Salt Lake Tribune | 1915-01-14 | Page 6 | Farmers not Guilty

i T4RMERS NOT GUILTY fj r i t The pres dent of the Chicago board of I trade accuses the farmers of holding i back their wheat from market and S thereby enhancing the price of that I t most important food product Probably j j some of the farmers st 11 own last year s ; i crop but their number is few in com J i f. panson with those who have disposed of their surplus In any event they II f possess the undoubted right to hold on s) f to their grain if they want to take a : chance on obtaining higher prices The jL reason wheat cont nues to go up is : the general demand for it from Eu j i V i rope That it will go higher if the war 1 J cont nues is certain It is also certain $ ,. that the amount still n the hands of c the farmers w 11 not affect the price ifii I the least except so far as the Chicago I speculators are able to use t to de press the market on days following an advance Wheat went down three cents a bushel the other day on rumors peddled i m the Chicago pit that the Trench and Br t sh warships had forced the j Dardanelles thus affording an outlet , for the Russian wheat There wasn t the shadow of an excuse for the ru mors for the news dispatches on that day d 1 not carry the slightest hint that the allied fleets had made an attempt It to go through the Dardanelles much less that they had succeeded n perform lng what is regarded as a well n gh im possible naval feat It was merely part Of the see saw game played on the Chi cago board of trade Men and women who are d sposed to take a flyer in wheat are fed on one 1 nd of rumors today and another k nd tomorrow and the market goes up or down in response to man pulat op the Iambi be ng shea e 1 ' m the process The days of wl ca.t orne s a e n or j but there are doubtless n my other transactions in connect o w th the Chicago board of trade that would not look exactly r gbt an 1 prope to an m part al observer Anywaj tho cold and unsympathet c eye of the department of just ce s upon the market man pula tors and the attempt to pass the blame along to the farmers w 11 fail of its purpose