140 THE WHEAT INDUSTRY 



The Terminal Elevators. - - At each of the 

 central and terminal markets immense elevators 

 have been built whose chief business is storage. 

 They also serve to transfer grain from railroad 

 cars to freight vessels. With their storage capac- 

 ities, which vary from 500,000 bushels to 2,300,000 

 bushels, they serve as great reservoirs into which, 

 during the market rush following the harvest, the 

 wheat can flow and be held ; and from which it 

 can move as the milling and export trade demands. 

 Companies operate these elevators for the profits 

 which are derived from storage charges. They 

 do not take the chances of speculation. When 

 the elevator runs short of stored grain, the com- 

 pany is likely to buy enough to refill, but it im- 

 mediately sells for future delivery with storage 

 charges added. This is called covering. It not 

 only removes the company from danger of 

 loss due to falling prices, but also prevents the 

 chance of gain as a result of advance. The grain 

 may then change ownership many times and still 

 remain in the same elevator. Sometimes it re- 

 mains in storage in this way for a year or more. 



The Wheat Exchange. - The buying and sell- 

 ing of wheat for future delivery has given rise at 

 various places to speculative markets. The most 

 famous of these in this country is the Chicago 

 Board of Trade. Here many forms of farm 

 products are handled, but wheat because of its 



