The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-05-21

RAIN BROKE GRIP or BULLS
Drop in Price Expected III Corn
Market Situationi III the
4. West.
Especial 10 rhe Times Dispatch.)

SuniloWcr state s the only Common
wealth in the Union that produces the
small grain. This is the season Of the
year when all kinds of interests grew
sensitive to crop damage stories. Tho
nervous ailments comes az surely and
as regularly as the spring fever and 1t
does not take "a very lound nois etc create
big commotion. Ts
Some very credible authorities seem to
think injury worthy OF more than pass-
Ing notice has taken place in Kansas,
Missouri, and other States, but these are
not Insisting that there is anything APP
pronching Il crop disaster The facts
seem to be that many places were much
in need or rain as the drought was be-
ginning to tell, especially in the spots
that were already weak. One cores
pendent who seems to have made Impair
& tial Investigation Of a wide field IN Kan
sas, says there may be deterioria ton
OF four points In condition throughout
the state, GONE regions being In really
serious distress, while others were not
damaged Il particle, II the four point
Impairment, since the first OF May bs
conceded, Kansas is still due to raise u
big crop OF wheat.
Drought Broken.
1t Is very questionable however. II
there has been any such damage, accord
Ing to shrewd observers. rhe drought
has been broken in many places BY CO.
pIous rains, and It is likely a few days
OF favorable weather will be enough TO
dIsslpatc much of the alarm that was
manifest last week. 1t VIII be borne in
mine that there are interested factions
In the trade who are making IT their
first ana most important business 70 XII
I. the winter wheat crop. These nave pur-
poses to serve, and they helped { em-s
selves beautifully the last fGew. days by
making the most or theS~cather COM
plants.
( drought, but OF too much ain Rust IS
the blgaboo In the Lone Star State On
present showing. however, is conceded
that with favoring conditt6hs the next
two weeks Texas viii contribute more
wheat 10 tie national granarles than she
did a year ago. Oklahoma and zebra ska
4 conditions. bredly speaking, are said 10
he hrst-class The Pacific Northwest
has received timely rains. and IN the
spring wheat territory both In Canada
and the States, the crop starts out WIN
unusually good prospects.
H ow quickly the tide of sentiment turns
IN the developments in the weather was
illustrated Friday. when local rain
In Kansas City and Whereabouts broke
the grip OF the bulls. The veering came
on the strength Of thunderstorm be-
fore the trade knew how widespread or
how narrow was the field OF precipitation.
Decrease in Stocks.
There was other domestic news that
should have had more potent bearing
on pit conditions than the eather, but
LIT did not; for example, the big de-
crease in stocks IN the Northwest For
the week the melting away OF stocks az
MINNEAPOLIS and Duluth amounted TO.
nearly 3,ll2coo bushels. dupiicat,ng prac-
p tically the showing OF the week pe1ore'
md nearly doubling the shipments Of the
corresponding week Of last year.
Europe shows no more sign than here
tofore Of coming into the American mar
ket for supplies, and she Is not greatly
interested In the stories OF distress from
Kansas. The sharp advance here on the
crop knockers chorus ionna no re-
!: sponse abroad. In fact, the wheat conf
Ing along from Argentine had tell
dency to lepress the market there,
On the other hand, there Is perceptl-
hle broadening out of the -four marker
and increasing activity In milling opera.
lions In the northwest. Millers arc stu
paying premiums for old wheat. Bulllsh
interests are finding some consolation In
the intlmation Of James j. Hill that the
likely to show under rather than over
s5o,OoO,O 900 bushels. and that home con-
sumption Is likely to expand rapidly
enough to more than care for the pro-
duction. II was significant that toward
the close OF the week the st, Louis mar
kot, whence came much OF the previous
bull inspiration was the weakest In the
country. The fact emphasized the specu-
lative feature OF things
Corn.
Viewed from the standpoint of rec-
ord -breaklng yield of corn. the situation
of this grain Is anomalous, Contract
stocks here are practlcaly exhausted
and tho visible Is only 2,s00,0o0 bushels,
with buyers commissioned to get corn
al any price however. the chances seem
good for a revival Of movement from
flrst hands, Light receipts for several
weeks have been the chief inspiration for
bullsh sentiment, Farmers could not ba
lured from their GGlds by any sort OF
establishments. "a
Now the corn planting Is practically
all done,. and there Is breathing spell
herore the cultivation OF the fields CONS
mances. For this reason and the fact
that good prices still prevail, larger
movement from the farm Is expected IN
the next two or three weeks. II Is
doubtful figuring, however. There may
not be as much corn In the country as
the trade believes there s II there Is
large stock still hack Of primary mar
ket ceners, It follows that the independ-
ence and indifference of the farmer to-
ward the market has been phenomenal,
Argentine shipments for The week top
ned those of the corresponding week
Of the previous year by over 100000 bush
els the total being o,so3,OOO bushels
against 21s6,M0 bushels. For the year 10
date Argentine shipments have been a.
0s6.oOo as compared with 14,7s5,OC0 the
previous year, with favoTing weather
FOR the newly planted crop and an In
creass in receipts, the logic of things
seems to suggest drop in price,
The downward trend. In fact was man.
ifest at the close Of the week. The
future Is mostly dependent on sales from
f,rst hands. What these will amount to
is matter for guessing,
Qoas.
Lad IAN ~, tu trta n