The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-18
STILL UNDER INVESTIGATION.
Exchange Making Inquiry ns Ia Cot
ton Report.


New York. Nov. 1.-THE board Of man
ayers of the New York Cotton Exchange
Is investigating the reports that persons
interested in the cotton exchanges. have
received advance information from the
governments latest estimate of the cotton
crop.
Supt. King Of the exchange. to-day made
public a letter from John Hyde, etatist-
clan of the department of agriculture at
Washington. dated Nov. 16. IN which he
says:
Il replied at once to your telegram of the
l4th Instant, to the effect that the sup
Elementary statement issued that day,
with regard to the cotton crop, was given
to the two telegraph companies at 1855
a. m. I might have added that they were
Informed Of its coming at least an hour
in advance. If. therefore, It did not reach
the Cotton Exchange until 245 p m.
nearly three hours had elapsed between It's
being given to the telegraph companies,
and its reaching your office, and nearly
four hours between the telegraph compan-
les being Informed that the statement was
to be made and such delivery
The reason for making the statement is
found as stated in the circular ITSELF In
the fact that the departments preliminary
estimates have frequently been much be.
low the actual facts, and 1t was desired
that II should be properly understood that
the department fully recognize this fact.
and was taking every precauton against
its recurrence. Had the department con
tented Itself with letting the statement
appear IN the course OF few days in its
printed report, IL might either have failed
To attract attention or have given some
persons an advantage over others. BY
reason of the fact that the printed
report is issued In so large an edition that
Its distribution extends over several DAYS
BY handing It, therefore, to the Western
Union and Postal Telegraph Companies II
was expected that the most prominent and
general publicity would be given to II
through cotton exchanges The two COM
panies were notified not later than II
o'clock that a statement would be given TO
them, and at Il ;55 O'clock their representa-
tives were in possession of IT, The local
manager Of the Western Union informs
the department that the transmission of
the statement was delayed by an over
sight, which seems to have been In the ma
ture of a MISUNDERSTANDING between two
operators, while the Postal Telegraph
Company state that they asked their OPP
orator at the New York Cotton Exchange
IL he wanted a., and receiving no answer
they gave Il out elsewhere.
1.-THE derartment does rot take 100000
bales as the possible maximum as some
Of IT'S critics have charged. It merely states
that white present Indications do not ex-
coed those figures, yet In view Of the cx-
perlence of the past, the crop may turn
out to he as large as 9,5O),000 bales In view
OF the failure Of the statement of Tues
day to reach you promptly. certainly will
advise you I'm future when any statement
Is to be issued aside from the regular
statement on the 10 h OF the month and the
printed statement which follows n, but in
handling Tuesdays statement simuftan-
eously TO the two rival companies whose
service on the 10Th of the month is usually
so satisfactory, 1t was certainly felt that
everything was done to insure prompt ana
general publication Of the statement TO
every one interested"
The Cotton Exchange has received re-
port from the Washington branch of the
Western Union which practically assumes
responsibility for the delay in sending out
the statement. The Cotton Exchange
manager Of the Postal Telegraph Compa-
ny denies that their representative at
Washington inquired whether the report
was wanted at this end.
The telegraph companies, II is believed
are conducting examinations on their own
account