The Topeka state journal., 1897-12-23
ARMOUR A A''BULL"
Goes Over to the letter Side
of the Wheat Deal.
Makes Big Investments in the
May Option.
PUBLIC is WORKED.
Observation-Disclosures the Two
Forces Now Sus pected.
Letter is Alleged to Receive
Foreign Market Tips
From His BrOther-in-LaW in
the British Cabinet.

Chicago. Dec. 23-The possibility that
Letter and Armour will pool their inter
ests to corner May wheat is stirring
traders on Change. The Post says:
George French, operating for the
Letter crowd, has piled up d line of at
least 100000 bushels of May wheat
according to reports from the floor.
Armour's radical change of front in
bulling May wheat is common knowl-
edge.
1t is equally well known that Ar
mour has a pyramid of May wheat
bought which is supposed to come
close to the Letter holding AS if to
emphasize the bull talk, both Armour's
and Letters men bought wheat today
Armour's movements are closely yelled.
bdt Letters engineers make no secret
of their dealings in May wheat Al
ready that option is regarded as being
as dangerous for the public to handle
as a stove lid at white heat
May wheat is d long shot" is the
answer given by commission men
when approached by customers
The winter wheat crop in this cOun-
try is not harvested until July and ac-
cording to the forecasts on Change
the situation has never been so favor
aple Tor corner in May wheat, as it
VIII be this season. EVERYWHERE the
price of May is on the rise and the diff
ference between May and December is
being rapidly narrowed.
Persons around the board of trade
think that young Joseph Letter gets
tips from abroad on the wheat market
and puts this down as a reason why he
IS such a persistent bull
In the present condition of the wheat
market and the supposed limited sup
ply outside of Chicago and the other
great grain markets, q declaration of
war would send wheat up at least so
cents a bushel and afford q market for
all this cereal that could be shipped out
of the country In that case young
Letter would make millions of money
on the 1000, 600 bushels of wheat that he
will have in Chicago elevators the last
day OF this month. At least, that is
what the dealers say.
It is intimated that the British for
eign Office has leaked more than
once to the office of Letter in Chicago.
Young Letter was a wheat bull at the
time of the breaking out of the Turko-
Grecian war, and, it is said, made fully
$500 900.
Letter now says that he does not care
whether he ships out any wheat or not
and says that he will get rid of his
wheat in good time. The board of trade
operators think that Letter must have
another tip, and they name the Hon.
Geo. CurzOn, the undersecretary of the
British foreign office, as the Chicago
plunger's friend in London.
I am really sorry" said Letter, Sr..
today, ''tO see that Geo. CurzOn's name
is mixed up in this deal. 1t is all very
funny. for poor George does not know
the difference between a kernel of corn
and grain of wheat. You know, in
England. they call grain merchants
corn Sellers and the Englishmen can
not get it through their heads that
corn and wheat are different things.
Curzon is way up on government af-
fairs, but he is unacquainted with ag-
riculture, especially with the wheat
market.
Il think the situation" Mr. Letter
continued, will remain unchanged
from this on until after the first of the
year. It will be quiet. OF course, after
January /, those who have balances to
settle Will have lowell that's none of
my concern. 1 look for nothing stir
ring