The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1893-08-03
JOHN CADAHY FAILS.
MESS PORK AND LARD DROP oNE-HALF
IN FORTY MINUTES.
Cadahy and Friends Try For a Corner But
the Financial stringsncy Breaks Them.
Bank And Other Business
Failures.

pins anu prices OF nOS prOuucGs WeuI
tumbling like an avalanche. Dealers
on the Chicago board are accustomed
to exciting scenes and kaleidoscope
changes in values, for this market
seems to be the storm center where
both upward and downward pushes
in price of the worlds food products
are most severely felt. But old men,
bers of the board who have been
through the whirl and chatter Of many
collapsing corners of both grain and
provisions, actually stood aghast at
the rapidity with which the price of
mess pork went down. A sheer drop
of 1926 per barrel inside OF three
quarters of an hour is enough to take
away the breath of Old Stentor him
self, but Stentor is not in it with some
of the howlers on the board. His
deepest tones would sound like
a consumptive whine beside the roar
which goes up on the board when
there is anything exciting on. There
was a hush, however, near opening
time this morning when Secretary
Stone appeared on the balcony and
notified all concerned that those hav-
ing trades with the we'll known pro.
vision brokerage firms of j. G. Sleeve
& Co.. E. w. Bailey & Co., and A.
Helmholse g. Co., should proceed to
close them out. Silence lasted for a
second after the close of the announce
ment and then mighty roar went up
from the provision pit.
AS early as last March it became APP
parent to the trade that mess pork
was being bulled through these
houses, and il soon became noised
about in the provision trade that A.
w. Wright was behind the deal, Year
before last he started corner in ribs,
and with the help of John
Cudahy carried it through
to success, making large
amount of money. Apparently, ac-
cording to the general opinion on the
board, he had started to run similar
deal in mess pork. The collapse has
been looked for some weeks as the
monetary situation became more
aud more strained, and borrowing OF
money to put up in margins more and
more difficult, everybody not inter-
ested in the deal drew out, leaving the
market SO dull there was scarcely
enough business to establish quota
tions. When the bubble finally burst
the prices were so small 1T was next to
impossible to find them.
The first order heard by quotation
officially after the announcement OF
the failures was $3.50 per barrel
against $40 90 at the close Yesterday:
The next bid was $18, then $l75O. and
so it went, so cents to 81 at time, with
very little hesitation at any point
until the price touched at
$40. so, a loss of $S.25 per barrel
in 40 minutes. These are official tig-
ures, but it is reliably vouched for that
a sale was made at $40 and several as
low as $40, drop of So or nearly oo
Der cent. Then the market became
ouieter and good buying at the enor-
nous decline carried prices back to
S12. and subsequent events had only
temporary effect on it. -,
Things were moving along with
ominous smoothness when another
and heavier shock came in the an
nouncement by the secretary In quick
succession of the failures OF the North
American Provision company, pack
ing concern with capital OF sou ,OOO,
in which Jack Cudahy was largely in
terested, of Wright & Haughey, re-
spectacle firm, chiefly engaged in the
receiving and shipping of wheat,
but who were understood to be
interested with Cudahy in his deals in
the provision pit, and finally OF Cud-
ahy himself, the great packer and dar-
ing operator in provisions, man inter-
ested in the packing trade IN haif the
states, including plants at chicago;
Milwaukee, Omaha, Louisville and
Nashville, a man whose wealth. mas
been recently estimated at no less IMAM
S1S 900, 900, of which about $S,O0O, OOO
was made in the deal in ribs last fall;
1t was not doubted that he had used
every means of raising money before
living down, or that he had lent a
helping hand to his friend Charlie
Wright before the final pinch came.
But the financial moose was drawn
tighter and tighter. he had a Dig
deal in lard and was interested in ribs
and the strain became too great TO
bear.
The announcements of his failure had
scarcely died on the secretary's lips
before the storm broke loose again,
fills time in lard. That commodity
had held extremely steady throughout
the slump in pork, but it in turn
mounted the toboggan and went down
az though self fabricated. The price
for Sepfember was 1915 per tierce in
early trading. 1t was. So within SIX
@in1tes after Cudahy's failure was
announced, and September short ribs,
which sold early at 1925, broke to
s54s7 IL. Before the close, hoWeve r,
both rallied, the former to S6'62 IL
and the latter to $500.
II was said oy one close to Cudahy
that his private affairs were entirely
S Sa from partnership matters and
the various companies which he con,
troIs and ia which he is interested
with his two brothers, Mike and Pat'
e a not directly affected by his failure.
e. Is estimated that the losses on pork
a IL 90 TO have been bought for
& WrEgSbt was between 100000 and
e50o 200 No one pretends to estimate
%S HuS9,Ibov, losses. Charlie Wright de-