The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1898-06-08

bers made in response to argument
made on the floor of this body
that the exchange can absolutely
dominate and fix prices, as against al!
others, By flooding the market with
offers of an unlimited supply Of
futures when at other places prices
are, in it's opinion, too high, and thus
break the market /; and on the other
hand when it deems prices are too
low at other places may Immediately
buy all that can be offered The
New Orleans Cotton Exchange though
located in the largest SPOT cotton
market tEis side of the Atlantic. ia q
mere annex to and subordinate of the
New Yosk Cotton Exchange and so
need not be described further than by
saying if it had the will to do good it
has not the power Such are the
agencies and localities of these deal
ings. and they are the sole agencies
and localities of these dealings and
transacting of this business y
After explai.iog the sigoi6cance and
! importaace of this statement. Mr.
Stokes continued
"No. ooly is this absolu's power over
prices exercised to the farthess limis
Of it's tremendous sweep-the uuan-
swerable proof Of its exercise appears
io the upbrokeo policy and depressed
prices in the fall sod higher prices 10
the spring. BY unlimited offerings in
advance of October. November. Da-
cemser. and January futures. the prices
Of contracts for those mouths are forced
down as already shown The spot cot
ton market fellows the contract market.
During these months the bulk of
the crop passes out Of the hands Of the
producer 1t has to be so. Few Of
them are independent Under the
method of the exchange fewer are inde
pesdent to day than there we're ten
years ago. Their obligations must be
met sTheu, when the bulk Of the
crop has passed ont of the producers
possession, BY reversing their tactics
the prices are raised This is nosori-
ous. It has been buroed ioto the
memory Of the cotton producers every
year since the exchange insruded it's
super1sous presence ="
Mr.. Stokes then elaborated the work
ioss Of tha Exchange and showed its
ftremeadous aud dangerous power: He
argued in detail cha. the cotton is now
worth three and half cents less tbso
it would be bus for the evil effects Of
speculation 10 fotures.
but. Mr. Cbsirman. be continued,
..is is claimed that these contrasts are
bona fds that deliveries may be de-
maoded. The conclusive soswer No
this is that deliveries are never made.
and delivery is cot contemplated As
40 absolute demonstration Of this. COM
pare receipts at New York aed New
Orleans. respectively. with the opera
tions 10 futures at those points.
"In 1896 the total receipts at New
York we're $4,000 bales The sales
of futures footed up 56 600 900 bales
At New Orleans the same year total
| receipts we're s64. 900 bales. and the
Gales Of futures amounted to Is. .498.-
zoo bales TIE entire crop of that
year vas only 7.147. 7.000 bales. 4.627.
600 of which we're exported and 9. $685..
| 600 by domestic mills
What do those figures meao !
Fifty six ADD half millions of bales
sold against total receipt Of 168. 90 10
New York. Seventy million bales Of
recorded contracts land the Omniscient
only knows how many we're oot>record
ed sold against total receipts Of less
than 10 000. 900 How could deliver
les of 70 900. 900 bales be made With
10000 0OO2
.It is gigantic fraud or gigantic
gsmbliog-gsmbling beside which
the widest orgies Of Monte Carlo are
,sue This means only one of two
things Either the $4,000. 600 bales
sold in excess of receipts were gam
bling contracts pure aod simple, OF else
those receipts we're sold over and over
sgain sixty -uine times. and commits
sions, all of which come out of the
peoducer-charged Oh every sale.
|
These extracts shovt be line OF tight
which the South Carolina Cong sman
means to wage.
Mr. Stokes considers the great Lett
or deal uoder .ae ban Of this proposed
legislation. Iu explaining it to-day. be
said !:
Letter bet Sen million dollars. say,
that .beas would 60 above seventy
cents BY a certain date and the high
er above the bigger would be the stakes
according to an agreed sale He put
10 toe stakes and then With the power
of the uolimised money. be vent to
work to force the price shove ~ cents
in order that be might vic hia bets.