If I understand your post correctly I believe this to be true. Your forend cracks are not uncommon. More than likely a previous owner took the gun apart with out it being cocked first. When they went to put it back together, the forearm cracked due to the cocking rod location. On the metal part of your forend where it meets the reciever, there will be two screws that go back into the forend's wood. These reinforce this area if I understand this correctly. When the forearm was put back on without it being cocked first...the pressure exerted was more than the wood would handle and cracked to the sides of these screws.
It will not affect the gun in shooting and should not affect whether your forearm will be loose, etc... It is just a "scar" from trying to assemble the gun without making sure it was cocked first. This is a commonly found problem on our "Sweet Elsie's".