2 BULLETIN 1479, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
of each type was clearly shown both from day to day and for the period 
as a whole. Important among the results obtained were: 
(1) The daily changes in the net position of the hedgers, scalpers, spreaders, 
and speculative scalpers did not show any marked relationship to the changes 
in wheat prices during the period under study. 
(2) The changes in the net position from day to day of the large speculators, 
taken as a class, were found to be almost exactly opposite to the changes in the 
net position of the class designated as commission-house accounts and of the 
miscellaneous class. Expressed differently: Whenever the large speculators 
bought, either the commission-house class or the miscellaneous class or both 
sold; and whenever either one or the other or both of the latter classes bought 
the former class sold. 
This second fact was of particular interest for the reason that in contrast to 
the class of large speculators, the commission-house and miscellaneous classes 
were made up primarily of small traders. They included for the most part 
those traders popularly known as the ‘‘general public.’’ The opposite character 
of the trading of the large speculators to that of the small speculators became 
much more significant when it was found that the changes in the net position 
from day to day of the large speculator class bore a direct relation to the changes 
in the price of May wheat, while the changes in the net position of the commission- 
house and miscellaneous classes were inversely related to changes in price. 
(3) In analyzing in detail the trading operations of the 302 traders consti- 
tuting the class of large speculators, it was found that the market position and 
trading of this class was, for the most part dominated by the eight largest traders 
of the group. Each of these eight traders attained a position in May wheat, 
either long or short, of 2,000,000 bushels or over at some time during the period 
covered. Five of the eight traded on individual days to a net amount of 2,000,000 
bushels or more. When these single-day operations were compared with the 
net change in the price of May wheat for the corresponding days, it was found 
that in 76 per cent of the cases the price moved in the same direction as the trading, 
i. e., if purchases, an advance in price; if sales, a decline in price. 
The results obtained from the investigation which has just been 
summarized were important and far-reaching in significance. They 
were, however, based on a period of less than four months during 
which time the price changes were abnormal. In view of these 
facts additional study of the trading since the early part of 1925 
has been made, the results of which are embodied in this bulletin. 
The bulletin here presented is in substance a carrying forward 
of this earlier investigation to include the transactions in the 1926 
May wheat future. The daily reports regularly received by the 
Grain Futures Administration from all classes of ‘‘traders’’ show 
that large-scale speculative operations carried on during the first 
four months of 1925 continued during the summer and fall and the 
following winter. Having already found from the earlier study that 
the trading of hedgers, scalpers, and spreaders does not directly 
relate to large price movements, the present study has been limited 
to purely speculative trading and principally to the operations of 
the eight individuals whose market positions exceeded 2,000,000 
bushels. The present investigation covers only wheat futures as 
did the previous one and emphasizes in particular the trading and 
price movements in the 1926 May future. 
EXPLANATION OF TERMS NOT COMMONLY USED BY THE TRADE 
The terminology and subject matter of future trading is suffi- 
ciently difficult for the average reader to justify a brief review of 
the more important terms used in this bulletin. Most of the terms 
used in the reports of the Grain Futures Administration are terms 
used in the grain trade generally; but in certain instances, and 
especially in the combining of the trading of firms or traders, it has 
an 
