New-York tribune., 1910-04-23
HEAVY NEW YORK LOSSES
Many Agents in Atlanta-op-
portunities for Fraud.

Atlanta. APRIL 22.-Reports we're current
here to-day that on Irregular bills or lad
ing attached to drafts for heavy amounts
New York firms have lost st.OooOco. while
european houses may lose more than
100000.
Agents for a dozen foreign cotton houses
arrived in Atlanta to-day TO protect their
firms. II possible. against loss from the
failure of Knight. Yancey & Co. While
fbev are still In doubt as to the actual loss
sustained by their firms, the agents agree
that under the present system OF doing
business in cotton great losses are possible.
and even easy. one OF them said:
let us say that a long established cot
ton firm Is doing business in Atlanta. The
BUYERS for this firm go out into the country
and contract for cotton Let us say that
they buy 100 bales at Decatur. another 100
at Macon and q third f61 at Hogan This
cotton'is shipped to Atlanta to the COM
press and local bills of lading are taken
from each town 10 Atlanta. At Atlanta
the 30 tales are graded. and. say. ten bales
are taken from Decatur's shipment and ten
from another and mixed. IL is graded TO
suit tho market to which IL Il to be shipped.
1t Is rebaled-
Now, the railroads have through rate
from Decatur TO Liverpool. let US gay. So
the firm takes the local bill of lading for
100 bales from Decatur and gets in ex-
change from the railroad through bill
from Decatur to Liverpool for 100 bales.
when. as a matter of fact, only ten Of the
100 Decatur bales have been used When
this is repeated indefinitely it can be seen
what possibilities there are for fraud
Then again business here il done largely
on credit. on the honesty OF the shippers.
A shipper gets blank bills of ladlng from
a railway agent and coolly forges the
agents signature to them. Cotton is sold
altogether on bills of lading. Hence the
bills are negotiable paper in any cotton
market. Let the shipper be big one
Let him tell the agent that he has cotton
to ship and requires FIVE cars at once. 1t
is possible that the cars are not available
at once. So. TO satisfy the shipper. the
agent may prepare bills OF ladinG for tho
cotton to be shipped. and 1t may never be
shipped. But the bills may be negotiated
at any cotton centre"
The local cotton men are inclined to re-
joice at the news that Liverpool cotton
brokers are the heavy losers. They say
that the Liverpool men, counting on receiv-
ing from America cotton bought at very
low figure, have shipped back to America
large quantities OF cotton at an advanced
price to break the American market IL
the Liverpool men have been deceived by
the forged bills OF lading, the local men
say that the shortage of cotton in Eng
land VIII cause the shutdown OF the mills
there.
Among the representatives of foreign
companies here are those OF Minoprio-
Forgan & Co. of Liverpool; Baker, Patton
& Co., of New Orleans; the J. ]. Williams
Company, Of Liverpool: Wilson & Alison,
of Galveston; Alexander Eccles & Co. of
Liverpool; Pennfeather s. Co, OF Liverpool,
and f. G Worrel, Of Galveston.
Several representatives said that transac-
tions involving millions. which precipitated
the crash. might end in prosecutions in the
federal COURT.