The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-11-29

sy GEORGE WILLIAMSON.


With influences in the cotton market
rompimented and to some extent conf
fHcting and the trade already In state
Of uncertainty as to whiei way prices
should go after the prolonged upward
movement IL was entirely natural that
during the past few days definite ideas
should be lacking. That some progress
vas made In widening differences be-
tween the near and the distant posi-
lions also reflected this uncertain feel
InK aud at the same time denoted con-
Nnued stability pf the spot department
i'm the face Of reduced demand and &C
tvity among fhe buyers The chief bpl-
Wark Of strength still lies In the IN
dependence Of the holder Of the actual
and his ability TO say at what level
he will turn loose the unsoid portion
nf his crop. The admitted scarcity Of
good grades and staples and the ex-
lStence OF some unsausfied short IN
terest In the same stimulates confidence
in the chances that prices win be well
maintained and that sooner or later
he contracts, which are based on white
cotton ana the better grades Of the Off
nnlora, will respond to Spot quotations
and come NJ toward the level OF such.
The week was period Of limited
trading activity with fluctuations er-
ratio and oftmes with little apparent
reason, The traders themselves had no
very definite ideas and were disposed
to await developments The interven-
non Of the Thanksgiving holiday ana
the fact that in less than two weeks
viii come the usual cumulative esti-
mate Of The government on the crop
also helped TO minimize activity At
the NloSd Of the period options in New
forE were from 2O5 70 Is points net to
the good, while in New Orleans gains
were from l57 TO 81 points. Opinion
was confused and the probabilities
seemed to favor continuance OF the
nervous character of changes.
In the spot markets quotations for
| middling ranged from 3S cents to Il Csc,
| representing gains Of % 10 l75 points;
while the Memphis figures were left
unchanged for most Of the grades Vol
ume N sales was smaller but not alto
| gethet because demand was less, all
| though II was distinctly SO, except for
certain characters Of cotton.
Coal Strike Menace.
one Of the>big influences was that
Of the coal strike, So ouch depended
on whether this should Abe settlsd or
allowed TO go from bad to worse
that traders found themselves putting 1t
Eabove everything else and responding
| 10 every rumor or report as to progress
| IN efforts to adjust the differences
| Changes IN measure We're responsive
| u" WuFNtI lne OUTLOOK was favorable
| or otherwise although toward the close
of tho period 1t seemed the latter. one
| reason why weakness was not greater
when the outlook seemed bad was thai
| traders thought the ar-reachng effects
would De such as to neCessitate drastic
steps by the government which would
mean an early termination Of the tie
| up,
An important factor for higher prices
in the face OF other things was the
sharp rise in silver metal and it's ef-
| feet on the purchasing power OF a CON
siderable part Of the world Prices
rose to unprecedented levels, with the
result that Liverpool became A more
active buyer at home and in this coun-
| try although on this side 1t was chiefly
| through the absorption Of contracts as
hedges against future requirements of
the actual Manchester trade adviccs
were stimulated and It perhaps helped