The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1898-06-08
FISH PRICE OF WIEAr.
Rsp aeLtasivs stok-a on the Big DeAl
Made By Joe Letter,
Editor WQshinqtON Post:

Made By joe Leiter.
Editor Washington Post:
You sre ususliy so acclrate when
ycu invoke facts that read with sur.
prise your attempted defense OF ''Jo'
Letter, and incidentally OF option
gambling in yesterdays Post. You
characterize as unspeaksbly wicked
certain expressions OF leading knigh Its
o. Labor and Others which recently
appeared in q New York paper. The
unspeakable w:ckedness OF The labor
men apparently is only less IN your
estimation than that of the uume ntion
able paper 10 publishing them.
In your defense of the man ard the
method you appeal to the facts, and
charge those who hold contrary views
with deliberately deceiving the people
as to the facts
Can the editor OF The Post be seri-
Gus when he ssys Latter has not
speculated or eambled in futures or
options2 The merest tyro in the ex
change methods knows that bis trans
actions from start to finish were
speculative rurely, a,d the vary
essence Of gambling. Il is true, as
you say, be bought the actual wheat
in the open market q: the prevailing
prices" But he bought it solely be
cause it became necessary in order 10
win his outstanding bets.
Tne essccs Of the transaction was
like this: Letter betten million dol
lars say, that wheat would 90 above
70 cents by certain date, and the
high her above the bigger would be tie
stakes according to an agreed scale.
He put up his stakes, and then with
all the 20 yer Of unlimited NJ onev, he
vent 10 work to force the price above
70 cents. IN order that he 10 ght win
his bets. The higher above 20 cents
he could force it, the bigger would bs
his winnings. By thimole rigging
methods we'll known on the exchanges,
he forced the price up to II cents.
Then it occurred TO him, il he could
get control OF the actural wheat, he
could demand dslivery of actual
wheat instead OF the margins. In tina!
event, his antagonists would have
to come to him for wheat to fulfill
their gambling contracts, and so he
could force the price up indefinitely.
That is precisely what he did. He
bought up all the wheat in the marker
at what pricea At the price he him
self hal fixed By manipulating the
figures on the exchange Then what9
Having control of the actual wheat
and of the gambling contracts rs well,
he actually forced Toe price 10 to 81 IS
per bushel. And yet Fhe Post Say >
Letter is not responsible for the nj her
price OF bread. 10 Tever ne may dis
agree about terms descriptive of those
acts, there Can be 10 ruoDing out lhr
fact that the price wenLup from II
cents to $1.85 after Letter bought &C
tual wheat, How, then, can Ene POSI-
say that If the cost Of wheat mas been
increased, it Is the result of natural
CAUSES over which no operator q lad Or
could have had the least controlf'
It is begging the question to say that
the increased price inures to The pro
ducers of wheat. It IS not only IN
true, but diSingenuous This increase
in price has taken place 10 the main
since the producer parted with mis- pro-
duct. It is always so, not only IN re
sp.ci to wheat, bat in respect to cot
eon and every other suoj -cI OF opIoa
gambling.
But gu oppose the producers did ge.
the benefit OF THESE gambling opsr4
lions in this instance How does tlst
help the producers who had to sell
last year and The year before, aad for
ten years past. while the Market WAS
under conIrol Of the bears"
The Knights of Laoor are right
"Jo" Lister aud his class, aud the ex
changes which make them possible,
should be abs!ed by law. They per
form no useful functions commenSur
ate with the evil they DO.
I have bill pending before com
mittee OF the House when VIII accom
olSh that purpose, and l the people
woo are forced to pay more for bread,
or go lacking, by reason of these gam
bling operations, will help. sucn souses
WILL not occur again. Germany anu
Russia have legislation for the prosec
ton OF the producers and CONSUMERS
OF bread and o:ner agricultural pro
ducts. Will this country b. less con
slderate of the masses2
| hand you here with copy Of my
bill and OF my spesc1 thereon, and ask
lhs! you review your facts as wei as
your opinion on this Absorb oIng quss.
uon.
J. WILLIAM STOKES.
House OF representatives, May 80,
1898.