indemnities

In common usage, the plural of indemnity. A technical term of the grain market or board of trade. For many years prior to August 24, 1921, members of grain exchanges bought and sold in large quantities agreements for contracts for purchase or sale of grain subject to acceptance within a definite time thereafter, commonly known as "indemnities." When the holder of one of these elected to exercise his rights, the specified amount of grain was bought and sold on the exchange indicated for future delivery, and the agreement was thus finally consummated. By far the larger percentage of such agreements were subject to acceptance during the following day at a price ordinarily within one fourth of a cent of the price prevailing when the market closed on the day of the agreement. During many years the uniform consideration paid was one dollar per thousand bushels. Trusler v Crooks, 269 US 475, 481, 70 L Ed 365, 367, 46 S Ct 165.