St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-02-12
HOLD YOUR WHEAT.
Pillsbury Alleged to Have
Been Back Of the Famous
Circular.
The Minneapolis Miller Was
Long a Big Line Of
Wheat,
And the Circular Was Gotten
Up to Allow Him to
Unload.
Pillsbury Confessed That He
Distributed Some Of the
Circulars.

CHICAGO, Feb. 1l.-Ino Herald tnlS
morning prints a three-column article,
dated Minneapolis, charging in sub
stance that the 'hold your wheat" cir
cular issued in July, 1891, which pur-
ported to emanate from Farmers ALI
ance headquarters, was i'll fact the pro-
duction of Hugo Mattulah, wh9 got it
up at the instance of Charles A. Pills
bury. The Herald article asserts that
Pillsbury was long big line of wheat
for speculative interest in Chicago. in
addition to which he had 100000
bushels of surplus wheat stored in the
Pillsbury-W ashbarn elevators. The
article then continues:
"Along in May Pillsbury suggested
that it might be a good idea forMat
tulah to help him carry some of the old
wheat, which was sure to prove good
investment. This did not appeal to the
Shrewd German, but later on he in turn
suggested scheme to the willy miller,
who eventually agreed to give it Ger
tain amount of financial backing. This
deep-laid plot was nothing less than
bold project to retard the deliveries OF
wheat by the farmers on the new crop,
thus enhancing the value of the 4.000,-
900 bushels of wheat lying in the Pills
bury elevators by soaring shorts into
bidding up prices, at which advance
PIIlsb4,ry Would Unload
his speculative holdings and quietly
ship cash wheat to Duluth. In the
profits of this cunningly devised deal
Mattulath was to receive certain diyi-
dend and stipulated amount OF cash
for working EXPENSES"
The story goes on to state that the
''hold your wheat circular was then
devised, and that in order to give it
wide circulation Mattulath secured a
controlling interest III the st. Paul
State. The next thing was to get
the Endorsement Of the officers of the
Farmers Alliance. Having secured
sufficient funds" the article continues,
"Matulath, with copy of the circular
in his pocket and the State at st. Paul
ready to boom his scheme, went to
Washington to see the national officers
of the Alliance. There he met with de-
lays and disappointm ents. but finally
secured the approval of H. w. Aver,
private secretary of President Polk, of
the Alliance, and manager of the Alli-
ance press bureau of information. Aver
gave him letter. which he was to use
in securing the acceptance of the cir
cular's official character.
''At this period the Chicago Herald
came very uear running the whole prof.
ect. In order to more readily place
the Importance of the scheme before
those whose backing was desired several
proof copies of the circular had been
struk off, which were carefully guarded
by
Those on the Inside.
But the Herald obtained possession of
one, and, while Mattulath was rushing
around the country trying to get things
fixed, it printed the entire circular YER
batim. This brought Mattulath back to
Minneapolis in a rage. The matter had
been sprung prematureiy, and 1t was
necessary to push the scheme to imme-
date execution. The circulars were at
once sent out, several millions in all,and
the most vehement efforts made to render
then effective. Prices took little squirt
upward, and as soon as the market be
gan to climb Pillsbury dumped his hold
ings in Chicago, while upwards of a
million bushels of wheat were taken
rom the Minneapolis elevators and
shipped to Duluth at an advance.
While the Observation-Disclosures circulars
were tranticaIly admonishing the farm
ers to Hold your wheat-don't sell I'M
der $780, Farmer Pillsbury was hurry
ing his line to market to Chicago
and Duluth as fast as he knew
how. A subsequent reputation of
the circular by President Polk
had a quetlng effect, and prices reacted
so that Farmer Pilsbury was forced to
discontinue his operations and was
obliged to carry his wheat until fall,
when he managed to dispose of 1t on
-. duo tO nlliSh m nj
ulations of the traders at Chicago, whom
the circular had denounced to the farm
ers as their worst enemies, pet phrase
of Pillbury's, who later on inserted it III
his anti-option bill.
During the entire time pending the
issuance of the circular Mattulath
plunged heavily in grain speculation.
Eventually he went flat broke on the
Minneapolis chamber of commerce
Trying To Bull Wheat,
and was forced to pawn his watch in
order to leave town, his quasi-partner
refusing at that time to furnish him
with more funds. The State, the AL
lance paper which had sent out
the circular as a supplement-,
and had taken charge of the
work of the general distribution,
was bankrupted. AS his share toward
the printing and dissemination of his
swindling circular. Charles A. Pillsbury.
the friend of the farmer, paid Hugo
Mattulath $4,000 in cash, and perhaps
more, but this much is certain. Whether
the German made PillSbury actually be-
iieye that the Alliance as an organiZa-
ton had agreed to indorse the cir
cular is not quite clear. 10 the cor
respondent of the Herald, who saw
the suave miller in his Office. Pillsbury
denied all knowledge of the existence
of the circular until after it appeared.
He confessed he had helped to dlstrib
ute some of the circulars, believing they
were official mouthpieces of the AL
lance, and also admitted that he con-
tributed funds to help defray the cost
of printing, postage and clerical hire"
The article gives long and some
what unsatisfa Glory interview with Mr..
Pillsbury, in which the whole ground is
gone over again, and which Mr.. Pills
bury declares that he sold only half a
million bushels on the bulge produced
by the circular; that even this he was
forced to do by his partner, who was a
bear, and that he himself was bull Oh
wheat and would not have sold bushel |
except under pressure.