Morris tribune., 1892-09-28

(496 pounds) or common quarter (4oo
pouads) On the same date, March 3d.
the London quotations for the Leading
Minnesota grades were as follows:
No. / Northern, 81 to 3Ss per Imp. or
No. hard, 3ss Cd to S9s I'D per Imp. Or.
Computing these figures in bushels
and cents we find that on March 20 No
Northern was quoted in Liverpool al
sic per bushel. and in London at $l.Os
per busheL On the same date No hard
was quoted at $1.1S in London, while
Liverpool does not give any quotations
for this grade on that day. The Mime
apohs price on the same date was 7So
per bushel. This, plus 30 cents allowed
by The Great West for freight and other
charges, equals $1.09. In other words,
the Liverpool price was 3 cents higher
than the closing price at Minneapolis,
and the London price only cent higher.
This, then, is the extent Of the robbery.
If the figure given by The Great West
had been the real instead of supposed
quotation, the difference would have
been about so cents, as claimed by Don
nelly's paper. But the editor Of that
sheet was not in the business
of telling the truth. His object was to
mislead and deceive by juggling with
figures. He made use of figure ap-
preaching the retail price Of wheat in
London at tiaat time, but which had no
relation whatever to the wholesale price
in the English market. But that did
not trouble his conscience. He attained
his purpose of deception and undoubt-
edly congratulated himself upon his sue
cess.
If a profit of 80 cents and upwards
could be realized On every bushel OF
wheat shipped from the Northwest to
England, there would be no more profit
able business in the United States than
that of exporting grain from the North
western wheat fields to Europe. The
elevator managers and grain men of the
Northwest are generally recognized as
able and keen business men who know
all there is to know about the grain
trade. It stands to reason that they
would not be slow in taking advantage
of such exceptional opportunities
for the profitable employment of
their brains, energies and capital. We
are, however, confronted with the singu-
lar fact that grain exporter is very
rare bird in the Northwest. None of
the elevator companies in this section
are exporters of wheat. Several of them
have experimental in this line, but their
experience was discouraging; they lost
money on the business and went out of
it. Among the commission houses we
find only two or three exporting firms,
and even these send out cargoes only
now and then. Men who make it their
principal business to export grain to
Europe or other foreign parts are not
found in the Northwest, although they
could make profit of 3O to go cents on
every bushel exported-if such public
instructors as Donnelly, "Doc" Fish and
their followers are to be believed. Is it
not astonishing that the ''wheat robbers"
of the Northwest should be so utterly
blind to such magnificent opportunities
for getting rich without risk or effort?
The plain truth of the matter, as any
fair-nlinded and sensible man will see
and understand, is, Of course, that
the growing intensity of competi-
ton and the continued improve
ment and perfection of the va
rious means of transportation have re-
duced the margin Of profit to mini
mum in the ;srain trade as in all other
lines of business. The export of grain
is, moreover, business which is subject
to exceptional risks and uncertainties.
AS al illustration of this, below is given
a full account of the sale of a cargo Of
wheat shipped from Duluth to Glasgow.
It consisted Of 1929 bushels No. /
Northern, was shipped from Duluth to
Buffalo via steamer North Wind and to
Glasgow via steamer State of Indiana.
1t was sold at Glasgow June 30, 1890, at
81. .OS per bushel, 81 days credit.
The charges and account of sale, etc.,
read as follows: