Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1890-08-16


year, although such short crop will
result in extreme hardship in gem
eral multitude of individual cases.
Taking series of years, the an
nual domestic consumption of feed.
ing grains-oats and corn-has been
at the rate of over 80 bushels per cap
ita, and reducing the product to
three-fourths (or less) of this amount
necessitates the complete exhaustion
of the reserves, which are probably
less in this western country than is
generally believed. That this is so
is indicated by the eagerness with
which farmers and others-since it
became certain that the crop was as
near total failure as possible-have
been picking up every odd lot of
corn that was offered for sale, and
such eagerness has enabled the seller
to make his own price in many
cases.
While this failure of the crops, es-
pecially of oats and corn, is a great
disaster and will result in much
hardship and prlvation, yet some
consolation may be derived from the
fact that it will completely dispose of
the existing surplus, and population
is now increasing so much more rap>
idly than new acreage that this en-
sures an end for all time to low prices
for these products and for meats. One
significant result of this failure of the
corn crop is the marketing of thou
sands upon thousands of immature
swine, and some farmers are killing
the young pigs as soon as farrowed
in order to fit the sOws for market at
the earliest possible day. If this ex-
cessive marketing and killing of
young pigs is as general as appears
to be the case, next years hog crop
will be a remarkably short oneas will
that of 1892, and short supply of
high priced pork certainly means an
enlarged demand and much higher
prices for beef, which must in all fu-
ture years be made from much high
er-priced corn.
This crop failure, while to many a
great calamity, will bring return OF
remunerative prices two or three
years earlier than would have been
a repetition Of the great corn crops Of
1888 and 1889, and in that much il
will prove what Jeff Davis would
have termed ga blessing in Disguise
and such failure and the great rise ir
the price Of grain while the markets
are still fully supplied, and only {
future shortage possible, show tina
neither the quantity nor kind o
money circulation, the operation o
option dealers, high or low tariff i
the potent factor in determining
prices, but that it is the extent of tn
supply, present and prospective, al
though other factors may and prob
} ably do affect prices to some extent
I but given a supply in excess o
requirements and prices will fal
ontil dealers believe that the bottom
has been reached, when they viii
buy and hold for a rise, thereby re
lieving the pressure by what the.
withdraw from the quantity offering
while on the other hand just as 500
as it is manifest that the supply 70
( coming crop year will be short-al
e though present supplies may b
S abundant, as is the case now-price
l will rise rapidly without any on
? stopping to enquire what is the circu
S lation per capita, or whether tn
s tariff is for revenue or protection.
3 The farmer is assured high prices 8
: an early day and for all the future b
g the fact that the amount of land i
!, the world capable of producing whes
T and other food products which tn
r white man must have is fixed an
Il unalterable quantity, which neitht
Legislation nor a redundant circuli
e ting medium can increase, while IL
n consuming element is constantly il
;, creasing in a geometrical ratio, {
n poor derided old Nautilus told I
u long ago, while the means of subsis
IT ence increases only in an arithmetic
It one. The excessive development
T. the West has seemed to negative Il
y Malthusian theory, but when popul
l. ton has increased, as it will durir
II the remainder .of this centur
u it is probable that both the memol
It and doctrine of Nautilus will be full
Is rehabitated; the English farmer on
n more able to sell his wheat at so to