The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1895-10-23
LOOKS LIKE TEN CENTS
COTTON.
The Phenomenal Rise in the
Price of the Fleecy Staple.

Price of the Fleecy Staple.
TLs strength displayed by the bull
side Of the cotton market just now is
simply phenomenal Again and
again the bears have attacked the
figures with a determination which
during any other season would have
sent them topping, and they have
not only been met, but yanquished,
on each occasion. These facts can
only mean that the bulls have
supreme confidence in the shortness
Of the crop. and consequently in ten
cent cotton before the new year
One Of the biggest bear raids of
the season was expected yesterday.
and it was made, but with very lin.
tied success. Nearly everything
favored the shorts. and for an hour
they carried everything their own
way, bu. at the end of that time the
wonderful endurance aud recupera-
tive power of the bulls made them.
selves manifest. The recovery was
not.rapid. but it was Glow and sure.
Liverpool, broke badly in the morn.
ing, deciing 5 points before the close,
thus giving a cue to the short inter-
ests on this side, which they were
not slow to take and improve The
receipts, too, were not so bullish as
they have been for several days,
though they still fell 10000 bales be-
low last years figures.
Later in the day the New Orleans
correspondent of Messrs. Adams
& Co.. wired the exchange that he
was authorized to state that Neill's
estimate of the crop was $500, coo
at maximum. he added. however.
that IN this calculation Neill had
placed the Texas crop at 100000
bales, and that he was willingsto ad-
NIT that the latest reports from that
region would seem to make those
figures too large. Taken altogether
the Neill estimate was larger than
many people had supposed it would
be, a-i this fact helped the bearish
movement Possibly the greatest
point in favor of the shorts. however,
wac the fact that the rise in prices
3nrinr the last three days had been
too great and too sudden. During
last Saturday January cotton was as
low as 8.9s. while Wednesday it
touched 9,44. 46 points gain in three
working days. The strain was too
great, and few people thought that
such prices could possibly hold if the
bears made sudden and determined
rush. January begun to show some
weakness towards the close Wednes-
day, going down finally to 9 25. The
opening yesterday was 8 points high
er, and the next call added another,
but there the stampede begun. Every
quotation from Liverpool showed a
drop and New York responded
promptly This went on until, just
after noon, 9.16 was reached. but
there the recovery begun, and it did
not end until the market closed, with
January quoted at 9.2S, 3 points
above Wednesdays close
A striking feature of the day was
the fact that half the time New Or
leans was higher than New York,
when under normal conditions it
should be 80 points lower This con-
dition was attributable to the we'll
known fact that New Orleans is not
only very bullish, but that she is try
ing to maintain corner in all the
months UP to January She has uu-
ouestionably made barrels of money
so far. but she is engaged in mighty
dangerous game just now.
Charleston's receipts were thou
sand bales short of the figures in
1894. The total receipts at all the
ports to-day last year were 10000
bales, and consequently good big
shortage in the comparative figures
is expected
The feeling at the Exchange to-
wards the close was decidedly more
bnllish than In the morning eau.
tious buyers fear another slump, but
the more inveterate bulls expect to
realize day on yesterdays pur-
cbases with good profits. Liverpool
quotations will doubtless have even
more than usual effect With 10
change there few points one way
or the other will cover the Huctua-
t;ons in New York, but if an advance
is reported from England the bul'ish
fever will try to duplicate Wednes'