The morning call., 1893-08-02
CUDAHY IS DOWN.
Collapse of a Corner in
Pork.
COULD NOT RAISE MONEY.
Chicago Has Never Known
Greater Smash.
WIDE INTERESTS ARE INVOLVED
The Effect of the Failure Will Prob
ably Be Felt Around the
World.
Special to THE MORNING CALL.

CHICAGO, aug. Ii Quay was one OF
the most disastrous in the history of the
Board of Trade here Wealthy firms and
individuals were bowled over like n ine-
pins and prices Of hog products tumbled
like an avalanche. Cid members, who had
been through the turmoil of many col
lapsed corner in both grain aud provisions.
stood aghast at the rapidity with which
the prices OF mess pork went down. A
sheer drop OF IS 25 per barrel inside of
three.Quarters of an hour is something not
witnessed every day.
Soon after the opening this morning
Secretary Stone appeared in the balcony
and announced that those having trades
with the well-known firms of j. &. Steever
q Co. E. w. Bailey & Co. and A. Helm
host & Co. should close them out, and up
went mighty roar from the provision pit.
AS early as last March it became apparent
10 the trade that mess pork was being
bulled through these houses. and it soon
became noised about that A. W. Wright.
known on the board as "Charley" Wright,
was behind the DEAL The year before he
and John Cudahy had carried through
deal in ribs which netted them about
S2.O00,0OO.
The condition of the money market for
some time past aud the difficulty of OBJ
tanning the necessary funds to carry on
enormous deals have 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
to-day holdings were so small that it was
next to impossible to find them. The first
nffer heard by the quotation officials after
the announcement Of the failures was
SIS rs per barrel. against S19 at the close
yesterday. The next bid was SIS, then
SIT 80, and so il went, 80 cents to 81 at
time. till the price touched $40 80. loss of
SIS % per barrel in forty minutes. This
was drop Of nearly so per cent, or $780,
900 on the visible supply of $4,000 barr4ls.
Then reaction carried the price back
to S12 and things were moving along
smoothly, when suddenly 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 capital of $25O.O00,
in which John Cudahy Is largely inter-
d
firm chiefly engaged IN receiving and
shipping wheat. but who are understood
to be interested with Cudahv in his deals
in the provision pit; and finally of Cudahy
himself. the great packer and daring op-
orator in provisions. the man interested in
the packing trade in half dozen States,
including plants at Chicago, Milwaukee.
maha, Louisville. Los Angeles and Nash
vile: the man whose wealth has been re-
Gently estimated at no less than S1S.0OO.-
O0O 1t was not doubted that he had used
every means of raising money before
Lying down."
The announcement of his failure had
scarcely been made when furious storm
broke loose in the lard crowd. September
was at SO Is in early trading; it was at So
within six minutes after the announce
ment of Cudahv's failure. September
short ribs broke from 81 25 to S5 S7114a but
before the close both rallied, hard to
Sc 62R and ribs to Sc 80.
1t was said by one cuse to Cudahy that
his private affairs were entirely separate
from his partnership matters, and that the
various companies which be controls and
in which he is interested with his two
brothers are not directly affected by the
failure.
1t is estimated that the losses on pork to
have been bought for Wright are nearly |
S500,000, but no one pretends to estimate
Cudahy's losses. Wright declares that
Cudahy and A. K. Fairbank were both |
interested with him, end that the trouble |
came about because they wouldn't put up
moro margins. Fairbank, in an inter-
view this evening, said he had lost some |
money, but was all right.