New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-08-02
FAILURE OF JOHN CUDAHY
PROVISION DEAL COLLAPSES.
SEVERAL wELL-KNOwN CHICAGO COMMITS
SION HOUSES ALSO GO UNDER.
SCENES OF WILD EXCITEMENT ON TIE BOARD
OF TRADE-CHARLEs WRIGHT AND n. X.
FAIRBANK HEAVY LOsERs-MoRE
FAILURES EXPECTED TO-DAY.
IBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUNr.J

FAILURES EXPECTED TO-DAY
IBY TELEGRAPH THE TRIBUNEJ
Chicago Aug. 1.-The great provision deal which
has been for months collapsed to-day. Pork
dropped from $40 TO $40 barrel. and there was a
corresponding decline in lard and ribs John
cudahy the noted Spectator. went under together
with several of the best known houses of the Board
Of Trade. amid the widest scenes of excitement
that have been Witnessed the Board for many
day. The result of the Cudahy failure seems
10 be almost as disastrous to the Board of Trade
interests as was the collapse of the great Fidelity
Bank wheat deal of six years ago, and tomorrow
is awaited with great anxiety by many. Several
brokers expressed the opinion that more failures
would be recorded soon and that all those who
heavily interested in the provision deals have not
vet been shaken out. John Cudahy has, it is said.
been virtually running two deals, in lard. with
n. X. Fairbank, and one in pork. with Charlie"
Wright. 1t is also currently reported that he
heavily interested in wheat and corn and the great
drop in the cereals Of late. together with the re-
ported inability of Wright to put up margins, is
said to be indirectly responsible for his failure
Rumors have been current for several days that
tho people In the deals hard pressed for ready
money. Banks chary Of making loans. This
morning was the first day for putting up margins
to carry the deal through August 1t was two
months to the end of September, when Wright
would have a chance to gather his harvest. But
Wright didn't have the necessary money. The
firms with whom he dealt tried to market some
of the stuff. but would buy. Down went the
price dollar after dollar. until from Ns % bar
rel last night it selling at SIS.
Then the failures came Secretary Stone was
told to announce tie suspension of the firms OF
j. c. Steever Co.. f. W. Bailey & Co. and A. C.
Helmholz g. Co. Then. amid tremendous excite
ment the price dropped to SO So from which there
was rally to s11. Brokers were dazed at the
announcement in spite of the knowledge that
the '.cornerers' hard pushed. Failures had
been expected from the direction or the cereal
pits but not in provisions. Immediately the story
spread that Wright had burden that he could
not carry. and on top of this it was said that
John Cudahy would not have allowed MS ola
friend Steever to go to the wall if he could com
mand the means to save him. Prices ieil OIL again
and pandemonium reigned Then. a httie pelore
noon came In the announcement OF the iahu'e vi
the North American Provision Company III was
known then that Cudahy must be in the general
crash.
Forty minutes before the closing hour secretary
stane again raped for order. and called out:
''An those who have trades with Johh Nuud"s
will please close them out In spite oil 'ie pre-
d,ctions of this occurrence the shock had not
Ieasened much and bedlam broke loose BroKeis
raa,,ysd that the panic caused by the failure of
Cudahy and the firms previously announced would
probabl drag down other concerns ana 'ha' II iis
mean the failure of some OF the largest p"0ni,'e
houses in the country. The Cudahy brothers 'oii'
all their business ventures. The John Cudahy
Company and the packing houses in Omaha ana
Milwaukee the property OF the tro' ~
Lard which sold from ~ 10 GOWN u - w.
dropped to s. In less than six secohus fo'h ""u
.ueered earlier in the session, so ~ cent set
back was SUFFICIENT. All values suffered seVereH
fran, the shock Quickly came the announcement
% tn suspension Of Wright & Haughey' an ola
ana highly respected firm on the floor Prices wen.
further downhill. Ribs struck a 70 W poih' an"
sevtenber wheat went off for % rs cents ou' i~e
there waa a little reaction, and pork got ABOVE the
a., ,.rk Within two minutes of the close prices
FOR wheat retrograded and struck the lowest point
~ the day. IS IA At the close August wheat iost
its props and sold at 90 "a cents WIN % -
asked for the September product Pork was on 10
go . barrel and lard and ribs closed at 10 eZ IL
and IS % l-2 With a drop of IS 10 from YESTERDAY
closing price the estimated shrlnkage III 'ie Naiu
~ mess pork on hand is 81 IS IL But that may
be only a fractional part OF the amount iea'' -
yolyed In the several failures
I, is the general belief among those VINO are !"
. no.,,,on 70 be posted that Cudahy's failure is
complete Less than month ago ne va" 49,
rentlv said to be worth $S,VoO,WO Tie II hh'eie''e
I, hacking houses in Chicago, Wisconsin io"a'
Nebraska and Kansas. and had 10 use vast SUMS
of money in the legitimate branches OF ousic''
nack,ng and distribution His great resources "eie
drained TO support his speculative ventures anu m
fortune spread out over enterprises III i've
=. - ,,r,e Ike this was inadequate TO meet the
those near to him say that MS iegi''iha.e en-
tsos xiu not suffer Rumor places the losses Oh
himself and Fsirbank ct nearly Sl'VoVo aPieoe'
there is absolutely no trustworthy au'"''' "
such figures. , g, ono ooo
. -, ,oao known as one Of the plucsiest
oo,,a,ors in the business. lie started as "clsi
or AT one OF the scales in the STOCK yaruS an" -,
seouently branched out as scaipei III ~ e
market This is not the first time thal NE I
nous trading upon insufficient capital mas Droue" :,
Mr Wright 10 grief. He has always peeh ho'eu
for extreme audacity. In the rb deal mean wv
80 a,o Wright is understood to have inade oNei
million How he stands now Is matter u w
lecture At one time in the present ueai It 20 a,a
he could have pulled out with more 'iiai' '''
proat but he wanted TO make more anu
o,nulat.d q stock of pork which TOOK nearly
- ~ 900 ., carry besidcs margins to be put up on
an ,ass above this amount. Wright said 'hiS
.varng that he went broke" because Cuuahy anu
Fairbank would not put up any hoie MAJ -,
their Joint accounts in pork ana iaru ii.Hi'
saws he suspended because wright MS ~ r'
could no, raise any more money, the paiihs ieiu
inc 90 maize further advances on hog product
=, A. h,h nrces at which 1t was held in the
speculative pit ,,o. o.,s.d nro
found SUNRISE on the Board. This hrm was known
to be extremely conservative. Inc "i'emc "
firm I, sbould be understood. Is not 'hailes
- ,,,,,bt said this afternoon: The
failure If our firm was due to the ihaDn'y VI
Messrs Cudahy and Farbank, who nave oeen I'm
Quoting the immense lard deals 10 put UP ,, S,o
This thing came as surprise u u ,,airhapk
been operating largely for Cudahy anu s,es
sna ,I'.,, ,n'1a,, ,bese gentlemen had no DIM
Guilty cult in responding to marginal calls The failure
OF Mr. Wright i'm his immense pork uea' ~
general dstrust. and Cudahy ana argins They
called on for immense sums loi mo" shnrt notice
were unable TO secure the money on -, n,r deals
and consequently we decided to cose a., ourseves
In private sense the failure doesh | nun ~
Mr.. Haughey myself. - ..r h.ve lost con-
Eairbank