Popular Science Monthly
��81
��The Finger Talk of Chicago's Wheat-Pit
THE Chicagu LJoard of Trade is by far the most important grain ex- change, not only of this country, imt of the world, and few peoi)le are familiar with its method of operation.
People who visit the Board of Trade are perhaps most impressed by the sign language used in buying and selling
��information necessary to consummate a deal, involving perhaps thousands of dol- lars, is conveyed by a few motions of the hand.
Each finger extended represents one- eighth of a cent. Thus when all four fingers and the thumb are extended, all being spread out from one another, it means five-eighths. When the four fin- gers and thumb are extended, but are
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� ���Where voices are smothered in the din, and where seconds may mean fortunes made or lost, traders resort to an effective sign language to buy and sell grain
��grain for future delivery. Unlike any- thing else seen in any other line of busi- ness this wonderful system, while simple in its execution, nevertheless puzzles the uninitiated. It is a system that has grown up with the Board, and traders would be hel])less without it. In that awful din where hundreds of men and boys are rushing about and shouting and countless telegraph instruments are click- ing, individual voices are smothered and the trader must talk w^ith his hands.
He has no time to waste — a lost sec- ond may mean hundreds of dollars to him. By a simple movement of his fingers the trader makes it known wheth- er he would buy or sell, what price he is willing to pay or take and what quantity he wishes to trade in. All the
��pressed close together, it represents three- c|uarters. The clenched hand with the thumb alone extended is seven-eighths, while for an even cent the closed fist is used. The thumb jirotruding l)etween the index and big finger is the signal for a split quotation. Nothing less than 10,000 bushels can be traded in on a split quotation, which if 90% — %, means that half is taken at 90% cents and half at 90'*4 cents. These characters refer to the price, and the hands and fingers are held in a horizontal position. When displayed vertically the quantity is indi- cated, each extended finger representing 5.000 bushels. When the desire is to sell, the palm of the hand is held outward, and when the trader wishes to buy he signals with the palm facing him.
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