The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-07-23
CORN CORNER
CLOSED OUT.
THE RING TERMINATES THE
DEAL WITH SMALL
PROFITS.
LONG LINE OF SHORTS MAKE
SETTLEMENT.
The Real Corn Rushed Into Chicago by
The Million Bushels-The Ring Afraid
of the Corpse"

CHICAGO, July 15.-The famous John
w. Gates corner on July corn came to
an abrupt termination today when it
became known that shorts to an extent
of a good million bushels had effected
private settlements with Harris, Gates
& Co., and that the deal was at an end
so far as the steel magnate was con-
cerned. The July price responded to the
settlement by a quick drop of 15% cents
to 65A cents. Later it recovered frac-
ton and closed at 65h cents, substan-
TALLY the price of the cash article.
Just how many bushels were subject
to private settlement will probably
never be known, nor is there much
chance that the identity of the "big
fellows" in the trade, who doubtless
contributed literally to the fortunes of
Gates and the friends associated with
him in the deal, will ever be positively
known. Gates is at present in New
York, and Section, manager for the
Gates-H Harris house, would admit only
the fact of settlement by the out
standing shorts. Even the fact of a
termination of the July deal was left
| largely to haerence. But the trade
/ readily figured that, with the shorts
practically all in, nothing in the shape
of a corner could exist.
No special excitement attended the
peImature puncturing of the bubble by
the men whose property it was. The
! trade has all along admitted that Gates
was right and also his ability to 60
what he pleased with corn. and if he
chose to close the deal a couple of
weeks prior to the time at which it
will have ended by limitation there was
no one to say him nay. The only un-
| usual thing in the pit prior to the time
at which it became known that the cor
ner was at an end was the usual pur-
chasing of July corn in small lots by
| various commission houses. Pit trad
! ing during the day was not much over
| 800, 600 bushels
Manager Scotten would not discuss
! the settlement price. This price, how
| ever, was not matter of decided in
| terest to the trade generally. With
| the knowledge that Monday nights
! price was 81 cents and the opening to-
| day from 79 cents to so cents, the con-
! sensus of opinion among the outsiders
was that Gates had demanded either so
cents or 81 cents from the people who
were foolish enough to sell him corn
all the way from so cents up.
The length of the line" of July set
| tied for by shorts is also a matter of
| more or less conjecture. Scotch said
| 1t was several million bushels" and
that the length of the line had never
been Overestimated. 1t has been called
/ as high as 25.000,000 bushels. but more
| generally 20,000,000 bushels. 1t is a mat
ter of common knowledge that since it
| become possible to make deliveries on
! July contracts the Harris Gates people
have taken in and paid for about SOOO,-
! 900 bushels. This would leave settle
ments on some 100000 bushels.
To form an estimate of apparent pro-
! fit by the deal would necessitate a
knowledge of the average price at
which the property was bought This
! can never be known, unless some time
later Gates chooses to divulge it. 1t is
estimated, however by close observers
! OF the transaction that Gates profit
| will not exceed 81 800, 600. This amount
will be divided between ten or a dozen
| millionaires who We're interested in the
! deal.
Gates and his friends have between
4OOO,OOO and 100000 bushels of cash
corn which they must dispose of before
/ the corner can be called absolutely set
tied. This corn represents the corpse"
which in every corner ever run has been
| the stumbling block to success Ut
| the average price of the Harris Gates
holding should prove well up to the 10
| cent point, the clique has on hand sew
eral million bushels of corn which cost
It's holders in excess of the present
| market price. Right here is the salient
point. Will it be necessary to market
this large holding of corn at less than
! it cost?
The corner at one point promised
many millions of profit, and the men
whose well-filled cribs line the tracks
o fnearly every railroad entering Chi
cago are held responsible for the dis
appointing ending of the corner. There
were substantial reserves from the
bumper crop of 1900 and the yield of 1901
This corn has been held for a satisfac-
tory market. The holders did not be-
gin to take advantage of the situation
when the price of July got up in the
7Os but when it finally reached 80
cents the Chicago market was deluged
with cash corn. For a while the Harris
Gates people kept the market cleaned
up, but steadily increasing quantities
| began coming and the prospect of load
ing up with a lot of 80-cent corn which
they might not be able to dispose of at
over 60 cents became somewhat appal-
| lingS Without warning they withdrew
all support, settled with the shorts and
closed the deal.