The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1899-09-26
THE USES or "BEaRs."

A CORRESPONDENT or the AldnLh N"h'NF
tution wants a national Law which viii
preyent anybody from dealing IN cotton
/ fYt.res. lie claims that speculation is
responsible for the low price OF cotton,
mat the price was hammered Gown 10 1--WE
cents by tho bears Of wall street lie
saws thai the bears calling is an unholy
calling. 'as they make their living by in-
juring other people
II is an interesting coincidence that on
the very day on which this communica-
ton appeared in the Atlanta paper, cotton
began TO rise and has been jumping by
leaps and bounds ever since, and the most
interesting part Of 1t is that this advance
comes Just as the farmer IS sending his
cotton TO market. The bears have not
been able to keep the price down. and
it is now predicted that the farmers will
get seven cents per pound for their cotton
This osason. We hope so.
But is the calling Of the bear an Gun
holy caring?' is nothing to be said I'm
his behalf? He is not a professional phi
lanthropist. we admit, and he is I'm the
market for what he can get out OF 30,
without regard to the interests of others.
Yet the bear has his uses, as we pointed
out some time ago in these columns. Let
us illustrate. in The Times of Saturday
q press dispatch was printed from Phila-
delphia. in which It was said that about
twenty-five representatives Of the Cot
ton Mills Association from North and
South Carolina were in that city TO SEQ
the exposition and 10 discuss questions
! which might result in temporarily shutting
down a large number Of mills Of the
South. The trouble grows out Of the am
ticipated increase in the price Of raw
cotton. The present price of material,
such as the mills in the association use,
| IS G lac. per pound, but It is expected,
says the correspondent. that in sixty days
the price will be raised 10 71-2c. There
fore. fl is a question with the manufac-
turers as to whether or not 80 would De
advisable 10 take orders for their pro-
| ducts at present prices, or refuse them.
Now the Southern manufacturer might
have avoided this trouble if they had
availcd themselves Of the offers OF The
bears Of Wall street a few months ago.
Last summer when cotton was much low
or the bears said: We are going 10 try
to keep the price down and we believe that
the price will remain low, therefore We
will undertake TO sell cotton for future de-
livery at q very little advance on present
prices. We will sell a hundred bales. q
thousand bales, a. hundred thousand bales
of cotton to be delivered later in the year
or during the FIRST several months of
the following year at an average of about
Sc a pound. The Southern mills might
thus have procured all their raw material
| TO be delivered from month to month at
the price agreed upon, and if they had
done so they would not now be troubled
about the threatened rise In cotton. Cotton
might have gone up to 10c. a pound, yet
they could have compelled the bears 10
deliver as much cotton as they had bought
at &C.. per pound.
But would this have kept the price of
cotton down? Not at an. The bears
would have had to stand the loss. They
would have been compelled to go out on
the market. buy cotton at &c. per pound
and deliver It to the cotton manufactur-
| ers at &c. per pound, or else they would
have been compelled to pay the manufac-
turers the difference in money, which
would have been the same thing.
This sort of thing is done every day
I'm the business world. The merchant buys
goods for future delivery and frequently
buys several months ahead. Richmond
| coal dealers sell coal to their customers
for future delivery. and many household
ers purchase their supply Of coal I'm the
| summer time. or I'm the early fan, to be de-
uvered from month TO month through the
winter. as they rquire it. Pig iron SIS
selling to-day in Birmingham for $3.50
per ton, and yet a Birmingham iron Com
panv has Of late been delivering iron 10
one of its customers at Sc per ton. the Bir-
mingham company having engaged before
iron began to rise i'm price 10 deliver Sep
ember iron at Sc.
Some people call this sort Of thing gam
bling, and in a certain sense it is. The
element Of chance enters largely into
every branch of business. for. after all,
carrying on business is dealing in futures.
The wall Street bears are gamblers, but
they have their uses and the wise man