Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1890-12-05
N MONOPOLY CONTROLS WHEAT.
z StihingH Interesting Story Told Of the
y stal d. Oil company-How it
Aphes Money.
The edoeA ef Fam PRODUCTS Railroads
Congress and State Legisiature Un-
s8;5 f4,s der its Thumb.

Congress and State Legislature Un-
der its Thumb.
Chicago's wheat market is controlled by
the Standard Oil Company For nearly
four years the octopus has deftly mani
pulated the wheat markets of the country,
and it has done its insidious work so
quietly. but at the same time SO effective
ly that few in the trade have even dream
ed of the extent Of it's power. The
/ petroleum market is now only play
thing for Vhe giant corporation with it's
untold plfions at its back. For years it
bleG as even now is sucking the life
blood Pf the oil trade Of the country.
But sl culations in crude petroleum is
and has been for months in the. dumps,
and trading is practically dead. It was
the Standard that killed the oil cock
/ robin, and hundreds of brokers who once
dabbled in the greasy commodity have
been driven: out of business and been
compelled to seek a livelihood in other
channels. Some Of these self same
brokers are in Chicago now. The once
\ lively petroleum exchange in New York,
Bradford, Pitsburg, Mtusville, Philadel-
4 phia and Oil City, in days not long gone
by traded in millions of barrels daily.
Now the average daily clearances Of all
\ the exchanges combined are so small that
they are of no significance and move
ment is on foot to shut up the handsome
oil exchange in Pittsburg.
The Standard Oil company killed specu-
lation in crude oil because it found it to its
xZterest to do So A wealthy but retired
IroSSer who knows all the ms and outs of
thes ind wheat trades is spending a few
daya 1t one Of Chicago's leading hotels.
He made some startling revela tions as to
the status Of the Standard Oil Campany
on the wheat question. "'The Standaed, Z
! he said, went into wheat four years ago,
and today controls not only the Chicago
market but the markets Of the country.
The standards S leader broker for a long
time was Hutchinson, and the big four,
too are sinterestd: The Standard is play.
Il ing nine pins with wheat and is using al
& most the identical methods which char
acterized its treatment Of the oil market.
1t pulls the string from its tall marble
building at 26 Broadway, New York, and
prices advance or decline at its sweet
will. The story sounds unreasonable,
does it not? Mark my words well.
Some day, and it is not far distant, the
wheat trade will wake up and find iUself
firmly enmeshed in the terrible tentacles
of the octopus. What is true of the oil
market vii. be repeated but on much
larger scale, in wheat. Do you know
IfpV the Standard worked the oil market?
1as simple enough. The Standard
= ID, at enormous expense one of the
bS!t posted nlen, in the trade. All he had
to do was to make the market He had
his office at 26 Broadway. There hewent
every morning and from the head moguls
of the company received his ordersssfor
the day. II the Standard ordered a
bull market it was bull; if it wanted to
bear, it issued its flat, and the market
was bear. That one man manipulated
the market as he pleased. Brokers form
ed combinations to fight him, but ruin
stared them in the face, and one by one
the big traders were gathered under the
Standards all-powerful wing. Today
well, the memory of it all makes me sick
at heart. There was one restriction
placed on the Standards hired man. He
was bound by oath not to speculate,
therefore his identity was kept secret.
You remember the story about Samp-
son and the woman, told in holy writ
Well, this all-powerful individual, who
bore the common name of Jones, had his
Deliah. While in New York l frequent
ed a French restaurant on Twenty-third
street. The proprietor spoke poor Eng
lish. was then broker en- the floor Of
the consolidated stock and petroleum ex-
change and represented a big oil produc-,
alfing firm. One day the restaurant man
fcame to me and ordered me to buy. 1000
shares Of New York s. New England
railroad stock You know Rockefeller is
the heaviest holder of the companys
] stock, and the Standard Oil Company
runs and directs the road. He offered
$100 as a margin, l told him that the
stock was liable to tluctuate four or five
points either way. Then in his bad Eng
lish he told me that he knew what he
was about; that the stock would not go
below 43sc. I knew that he had money
and would meet his obligation, so filled
the order. Sure enough he called the
turn and cleared $1,000. The next day
he sold short and again came out a big
winner. Then he tried oil and wheat
and his luck was simply phenomenal l
began to cultivate his acquaintance. I
became regular patron and he engaged
me as his broker. One day, while drunk,