and Forced Profitable Conn
 promise.
 From the Philadelphia Inauirer.1
 DEBUQUE. Ia., April 19.-The cat indus try has assumed remarkable proportions in this city. A sudden demand has sprung up for felines of all ages, and the supply is not sufficient to meet the requests.
 About two weeks ago B man named Aims COW arrived from Jamestown, Dak., and be- gan to make inquiries about cats. He called on the Mayor, who thought him a harmless crank and gave him no satisfaction. MT. Ainscow was wroth, and persisted that he
 was pursuing legitimate business. He called on butchers and hotel keepers an d
 made known his desire to purchase all kinds
 of cats at a reasonable figure. They were
 indignant, considering the request an insinu-
 ation that they served feline flesh to their
 patrons. Mr. Ainscow then took more
 business-like method. He rented an empty
 warehouse, and inserted advertisements in
 all the local papers, offering from 10 to 50
 cents for cats, graded according to age, size
 and breed The effect was instantaneous.
 Cats began to pour in at an astonishing rate.
 In three days Mir. Ainscow purchased 2,7OO
 cats at an average price of 50 cents.
 warehouse was overrun with them, and ow- ing to the warlike propensities of some of the older specimens of the male sex frequent fights took place. As result seventeen cats were killed and thirty-five suffered wounds, net loes of $10 to Mr. Aims COW.
 All this time the people of this city were laughing at Ainscow, and calling him fool, crank, and other pleasant epithets. They took him for the crankiest kind of a crank. It was en the fourth day that his plans were developed. Seven cars were loaded with cats and shipped to Jamestown. They were packed in cages, so that they could be at tended to.
 About this time an contemplating reporter named Collins found out that cats were an article of commerce. A telegram from Jamestown stated that the farmers in the Jim River Valley were overrun with mice, that were destroying the grain in the bins, and that cats were at high premium. Good, healthy tomcats were quickly picked up by the farmers St $3 each, and any cat with teeth was worth $2; game Angoras l ranged as high as $5. This opened the eyes of Reporter Collins. He stopped writing funny stories about Ainscow and tried to corner the market. He started a cat exchange at 327 High street, in opposition to Ainscow. He offered higher prices and soon captured the available supply. AS soon as thrifty farmer entered town, with @ dozen cats for
 sale, Collins would either purchase them on the spot, or, assuring the owner that cats l would be much higher in a week, would | take an option on them at high figure and sand the farmer back home to wait for the rise As-kittens under six months were not considered "good delivery" he purchased l options on them to be delivered later. The excitement became intense. Cats which ! were formerly considered valueless were now | held at high figure. Kittens, instead or being drowned before their eyes were opened, were taken care of assiduously, and prepara- tions were in progress to start breeding
 farm By his ingenious methods Collins .oIinns
 rosa rapidly. He pulled prime toms from 35
 to 9s cents; mediums of both sexes from 20
 to 56; ordinary back yard and garret stock. | from IS to A cents; culls, from to 1s cents. In some cases super extra fighters brought s1 25 each. In seven days Collins was Hong" of about TOGO cats, of which he held 3,2O0, and the rest were for futureNle-
 livery, ranging from four to twenty days. In the mean time Ainscow had tried to