Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-08-11
STATE OF MINNESOTA,
DEPARTMENT OF STATE,

BuREAu OF STATISTICS, ST. PAUL, Aug. lO, oU
To the Newspapers of the State:
According to law, hereby present the fol-
lowing statements of acreage and yield OF the
nriucipal cereals of the State for the year 1879,
and also the acreage for 1850, as compiled by
me from official returns made to this bureau:
The counties of Aitken, Carlton, Grow Wing,
Murray and Pipestone have not reported to this
date. but have been carefully estimated, and
ara included in the total results, as shown in
the tables.
The total acreage in wheat for 1879 is given
in the table to be 2,76252l acres, and the crop
therefrom is reported to be Sl,2lS.6S4 bushels.
which gives an average yield per acre for the
State of l1.S0 bushels, but as the reports. made
by the town assessors to the county auditors,
are very incomplete, and in many
instances are endorsed By the
assessor with 'farmers refuse to list" or
this is a statement of twenty-three farmers
out of about sixty, most of them refuse to
give any Information" it must be stated, that
the above result is far from a true and correct
one, and by comparing the total of the Official
returns with the shipments of wheat In the
State and the receipts at places of destination
the commissioner is fully convinced, that at
least twenty per cent. should be added to the
total Weld, which thus shows the wheat crop Of
1879 to have been 81, 462,S6O bushels.
The low average yield of II. 80 bushels to the
acre should perhaps he increased by cores
ponding percentage, but az it ia impossible to
fix m exact standard of increase between
the acreage and the yield it is
given rs the result of the reports re-
oeived by the bureau. The long, dry spell
in the summer of 1879, followed by very rot
weather lust before the ripeniDg of the wheat,
caused considerable injury to the crop in GER
k-:- - o,,l 1n1t fho vic in nrn
county down to 2. 16 bushels to the acre.
The crop harvested was however of good
quality, being mostly No. |, and oats and corn
yielded sbundanily.
The average yield per acre for the Slate of
the other principal cereals was for 1875: OATS
36. S5 bushels; corn, 33. 80 bushels; and barley,
"a. SO bushels.
The increase in the acreage in wheat in 1880
over 1879 is 200, 804 acres, or 7.27 per cent,
mainly in the northwestern part of the State.
In the southern part several counties show no
change at all, while others have falling of of
from l,766 acres in ia 'kson county to 1913
acres in Fillmore county. The full acreage
in wheat in 1880 as reported below is 2, 1853 325
acres, and from the reports SO far received, as
we'll from official as from other sources, the
average yield per acre at the present out
beok is certainly not less than fifteen bushels,
which, according to the reported acreage, gives
the result to be 44.449,o75 bushels. Add to
this total estimated yield the same percentage
40 per cent az above explained and the pre8-
ent crop of wheat, now being harvested in the
State. will not fall short OF IS, $50 bushels.
With the exceptions OF a few tracts in the
northwestern part OF the State, where several
dry eeasons have induced the cultivation of
wheat on low lands, which consequently was
injured by the severe rain storms early in the
season. aud the damsge done by the ohinoh-
bugs in some of the southwestern counties
1880 must certainly be recorded as favor
able year for Minnesota cereals. snd If the ex-
sct acreage could be had, and the total yield
will hold out as compared with 1879, aud for
mer years, the average yield per acre would un-
dcubtedly be somewhat higher.
The increase in acreage of the other priuoi-
pal cereals of the State for 1880 is Oats. 81 33
per cent; corn. 1895 per cent. and barley
22.59 per cent, aud at this date they give
promise of very abundant yield. Very re-
spectfully, T. s. CHRISTENSEN,
Assistant Secretary of State and Commissioner
of Statistics