The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-07-31
CORNER OF JULY
 OATS IS STOPPED
Injunction is Secured Against
 Long Holders
STEP BREAKS ALL HISTORY
Such Drastic Measures of Protection Never Before Resorted to on Chicago Board of Trade.
 Market Advanced.

Chicago July 30.-The ban of the courts has been placed on the corner in July oats On the application of Waite, Thorburn & Co.,, one of the firms heavily short in the July option, a tenn porary restraining order was granted to- day by Judge Chytraus in the superior court. prohibiting James A Patten and associates from continuing a corner in new July oats and from bidding up the price of cereals or calling for further margins
 This is the first time in the history of the Chicago board of trade that dealers who are short have resorted to the courts to assist them in a dilemma like the present and the injunction came as a surprise, although drastic measures had been threatened to prevent heavy losses. The injunction runs against Darlington. Patten & Co.,, Patten Bros, and Bartlett, Frazier & Go. Default on three million bushels of short new July oats, law suits end action by the board of trade are seemingly the inevitable re- suits of the granting of the restraining order. Cornered and unable to secure new July oats YLerewith to meet their contracts, the dealers who are short ap- pear to have practically thrown up their hands.
 We have nothing to do but to de- fault" said one of the unfortunates to- day. Those in control of the corner will not sell, but tell us to go into the pit and buy. If we do that the price would go up into the clouds. A dollar bushel could easily be exacted as the receipts of standard new oats will not nearly fill our contracts"
 Waite & Thorburn, the firm that re- quested the injunction, issued the follow ing statement tonight in explanation of the course they have taken:
 For a year or two there has been regular epidemic of manipulation and at- tempted corners in the market on the Chicago board of trade, which have in fiicted immense injury on the legitimate grain interests of this city and in the country tributary to Chicago. These at tempts to squeeze the trade have now be- come so extreme and interruptions that | it has become high time for some one to make a fight and find out where the trade stands and whether it Is to be for all time possible for groups of millionaires | to turn upside down the grain business of the country and inflict heavy losses | on the trade"
 Frank P. Frazier, of Bartlett, Frazier & Co.,, said:
 There is an erroneous opinion current | that MT Patten and myself, who each has fair line of July have been bidding the market up with the intention of squeezing the shorts. This is not the case. The shorts, in every instance of high prices, have only themselves to blame for putting the price up. We are simply waiting for the delivery of oats we have contracted for and we expect their de- livery"
 Three million bushels is said to be the shortage in July oats. The greater part of this amount was sold, it is said, to those in control of the market at be- tween 32 and S5 cents, so there is more than 9 cents a bushel profit in the deal for those on the long side.
 Instead of the market collapsing as a result of the adoption of a 45 cent mar ginal price yesterday by the board of trade directors, July oats advanced 3 cents today and closed at 6S cents.