The New York herald., 1922-06-04

wireless from tn
"He fancied he could almost hear
the thunder of the Pit as it swirled.
All La Sale street was listening and
watching, all Chicago, all the ma
ton, all the world."-From "The
Pit" by Frank Norris.
TIME prices from Chicago's Board OF
Trade-popularly known as "the
Pit"-are a potent force all over
the world. Business men from New York
to Frisco, from Vancouver to Halifax and
Rome, Calcutta listen eagerly for the
prices of wheat at Chicago. The cost of
food and the prospects of making living
throughout the civilized world are
strongly Influenced by those important
prices.
THE Pit has become famous in litera-
ture as the very climax of all that is
most strenuous and nerve wracking in
human intercourse The brokers are
supposed to be half mad in their frantic
behavior, although endowed with super
human speed, stentorian lungs and an
uncanny intelligence. There is in the
opinion of observers some influence about
dealing in foodstuffs that makes men
wilder and iercer than they could be-
come in ordinary financial stock exchange
transactions
AS this business is so vital and so
strenuously conducted it will surprise
nobody to hear that the method of dis
tributing Chicago Board of Trade quota
tions is one of the greatest achievements
of modern science and efficiency. From
the moment sale is recorded in "the
Pit" 1t is only three and three-fifths Sec
onds before the price is reported all over
the United States and a few seconds more
before it is reported in Europe.
But any new invention that would cut
a fraction of second from that time or
improve the distribution of market news
in any way is welcomed by the countless
business men who depend on these prices.
The Chicago Board of Trade has just
made most interesting innovation, for
1t is using the wireless telephone to send
out its quotations and general market
news at half hour intervals during each
daily session. The immediate effect of
this step has been to bring the Chicago
market closer than ever to producers
dealers and handlers of grain.
Plans are now being made to improve
the service so that eventually it will be
practicable for any grain man or farmer,
wherever he may be, whether at home in
bed or away in the woods, to obtain the
latest prices and market news. There is
theoretically no limit to the field of the
radio. 1t has worked well experimentally
from New York to San Francisco and
from New York to Paris.
The new system will perhaps be most
valuable to the grain dealer who may
have millions dependent on his commit
ments but wants to go away on a fishing
expedition to recuperate his strength for
the struggles of "the Pit" He can get the
latest prices at any times and know just
where he stands.
The wireless quotations will also fly
through the air TO L0e nome OF the IdTIner
in the vast plains of the Dakotas or Sas-
katchewan. He will know what they are
going to pay for his wheat and fix his
own prices accordingly
But the wireless quotations cannot an
swer all requirements, for it is essential
for business houses to have printed rec.
ord. The regular system of transmitting
Board of Trade quotations by means Of
the printing telegraph, or ticker" will
be maintained for long time to come
1t is one of the triumphs Of modern busi-
ness and well worth understanding.
Every change of prices on the exchange
is Immediately flashed broadcast over the
country. The average number of quota.
tions sent out in this way on every bust.
ness day of the year is approximately
$500 on all grains and provisions, the
majority being on wheat. And the won
der Of it all is that every one of these
hundreds of quotations is available in