692 ANNUAL EEPOETS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGEICULTUEE. 



to change when conditions justify. They are not, however, limits^ 

 upon the amount of trading that any person may do. 



Strenuous objection was made to such requirements by representa- 

 tives of the leading grain exchanges on the ground that it would im- 

 pose an unnecessary burden and hardship on members of the future 

 exchanges to make such reports daily; that the Government should 

 not be in possession of such information currently because of the 

 possibility of leaks as to the business of individual concerns; and 

 that speculation would be discouraged thereby. It was felt that these 

 objections could not be sustained, because to do so would impair the 

 accomplishment of the purposes of the law, which necessitates accu- 

 rate current knowledge of the actual operations on the exchanges. 



As soon as possible after the regulations were promulgated the 

 necessary forms for use in making the reports were prepared and 

 put into service. It has already been found in the short period that 

 has elapsed that substantially all reports are received within the time 

 required, and it is expected that soon there will be no failures in this 

 regard. 



However, in the meantime, there was a substantial decline in the- 

 price of wheat in both the future and the cash grain markets, and for 

 a time there was in progress what amovmted to a propaganda to the 

 effect that the Government's requirements of daily reports and access 

 to information as to customer's accounts had frightened speculative 

 buyers away from the markets and lessened the volume of trading so 

 that the support for the market was impaired. It was pointed out in 

 published statements by the Secretary of Agriculture and the Grain 

 Futures Administration that such allegations were not based upon 

 fact, but that conditions in the wheat market were due to causes 

 other than the administration of the grain futures act. It was 

 further pointed out that during the period when the price of wheat 

 had gone down the price of corn had risen very substantially, 

 although traded in on the same markets under precisely the same 

 regulations as wheat. Since the close of the fiscal year there was 

 an upward tendency in the wheat market, notwithstanding the fact 

 that there has been no alteration in the Government's requirements. 



As an aid to the administration of the law, the Grain Futures 

 Administration has secured the creation for the Chicago Board of 

 Trade of a grain futures committee composed of representatives of 

 the various groups interested in future trading, who meet with the 

 Government supervisor, so that local questions arising in connection 

 with the enforcement of the law may be considered promptly in a 

 practical way by well-informed men on the ground. 



At the close of the fiscal year the Grain Futures Administration 

 was strengthening its organization for carrying out the provisions 

 of the new law and was making plans for the work required in order 

 that it might obtain definite knowledge upon various phases of grain- 

 future trading which would be of value in a dispassionate considera- 

 tion of the functions performed by those organizations. Plans were 

 also being made for a coordination of governmental agencies for 

 gathering information so as to effectuate the provisions of the grain 

 futures act against the dissemination of false or misleading informa- 

 tion regarding crop or market conditions. 



