FINANCIAL DRAMA

Hokitika Guardian, 3 February 1930, Page 5

FINANCIAL DRAMA

CANADIAN WHEAT MARKET. STOCK BROKER jo’ POWER. [United Press Association.—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.] (Received this riav at Id a.m.) VANCOUVER, Fob. 1. Canada, this week, watched an amazing financial drama in which she was threatened with wreck. It loomed so widespread that the highest law officers of the Dominion were obliged to come to the rescue of highly placed people they had just attacked. In one forenoon, live leading brokerage houses were raided and eleven principals arrested .

Colonel William Price, AttorneyGeneral for Ontario, directed the battle against the alleged dishonest bucketing brokers, who have scores of branches throughout the country. He closed these up, and asked the Stock Exchange to expel mining operators, who last year alone handled more than £40,000,(HX) of public moneys. F'or one day, Stock Exchanges oiterated without these brokers. Overnight, however, the Ontario Governement feared a financial crash that would rock tlie Dominion and early on Saturday it was announced that the accused brokers would be re-admit-ted to the exchange. The Attorney-General was forced to capitulate to a definite threat that with accused traders prohibited from trading, there would be a panic, and nlnprotccted stocks or thousands of small holders would be wiped out, and in the case of the criminal court, charges against the brokers finally not being proved, these speculators, large and small, would have good cause for legal redress against the Government of Ontario.

Curiously enough, the Government of Manitoba also found itself in a desperate position, and protested violently against Ontario’s action in seizing the officers and bank accounts of the accused brokers. Manitoba’s prosperity is entirely dependent upon an established wheat price. Two leading brokers were carrying millions' of bushels of wheat on margin in Winnipeg market on their account. The seizures occurred ohe day. when wheat had reached the lowest point of the season. Noon on .Friday saw a situation where ten million bushels of wheat wo. | d have been dumped jon the market within an hour. The Premier of Manitoba announced the resources of the entire Government would step into the market tot stabilise the situation, for he feared a panic that would have carried, the price away under three shillings.

On Saturday morning Ontario police reeased enough of the brokers’ money to bolster tlie wheat market, and the crisis passed, with Liverpool cables announcing a two‘cents’ advance overnight, and finisher! with Government leaders coming to a realisation that some business is sometimes too high to be disciplined without far-reaching and unexpected results.