Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1882-08-18
NENT DEMAND 70 r
BREADSTUFFS AND BEEF.

The failure of beef to fall in price and
the in ability of the enormous wheat crop
to ''wreck" the price of that staple are
two puzzles that have Unexpectedly set the
community to figuring out the causes. We
fear that it will be a long time before we
have the old low prices in beef in the Uni
ted States, if indeed, we ever do. 1t is =
fact that with the enormous immigration
into this country and the rapid natural
increase of the population. the increase OF
cattle does not keep pace. Not only this,
but America is fast becoming beef eat
ing country. Large communities which
quarter of centur. ago. were consumers
of salt pork are now the customers of che
fresh beef men. 1t is difficult to define
the exact cause or causes OF the change,
but the fact still col.fronts US that it has
taken place. 1t is the increase OF the con-
sumers and not the decrease in the num-
Der of cattle that is the prime cause OF beef
which it costs two cents pound to raise
being readily saleable at six cents on the
hoof. Superadded to this, may be set down
the annually increasing demand for ex-
ports. Crowded Europe finds it cheaper
to let the Republic raise its beef for it.
just as in short time the thickly settled
Republic will look to the plains OF South
America for lis cattle. We fully recoQ.
nize the agency of the bad winter OF 1880.
the drought of 1881. the short hay crop.
and all those temporary causes, but back
Of it all lies the fact that we are becoming
beef eating people. and not only that
but we have acquired th nice and delicate
taste about choice beef of civilization and
we may no more hope to see the old low
prices which our fathers saw.
Greatly modified, the same line of argu-
ment may be applied to the supply and
prices of wheat. In the last twenty years
a population of four millions that for "a
century had lived on corn meal, has been
steadily marching into white bread. This
fact will always make better and steadl-
or home market for wheat in the Southern
States than existed before. As with beef,
the enormous immigration stream that
never ceases-helps to stiffen the market.
The mere immigration to America in the
last fifteen years consumed more OF our
wheat than we exported previous to that
time. For two years after his arrival the
immigrant lives on the crops OF other
hands. A failure OF the wheat crop in
America would bring out in strong relief
how many mouths we have to feed. In
our vegetable raising we are far behind
supplying the home consumption. In
Staunton to-day, families will eat potatoes
from Scotlandkand Germany, onions from
Bermuda and cabbages from Germany
They are not the product of pauper labor
either, but of the muscle of small farmers
of Europe. who own and till their lands.
In the matter of Bermuda onions. only =
few years ago used exclusively in our sea-
board cities, they may be found in great
quantities as far west as Omaha. In that
same far West may be found Scotland and
Bermuda potatoes.
1t is very hard for man with railroad
map of the Republic in one hand, and the
census report of population and immigra
ton in the other, to come to even the most
hopeful conclusion that Americans are
ever again to see low prices Of food prevail
as rule.