Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1915-01-12
WHEAT PRICES CO
HIGHER THAN EVER.
ALL RECORDS OF LATE YEARS
ARE SMASHED AND LOCAL
DEALERS FEEL IT.
FLOUR is QUOTED UP
Increase OF Ten Cents on Sack 10
Noted on All Grades and Mer-
chants Expect il to be
Even More.

With wheat jumping to the record
price of $1.40A at Chicago on Friday.
local merchants began to feel the ef-
feet of the great increase which that
commodity has made in such great
strides during the past week or ten
days. Flour has been raised in price,
ten cents on the sack on all grades and
merchants are of the opinion that 1t
will go higher if the market does; and
they think that that medium will soar
even more than 1t already has done.
Whether bread will 60 to six cents a
loaf, the local bakers say. depends on
future conditions in the market.
A local grain, -four and commission
man, who has been in business for
twenty years or more says that -four
and wheat are the highest now that
he has ever known. The world fam
GUS Letter deal in Chicago sent every
thing soaring for the time being and
at that time, statistics say wheat
reached $1.S5. That it will go higher
than 1t is now, reach the Letter price
and possibly even more, Is the general
consensus of opinion among the Of
tumwa grain and commission men;
more especially should the present
European war continue, to which
event, all this boosting of prices is
attributed by the local dealers. That
high prices have been known here in
other days, is verified by the state
ment Of veteran of the civil war,
which was to the effect that during
tnat time flour had sold for IS per hun
dred pounds or $3.50 a sack.
Ottumwa grocers have been COM
PEELED to boost their prices on all
grades of -four, to the extent of ten
cents per sack At this, however, most
Use not to send them higher until the
majority of their customers have an
opportunity to protect themselves by
laying in a fair supply. The next few
days will probably see good increase
in -four business at the different stores
all over the city as many will take ad-
vantage of every opportunity to guard
against further climbing of price lists.
Bread May be Six Cents.
OttumWa bakers are not able to
state, whether the price of bread will
be raised to six cents or not. Just
now, one dealer states, high grade
-four, which is used in the establish.
ment entirely, is selling at $40 sack
or almost four cents pound. He says
that the average public can see in this
way, just how much profit may be had
on pound loaf of bread to sell at five
cents. The whole matter lies with the
wheat market A short time ago, -four
and wheat took a jump and many
dealers stocked up; then it slumped
gain and in that way it has evened
Things up so that everyone has a fair
supply on hand, just for the present;
but future affairs rest solely with fu-
ture developments in the market else
where; which, in large measure
govern the lists for Ottumwa. This
same baker states that should the war
stop as suddenly as it began, then
there surely would be even greater
increase than there has been, for that
event would mean great boost in the
exports from this country, which
would only tend to lift prices at home.
SpeculatIons Increase.
The Harper & Ward commission
and brokerage house has had big In
crease in it's speculative business dur.
ing this week and expects more should
the boom continue. With the first
inkling of the market going up, the
callers at the Office have been frequent
and several small sums have probably
been tucked away by wise spectators
who understand the market.
The table below, furnished by this
house, shows the highest price touch
ed by wheat at the Chicago market,
during the past forty-nine years: