The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1897-12-16
Chicago Tribune Reviews the
Wheat Situation as It Now
Appears.
Battle Between Armour and
Letter for Control of the
Market.
Bear Has the Best of It Now,
but Things May Change
Later.

CHICAGO, Dec. 16.-The Tribune says:
There are just III days left to make or
unmake the December wheat deal
The chances for fireworks and old.time
corner prices are scarcely so bright as
they were some time ago.
Letter is learning something about
the possibilities Of Chicago as receiv-
ing market and about the resources of
Armour.
Earlier in the season Letter gave Ar.
mour, who came back from Europe a
''dolIar wheat" bull, some points on
how to act promptly, but in the last
two days the local stock of wheat has
been increased by 100000 bushels.
Such movement is simply phenomenal
and represents part of the energetic
campaign made by Armour and Wcare.
The last cargoes of an abnormal d uluth-
000 bushels, are arriving.
The bulk of this has been contract
wheat brought down for the special
benefit of the market made by Mr..
Letter. 1t has been variously disposed
OF. Part of it has gone into public ele-
vators and part into private houses.
Armour knows just how much con-
tract wheat is here. Letter would give
a snug sum for exact in tormation as to
how much of the Chicago stock has
come here to fill short sales to him, and
how much is here to be dumped out on
December advances such as those OF
last Friday and last Monday.
Real Battle in Cash Property.
The chance of pyrotechnics is in the
speculative market for December wheat.
The real battle is in the cash property.
Letter has been holding large assert
ment of speculative cards and has been
playing them rapidly. He has brought
the deal up from July to September
and from September to December. but
only recently has been pushing prices
to point to bring wheat from all di.
rectlons.
This is the situation which promises
to give Armour an opportunity to re-
coup any actual losses i'll his operations
and some of his consequential losses for
not having taken up the bull side Of the
market when he came from Europe and
held to it aggressively since.
to corner wheat. Armour has dis
claimed doing anything but ware
houseman's bushes. Letters opera
tions. and more particularly his an
nouncements of plans to move the en-.
tire Chicago stock of wheat out of the
country, have put wheat to $l.09, and
by forcing Chicago out of line with
other markets, have started an ava
1anche of wheat to Chicago.
Armour's Opportunity.
AS an elevator man, Armour's oppor.
tunity lies in the accumulation at Chi
cago of stock of wheat such as did not
seem possible at the beginning of the
season.
Demand and supply prospect at the
opening of the wheat season was that
Chicago would get but little wheat.
BY grace of chronic corner recently,
reaching more acute stages at or above
81 bushel, tho chances are good for
local stock of wheat of 100000 BUSH
els by the end of December.
What is to all intents and purposes a
Chicago corner is attracting to this
market wheat originally laid by for
milling not only in the Northwest, but
. in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and as far
east as Buffalo.
tide of wheat to any extent there is a
great opportunity for recouping losses,
actual or theoretical.
This Is the General Theory.
During the last few days the trade
generally has been working around to a
theory something like this:
Armour and Letter have crossed
weapons and recognized their respec-
tive points of advantage and strength.
Letter will handle the December deal as
carefully as possible and realize just as
much profit by sales as the market will
stand. He will then take some cash
wheat on delivery, but practically leave
the cash situation to Armour. He can
go over to May with better prospects
than he went over into September or
over into December.
Armour will then be left with Chi
cago in control of the cash situation
and with foreign demand and domestic
requirements as result Of millers sell
ing their stocks on the high Chicago
premiums This would furnish basis
for advancing prices and give Armour
an opportunity for merchandising
wheat on scale which was not thought
possible at the beginning of the crop
year. - RaT he
Massachusetts, Municipal Elections.
ROSTON Dec 1R-Municina1 a1ars.