The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-06-17
WHAT WE GROW
AND WHERE WE GROW 1T, FOUND orE
BY Special Agent Dodge OF the CenSus
Bnreau-An Unprecedented Ad.
vance In tho Production In
the Last Decade.

!. WASHINGTON, June l6.-The Census
! office to-day issued the report OF ]. R.
3 Dodge, special agent for the collection OF
statistics Of agriculture, giving the re-.
suit OF the first count Of the area aud pro-
duct OF cereals oil several States and
Territories. Mr.. Dodge says that It is the
Gensus taken in 1850 OF the crops Of 1879
aud the acreage on which they were
! grown. 1t is given in comparison with the
production OF 1869 reported in the census
OF 1870.
The supplementary and corrected rs.
turnsmay slightly change these aggregates
in the final publication.
The most striking suggestion Of these
figures Is the unprecedented advance in
the production during the last decade,
! amounting to nearly 100 per cent for oil
kinds taken together, while the increase
] OF the ten years proceeding was but l9 per
cent. This wide difference is largely real,
from obvious causes, though Ia part only
apparent by reason Of the partial failure Of
the corn crop Of 1850 and the heavy yield
ot 1870. The cereal increase between 1850
and 1850 of the great agricultural
growth was 43 per cent. As reported by the
census.
The acreage OF the crops, now for the
first time given by the census, will In the
future prevent tho misleading effect OF q
very low and OF excessive production In
the census year,
The gain apparent in corn Is 1888 per
cent, the three great corn growing States,
Illinois, Iowa and Missouri, producing
more than the entire country IN 1859. The
advance In Illinois, from 100 09?l, 1896 bush
els to 327, 700, sos bushels IL In part the
result ot an extension 0t her area, hut 10
largely due to the fact that the crop Of
1869 was q partial failure by Ienson Uf
drought. The tiyefold increase In Kansas
10 caused by heavy immigration and cheap
fertile lands; and q still higher rate Of pro-
gress from similar causes Ia noted In Ne
braska, yet 10 both OF these States there
was belt Of low yield from drought and
grasshoppers.
Cotton States show gain ol about forty
per cent since 1870. The low ratio be-
tween the lgures OF area and products in
several OF these States Is partly explained
by the general prevalence of drought,
The Pacific Coast region Ia not espect.
ally well suited to this crop, but exhibits
90 creditable an increase In fair proportion
to the advance 10 population as was ex.
peCted. There Ia but small extension In
maize cultivation in the Territories,
which is imprRCtlCable II not impossible
n all Int tha lnUBaak al
Wheat Is comparatively steady and the
rapid increase OF wheat growing is shown
by comparison with former enumsra-
tions, the gain being 70 per cent In the
last decade and GO and 30 respectively In
these Immediately preceding. All the
States and Territories, except Florida and
Wyoming, include wheat in their reports.
Several States on the Atlantic and Gulf
coasts show a diminished production.
Seven. tenths OF the entire crop Ia produced
in nine States In the following order OF
precedence: Illinois. Indiana, Ohio,
Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, California,
Missouri and Wisconsin.
There has been ior several years an in.
Creasing interest In wheat culture In
all Southern States, especially In the Pied.
mont regions OF CaTollnAs and Georgia,
and In the northern central counties OF
Texas, and there has been disposition
to experiment In the more southern por.
ton OF the cotton belt, even In Louisiana
and Florida, confined In the iormer
State to northern parishes on the uplands
between Wichita and the Red river. The
low rate OF yield lu the Southern States
Ia not altogether due 10 the unsuitable
soil or uniavoFahle climatic condition, but
10 the practice Of using wheat fields for
, winter pasture, consideration often
deemed more important than harvesting
Tipened grain. The season Of 1879 was
also exceptionally unfavOrable In this
section, the average yield being but hye or
sx bushels in several Of these States.
0Ats.-The production Of oats has been
extended mainly Ia the West and South.
Four.lsnths oil the area Of this crop, with
nearly half OF It's product, Ia found in the
States Of Illinois, Iowa, New York and
, Pennsylvania. Heretofore II has been an
unpromising and unpopular crop In the
| Southern latitudes, being extremely liable
TO blight, until the introduction Of the
trust proof varieties and the practice Of
= fall sowing for winter pasture.
Barley California and New York still
, produce nearly half this crop. Wisconsin,
Iowa and Minnesota have made the
heaviest increase, and now produce the
larger part OF the remaining half, Il Is
making no appreCiabIe advance In the
South.
The increase In rye has been only II
3 per cent, showing decline In the pro.
duction ID proportion 10 the population.
I Pennsylvania, Illinois and New York still
produce about half the crop.
BnCkwhest-The increased production