Morning journal and courier., 1885-03-14
Saturday, March IA, 1885.


 Ever since the speculators for rise in wheat in 1883 got beaten by the unexpected quantity of Indian wheat which found it's way to the European market they and the wheat growers of this country have been deeply interested in Indian wheat The "bears" in wheat have not hesitated to assert that wheat can be grown in India for little or nothing and that the wheat of this country cannot compete with it except at.a very low price. But some accurate information con- corning the matter has been obtained and it does not yet appear that the American wheat grower will have to go out of business.
 The average cost to the Indian farmer of raising bushel of wheat is put at about if ty-fve and one-half cents. Two years ago, when the demand for wheat was fairly act i've, he received for his grain, approximately, seventy cents per busheI, netting him a profit of fourteen and one-half cents upon each bushel that he sold. Now, the average size of an Indian farm is five acres and the average production on dry land is put at twelve bushels to the acre and on irrigated land twenty-two bushels to the acre. The possessor of what would be termed @ ''dry farins Of five sores made profit from his sale of sixty bushels of $9. TO, and this at a time when the demand for wheat was excep- irrigated farm of the same dimensions netted profit on his harvest of about $16.
 East Indian experts say that with wheat at it's present selling price it is not possible that the cultivator can do more than recover the value of his labor and interest on his ex- penditures in cattle and implements, and, as one of these gentlemen observes, if this esti- mate is correct as regards the most fertile district in India the condition of the wheat growing industry in less fertile districts must be more severe. Indeed, this fact is made apparent by the shrinkage which took place last year in the shipments of wheat from Bombay, Kurraehee and Calcutta, the, de- cline being equal to 90 per cent in the first two places and 3311S5 per cent. in the last as compared with shipments made in 1883.
 In railro ad transportation the Indian farm CT has little advantage over the American farmer in the matter of distance But, with the exception of one railroad line, the rates charged for transportation have been and are considerably higher than the average per mile of charges in the United States. Be- side this, this transportation is carried on over subsidized lines, which are not self-sup- porting at the established rates of charges, and hence the wheat growers, in common with the other Indian people, have to make these deficiencies good by increased taxes. The cost of carrying wheat from India to England averages considerably higher than the cost of transporting it from New York to Liverpool. Indeed, the California wheat growers during the last twelve months have been able to ship their wheat from San Fran cisco to the United Kingdom at somewhat lower freight rates than those demanded for carrying wheat from Calcutta to England.
 All this indicates that some people in this country have been altogether too much afraid of the competition of Indian wheat It ia highly probable that our wheat growers will be permitted to make living for some time to come