Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1891-09-23
PINCHED IN A CORNER
Tie Flrm OF s. V. White Forced
10 suspend
n,saIrIES About s2.O00eo.
Al "a 20 CaEasr tlss Core Market
Czsehss tAs FaEm Wh~a shert aud
IAsy 90 Usadsr ~fsh = srssA-
Wall street Exestsa


ca, banker a1d brokers At - Val
street have made an assignment
Thar liabilities are estimated at 81
90. 000. ana ~hlle II u isap0sslble At
present 70 give the anoant % the
assets the hru's friends declare that
the creditors VIII lose nothing.
The cause OF the trOubls is de-
slaFed % be the disastrous failure of
al atteapt 70 corner September corn
As = matter Of fact. the firm was long
on IL 10000 bushels Of Septen-
bsr corn which Chicago opera
tors pulled down from 49, 70
IS cents in ten days Charles
w. Goola, the lawyer. is assignee.
and there are no preferences The
story went that there was another firm
mixed up and that ;. V. White 4 Co.
were carrying some Of It's paper This.
however, was denied By the firm IN
question The excitement is intense
and the widest sort OF rumors are hy-
ing thick and fast
The announcement Of the failure
was made in Chicago simultaneously
with the announcement here The
" White and Franklin w. Hopkins.
The Chicago branch consists of ). V.
White. h. W. Hopkins. A. w. Allen
and Arthur White. The firms corn
eontr icts have been mostly In Chicago
Not since the Barring complications
last November has Wall street expert
enced such a sensation Pandemonium
reigned ON the stock exchange as soon
as the presidents gayel fell for the
opening Of business. The floor was
crowded 70 suffocation and the express
sion upon the faces of a majority of the
traders was one OF anxious expecta-
ton The market opened feverish.
owing to the rumors on the street after
the close of business last evening that a
big house Was in trouble and unable
10 meet its contracts The
suspense was at its height when
the chairman called the room
20 order and announced that s. V.
White & Co. had made an assignment
Wall street received the news OF
the failure with the utmost astonish-
ment The house has been looked upon
as = very solid one Moreover,
tho deacon" was q bull on stocks
The bulls have been having things
their own way for some time past But
when il became known that the failure
was due to the drop in corn the street
was able TO understand is.
For some two months past reports
and rumors have been rife in the grain
markets, both here and in Chicago. of
the formation and operation of q pow
erful clique of bull operators who had
combined TO put up corn prices and to
corner that cereal as far as possible.
>. V. White was said to be
at the head of the clique or pool. and it
was rumored that several other prom
inent Wall street men were in it p. ID.
Armour and other well-known Chica-
60 men were alleged TO be short
heavily of corn The small stocks
of corn at the principal re-
ceiving points in the United
States favored the clique. They also
took good care to point out that.
though the company's crop promised to
be an enormous one, it hadn't been
harvested and SO it could not all be
safe before the end OF September or
the beginning of October. just
about month ago the clique
was at the height of its power
On August al last, on the produce
exchange. the August option for corn
sold At 7ec per bnshel, the September
at 7s%c and the October at 72JSc. Since
then there has been big slump.
Monday there were no sales on the ex-
change OF September corn. but its bid
price was code, and October's high
est price was sake
The senior member of the house,
who is known as the deacon" is one
Of the best-kno~n bulls AZ the market,
and his downfall Is due To ais attempt
70 bear stocks at the same time that he
was bulling corn.
I. is believed that the liabilities Of
the firm are in the neighborhood of So
600. 000 The assets are not known,
but a mem Der Of the firm is authority
for the statement that all creditors will
be paid in full
The news OF the failure caused a
furry on the produce exchange. DC.
scber corn, which closed Monday at
59his. dropped Immediately 20 57xc
The depression. however. was only
temporary aud the market soon began
70 rally. Various opinions were held
as 70 the effect Of the failure IL was
not generally thought that il would
permanently unsettIc prices