The San Francisco call., 1897-08-25
WHEAT TOOK
A HEAVY FALL
A Slump Of Almost 6 Cents
Created Very Lite Ex-
citement.
Everybody Is Now Waiting to
See What Is Coming Next
in News.
All Sorts and Conditions of Rumors
Being Circulated and Dis
counted

Had the drop in wheat which oc-
Cured yesterday taken place a month
ago the incident would have thrown the
whole Board of Trade into such spasms of
excitement that the call board would have
been a bowling bedlam. AS it was the
m latter was taken as coolly az if the fue-
tuations had been in e.ghths instead of
scent pieces. With weak opening and
a steady decline to the end of the last call
the slump of 6 cents was Of as little i'm
portance, seemingly, as the usual changes
which have taken place while the golden
cereal fingered around the low spots along
with depressed silver.
Reports from New York and Chicago
had no effect, even when the big slump
came. All the brokers we're prepared for
the fall in prices. and as one of them said
consol ingly TO a fellow-buIl, Tuesday is
al ways the low day. Prices will go up
again tomorrow"
An old farmer who was ooking on at
the m anipulators, when asked what he
thought of the break, said: "Tne world
wanted my wheat last fall at 81 67, and
she wants it a heap sight worse now.
guess prices amt going to stay low very
long.'
The situation was sized up pretty gen.
orally in the same way along the whole
line OF brokers. The worlds supply was
the controlling key to the market. and it
was conceded that the worlds supply
was very short. The Russian edict has
been delayed, but the knowing ones say
1t is sure to come, and then prices will
take another upward stride. In 1891,
when a similar condition prevailed in
Russia and three edicts were promul-
gated. prices went away above what they
are now, and the worlds wheat was in
much better condition than it is at the
present time. Some of the bears affected
to believe and were proving their asser-
tions by elaborate figures, that Russia was
not going to export her barley but was
going to keep it all at home and export
her wheat. This would mean that there
would be between 100000, 600 and 200
600, 900 bushels of wheat thrown on the
market that is not anticipated and would
cause fall in prices.
On the other hand the French crop
might turn out very poor and this would
send prices up again. Then, again, Cuba
is making great demand for breads.uffs
and is new factor in the marker. And
so it went all day long, the dealers rather
looking for arguments than trades. One
quiet onlooker said that the people ap-
parently forgot that wheat had gone up
40 per cent in a very short time and that
this rise was almost unprecedented.
They seemed to forget that dealings were
now away above the normal and that
there must be stop here to the
upward fight of prices. The condition OF
the world did not warrant the assum ption
that prices would continue to rise indehn-
itely and he believed that the end had
come to the furry and prices would
steady down to a firm basis.
About the only moment of extreme ex-
element on the board was just at the
close of the 2 o'clock call, when the pit
looked something like the scrimmage in a
football game, with forest OF waving
hands in the air and lot of men yelling
like mad at the top of their voices In
their desire to close out before it was too
late. The noise did not cease with the
ringing of the gong, for the curb trading
was very active for fully half an hour
after the close, with several tons changing
hands.