The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-26
They Did Not Dump All Their Hold
InGs of Wheat on Tuesday and
Are Now Forcing Up Prices.
MARKETS AGAIN BOOMING
MOST OF THE PREVIOUS DAYS LOSS
RECOVERED YESTERDAY.
Average Price of Wheat at New York
in Recent Years--Sh oFtage of the
European Crops.

NEW YORK, Aug. 25.-There was a
pause in the downward movement of wheat
prices to-day and at the best point of the
session there was a rise of cents a bushel
from yesterdays close but this was still
312 cents under the highest figure of the
year on December. The market started out
with bulls in control and a spirited com
petition for wheat between local shorts and
continental houses. Prices ran up to CSC on
this bulge against 95$4c last night, but on
a succeeding cloud of selling orders in real
ling and for short account dipped 10 96l4c
from which it rose steadily, reaching 99%4c
in the early afternoon on good all-around
buying, led by Chicago. Local speculation
reused into pronounced activity several
times during the day, notably at the open
ing. but as was the case yesterday there
was little or no fevrish excitement in the
pit. The big bulls who engineered the re-
cent advance were all understood to have
secured their profits and vacated the mar
ket in favor of the smaller operators who
WhlIe likewise friendly to wheat, were
afraid to persist in aggressive actions
Gable news was bearish, with the single
exception of Liverpool, which after open
ing sd lower, rallied 1AQ112d, and then, cas-
from
last night Paris markets opened and
closed lower the final figures being 50 to
70 points off on wheat and 60 confines to /
franc lower on -four. Antwerp was / point
lower for the day and Berlin, unofficially.
marks lower, so that with the exception
Or early foreign buying and the Liverpool
rally, to-days European cable news was
deIflmental to confidence on the bull side
Inc puDlcaton by prominent American
a
OF between 900,000000 ana 400 0UO00 blu
by Europe this year was a confirmation of
the most extreme bulliSh views on Change
Near the close the market was firmly sus-
tanned by rumors that exporters had picked
up something like 100000 bushels at New
YORK ana OutpOrtS to-day. Final figures
Tor the day were at 2%03c advance over
last night. Sentiment after Change was
rather partial to the bull side of the idea
that prices have had a sharp enough break
to shake out d great lot of burdensOme long
wheat, allowing the market to rest on a
healthy basis again. The total transac-
lions to-day were upwards of 14OO0 900
bushels. At the close No / northern New
York was quoted nominaly $1.09a4 f. o. b..
anoat The corn market was active and
higher with wheat gaining 7BQ1c for the
day September ranged from 33$Ic to S47sc
and closed at 343sc. The range on Septem-
Der wheat was from CSC to $10149, closing
at $l.OGA. December sold from 96Ac to
99a4c, and closed at 9S12c. On the curb De-
cember sold up to 99Ac.
Concerning the recent bulge in wheat the
five years and five months since
wheat has sold for dollar a buSh'el at
New York. After ranging above that price
wheat dropped on March ~, 1892 to 1912
cents, and has never seen that price since
until Friday. AS all know, the especial
cause of high prices in 1902 was not scar
city at home, for the crop in this country
was large beyond all precedent, but failure
mounted to $1.25 at New York in April 1891
which was the highest point it had touched
since June, 1883. 70 many people it is diff
above $1.O5 a bushel in every wear of the
last sixty until 1885, has ruled so far below
that figure most of the time since. The
sufficient explanation is found in the great
reduction of transporting charges
The average farm price of wheat in the
five Central States between the Pennsyl-
Vanla line and the Mississippi river was
over 81 a bushel in most years prior to 1882
Even in the States west of the Mississippi
the average farm price was over 81 bush
Ell in eight of the twenty years prior to
1882 of which records are obtainabre, and
the cost of transportation ranged from 70
cents down to p cents in December from
Chicago to New York, and from 2612 to 10
cents from Kansas City to Chicago. The
railroad war of 1881 cut Chicago rates so far
that they have never since recovered. and
with Is cents the highest December rate in
the sixteen subsequent years, Is and IL
cents have been OF late more common. The
Kansas City-Chicago rate has also been re-
duced though not so much in some years
to about 13 cents in December Roughly
speaking, rully quarter OF the cost of
transportation in winter has been cut off
since 1880, and but for that great change
the price realized by the farmers would
not have been sufficient to encourage the
enormous production since attained
The average farm price last December
was 172 &C hts in the Central States between
the Pennsylvania line and the Mississippi
river, and 63.9 cents in the States west of
that river, including the Dakotas. Low as
these prices were, they exceeded by more
than 20 cents a bushel those obtained in
1899 and largely exceeded those obtained
in other recent years The partial failure
of foreign crops. especially in India and
Australia, last year gave American wheat
growers a new period of prosperity, and
the following shortage of crops in Europe
this year seems not unlikely to bring back
the experiences of 1902 The average price
of wheat at New York rose above 81 in Au-
gust, $780, and never dropped below that
figure again until March, 1892, except to
1851 in August 1891. The lowest prcie re-
corded from Sept. /, 1890. to July l. 1891
was 9S1s cents, and after "a cents in August
and 974 cents in September 1891, the price
did not again drop at any time below 81
that year, and the average of daily QUOTA
tons was above 81 until March. 1892 When
it is remembered that the yield in those
years was really larger than in 1894 when
the price fell in New York to 544 cents
it may be realized how potent the foreign
demand has been in controlling the price tor
this most important of Northern farm
products