Jasper County Democrat, Volume 5, Number 15, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 July 1902 — CORN DEAL CLOSES. [ARTICLE]

CORN DEAL CLOSES.

The Price of July Option Falls Like Leaden Plummet. The July corn deal is over. The shorts, a Chicago dispatch says, settled with Harris, Gates A Co. Tuesday for millions and millions of bushels. Gates is believed to have received close to 80 cents. The market broke sharply when the settlements became known. It was at first believed that Gates had lost and let the market get away from him. With bounds and jumps the price of the grain dropped down from 80 cents to GSV4 cents. When the news spread over the board the panic grew worse and prices continued to drop. Purchasers of corn iu the country are left high end dry. They lose both ways. The prices they paid are far above what they will now be able to get. Gates, according to the Chicago dispatch, has made $3,750,000 by the best calculation thaf’can be stated. Ho himself is authority for the statement that his holdings comprised 25,000.000. Samuel Scotton, his manager, said that 05 cents was the highest figure in any of the contracts made by the firm. With the settling price at 80 cents there would be a profit of 15 cents on the 25,000,000, or $3 750.000. Gates never lost confidence when the shorts were fighting him the hardest and when men of millions entered the pit against him he retained his easy bearing and offered to bet $20,000 that July corn would go to 90 cents. Then, when no one would take liis wager, lie sent the price there just to show his power.