The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-03-18


ton the past week was OF very ire
guar and mixed character AS n con-
sequence OF this. fluctuations were CIR
| rattle and extremely uncertain On the
whole, bullish sentiment predominant
ed, but with prices lowering around
| the highest level OF the cotton year
| disappointment at the slow prog
| ress made toward settling the great
! British coal miners strike and the
! spread of similar trouble in Germany
mas had restraining Influence upon
further aggressive bullish operations
But on the other hand, continued UNI
| favorable weather throughout the cot
ton belt, together with the fear that
| the English labor trouble might be set
tled over night, has restricted short
sales by the bear element.
This Weeks HnnEc OF Priccn
! FROM last Saturdays closing quota
! tons to early Monday afternoon there
| was an advance of just twenty points
! on the old crop options, which brought
all OF them up TO a slightly new high
! lever for the season with July UP to-
! lo.'i, against 1911. tho previous high
price reached about u month ago. The
new crop options sympathzed with an
ADVANCE of about 10 points. with Octo-
| Der advancing to 1919 and December to
| lVSe, both also new high records for
the season. Efforts to carry the ad-
vance forward the following day how
ever failed in consequence of the fail
urc to settle the British labor trouble
ana the outbreak of tho strikes among
| the German and Prussian coal miners.
| From those high prices there was n
/ stump on extensive profit tRking and
reseling during the next but the CON
| tinuance OF good support anu the bull
/ ilsh influence Of the almost unprcce-
dcntedly bad weather for any kind of
farm work in the cotton belt has since
/ been holding the market firm.
Prices closed last night with :, net
advance of ahout1O points for the week
for all the old crop months from last
| saturdays prices, but the new cropi
options, In which there has been a
great deal of hedge selling against
Speculative holdings in May and July.
are UP only to points. Southern
spot markets on the whole are ;.buut
unchanged on the week trading
Holders have been much encouraged
! by the continued good demand for all
the good grades OF cotton from New
! England spinners, and by the bad wca
| ther as affecting the new crop sltua-
tlcn. AS consequence, there is still
| no sign of weakening in that direction
The hear element has been as much
disappointed In this respect as by the
bad weather Consequently, there is
sun no disposition shown by this cie-
mcnt TO force the issue with The bulls
The settlement or the labor trouble
| or the development ii fine weather
throughout the belt, therefore, seems
/ necessary 10 start something calculat-
ed 10 lift the market out of the hut
| which II now occupies. In the mean
| time. the lHrs"st Ioc1 interest arc
coniinins their trading merely to scalp
| ing operations. The bun interests sell
freely on the little bulgcs in supply
| nE the demands from occasional COW
4 4, ~ C nrsr 90 49,
! 10 force prices up. But whenever
there is any pressure Of southern or
! local selling, or weakness at Liverpool
i they come back as heavy buyers in
| supporting the market Meanwhile a
! great deal of cotton Is being quietly
/ sold by spot holders In the south and
| the load there is being gradually lesson.
! ed New England spinnors arc doing
most Of the buying. as they have been
! inNch behind in their takings for sew
| .ral months. They arc N Il much bet
| tci position now to do so form the
much improved demand for goods gen
| orally, and the advancing tendency to-
prices and the gradual settlement OF
recent labor trouble winch they have
| had to contend with. There is little
noubt the demand from these sources
| VIII be continued, especially in the
event of any concessions in prices as
| the light stocks of goods among the
retail and jobhinE merchants through
out IN" country and the breaking up
| of winter are expected to enlarge the
| amount Of orders. which must sooner
or later be placed In the rcplenishment
OF these stocks
The Backward scnson.
| The unusual heavy rains of an almost
continuous character during the last
three weeks have saturated The fields
to such an extent there rs still little or
no ploughinE being done, and this
work is now all the way from three to
SIN weeks behind this time las; year
throughout the eastern and central
sections, and there is now danger of
OF the past few days have Hooded some
SECTIONS. and there is Row danger of
l"verfiows of small streams and rivers
IN many localities in Georgia and Ala