The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-02-08

I
 tion of books on mechanical drawing and related subjects. including: Antony. l Elements of Mechanical Drawing P 1904; Antony, Machine Drawing; the  wheat has been now for several days the exciting topic in business circles here and presumably in the wheat-growing dis tricts as well as in Chicago. It begins to be suspected that gigantic corner in wheat may be automatically created. Ref erence is made to other corners and also 1 to compositions which have been so great as seriously to affect the railroads and wheat have been the work of specula- tions. The experience which those who undertook to corner wheat have met with, including James R. Keene and Joseph Letter. has demonstrated that no one man or group of capitalists can cor ner permanently any of the great staple products in the United States. Those who have succeeded in speculating in cotton 1 have known exactly when to realize their profits Those who have undertaken com pletely to corner cotton have failed. That AS sA0S pA "Acatt dSSOidli6 u tHc btot business opinion now, and 1t is true also of corn.
 Congestion occasioned by the inability to move wheat from the elevators to the markets has occurred as recently as 1907. In the early fall of that year. when wheat was beginning to move from the harvest fields to the seaports. the elevators, es- pecially those at Buffalo, were filled to bursting with wheat, not because anybody had cornered it, but because the railroads were unable to transport it. The trunk lines which have terminals at Buffalo did not possess freight cars in sufficient num- Der rapidly to move this wheat. That was one of the contributing causes which brought on the October panic of that year. No individual or railroad manage ment was responsible for this condition. It was due to the timidty of capital which made it impossible for the railroad companies to secure sufficient funds to enable them to buy freight cars.
 An expression commonly heard not only upon the floor of the produce exchange, but in the offices of the commission houses recently, is this: Is the United States in danger of overexporting wheat?
 That is only another way of saying that there begin to be symptoms observed of what may be called automatic cornering
 
 due to competition and may illustrate one of the evil effects of excessive competi- tion. For there appears to have been created recently an unprecedented de- mand for wheat which comes from two sources. Those who are leaders in the wheat markets across the sea are deter mined to secure all they can of the pres ent supply and are willing to enter into contract for heavy purchases during the renaihins~'nonths which will elapse before the harvest of 1915 will become available. On the other hand, the domestic demand is unprecedented. No doubt this repre- sents in part speculation: that is to say the leaders in the domestic market are persuaded that the price of wheat will rise. They therefore buy and buy and execute contracts for future delivery The best informed. authorities here say that these domestic buyers are not seeking to corner the wheat market These two demands running side by side inevitably cause appreciating prices for wheat, and 1t would not be surprising if the market price at Chicago were as high as g a bushel Limitations come to this city that many. of the farmers are persuaded that if they wait long enough they will be able to receive as much as $2 bushel for their wheat.
 Where the Danger Is
 This is one of the curious complications and paradoxical situations which have been occasioned by the European war. A mere superficial reading of this tendency is likely to lead to the belief that the more money the farmers can get the bet ter off they are. but 1t may happen that by reason of these two demands, one do- nestle and the other foreign. more wheat is bargained for than can be obtained Then the consequences may be very se- rious to the country. The yNipd States may not be able to export all the wheat which we have contracted to export. The 1 domestic buyers may not be able to secure | all the wheat which they have bought for | future delivery. That would occasion 1 what may prove to be a serious disturb | anse. It might lead to a collapse of the | wheat market and the financial and bus | mess disturbance which possibly might | b. occasioned thereby would tend very likely to check the disposition, which. un- less it be checked. is likely to lead to | general business improvement and ex- pansion.
 Another Effect
 Another effect of this extraordinary and | unforeseen demand will be discovered in | a greatly increased acreage devoted to | wheat. Science has recently taught the ! farmers how they may increase their | wheat harvests while at the same time not greatly increase the acreage devoted l to wheat. That is condition which has long been hoped for by James J. Hill, | Howard Elliott and others who are thor l oughly familiar with every aspect of l wheat growing in the United States MT. l Hill. as the master mind of the Great l