The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-08-02
A BIG TUMBLE IN PORK.
It Forces the Great Chicago
Packer Cudahy Down.
A DROP OF FIFTY PER CENT.
Several Other Wealthy Firms Knocked
Down Like Nine Pins.
An Avalanche Struck the Chicago Board
of Trade, the Result Was the Most
Disastrous in its History-The
Corner in Mess Pork Broken.

CHICAGO, Aug. To-day was one.of
board of trade here. Wealthy firms and
individuals were bowled over like nine
pins and prices of hog prodocts tumbled
like an avalanche. Old members, who
had been through the turmoil of many
collapsed corner, both in grain and pro-
visions, stood aghast at the rapidity with
which the price of mess pork went down.
A sheer drop of 1925 per barrel inside of
three quarters of an hour is something
not witnessed every day. Soon after the
opening this morning Secretary Stone ap-
peared in the balcony and announced that
those having trades with the well-known
firms of. G.. Steever & Company, E. w.
Bailey & Company and A. Helmhalse &
Company should close them out. And
up went mighty roar from the provision
pit.
As early as last March it became appar-
emit to the trade that mess pork was be-
ing pulled through these houses and it
soon became noised about that A. w.
Wright, known on the board as 'sChar-
ley' Wright, was behind the deal. A
year before he and John Cudahy carried
through deal in ribs which netted them
two millions.
The condition of the money market for
some time past and the difficulty to
carry on the enormous deals has been
playing havoc with the leaders of this
one, and as the situation became more
strained everybody not near the head of
the deal drew out, leaving the market
so dull that there was scarcely enough
business to establish quotations. When
the bubble finally burst today the pieces
were SO small that it was next to imDossi-
bic to find them. The first offer heard by
quotation officials after the announce
ment of the failures was S1S.75 per barrel
against T19. 90 at the close yesterday. The
next bid was S18. 90, then $3.50, and it
sort of went so cents to 81 at time till
the price touched S10.50 a loss of IS. 25
per barrel in forty minutes. This was a
drop OF nearly 30 per cent. or $3.50, 900 on
the visible supply of 80 900 barrels. Then
the reaction carried the price back to SIP.
Things were moving along smoothly
when suddenly there came thunder clap
in the shape of the announcement in
quick succession of the failures of the
North American Provision company, a
packing concern, with a capital of a
quarter million in which John Cudahy
was largely interested; of Wright and
| Haughey, broker firm chiefly engaged
| in receiving and shipping wheat, but
who were understood to be interested
with Cudahy in his deals in the provision
| pit, and finally OF Cudahy him.
self, the great packer and daring
operator in provisions, man interested
in the packing trade in & half dozen states
| including plants at Chicago, Milwaukee,
Omaha, Louisville and Nashville, man
whose wealth had been recently estima-
ted at no less than S1S, 900, 600 and it was
not doubted that he had used every means
of raising money before lying down.
| The announcement of his failure was
scarcely made when alfurious storm broke
loose in the lard crowd. September was
1915 in early trading. 1t was Sc within
six minutes after the announcement that
Cudahy had failed and September short
ribs broke from $7.75 to $5.871z. Before
| the close, however, both rallied, lard to
$685. and ribs to $3.50.
| 1t was said by those close to Cudahy
| that his private affairs were entirely sep
arate from his partnership matters, and
| that the various companies which ne con-
| trolls and in which he is interested with
his two brothers are not directly affected
by the failure. 1t is estimated that losses
on pork, bought for Weight, are nearly
$500, 200. No one pretends to estimate
Cudahy's losses. Weight declares thai
Cudahy and N. K. Fairbanks were both
interested with him, and the trouble
came about because they wouldn't put w
more margins. Fairbanks, in an inter.
view, said he had lost some money, but
was all right.