Omaha daily bee., 1890-09-29

pendent OF the United States" for her wheat
supply In 1890. Only II rec years ago those
same British writers dis covered a re markable
deterioration in American fiour,n asserting
that IL had lost its strength and was
merely res pectable offal" Durin z the past
six months these same writer's have made
the appalling discovery that American VIII eat
-four Is "adulterated' by the admixture Of
corn-m meal. All these statements are disproved
and our credulous Yankee economists, who
fake matters for the sensational dailies,
should occupy the time between drinks TO
learn a few facts connected with American
wheat culture ana It's capacity for develop
ment. There are very good reasons for re-
fusing to believe that the United States will
IN 100 be unable TO produce enough wheat
for home consumption. In the first place,
there are millions Of acres Of good
wheat lands in the United States
that are not yet under culture.
Even with the present exhausting method
OF cropping wheat the additions to area
alone would be su ffcient to carry us far be-
yond 1900, should the next decade bring us an
increase OF 1000, 600 or even l5,OOO,OoO in
population. Again, the American practice Of
cropping wheat without using fertilizers or
special tillaye viii be abandoned as land be-
comes more valuable, as population increases
and as the oyertaSing of supply by consump.
ton enhances the value Of wheat. simple
computation will suffice 10 illustrate the ca
pacity Of the United States. Conceive the
3S,DOO,0 900 acres in round numbers. Conceive
1900 to have arrived and the population large
enough to consume the 45O,OOO,OO bushels
OF wheat grown on the Ss,OOoOoO
acres Of land. Now fertilization is
generally adopted. The capacity of the soil
is increased so as TO raise the average yield
per acre of the country one bushel. In the
first year of fertilizing and careful culture
that adds b, zoo, coo bushels TO the capacity Of
the country. The second year brings better
I'll a l. 4. 4 III
average Implying an Increase of 100000
bushels. The third year adds another
bushel to the acres yield and brings the iu-
crease up to ia, 4,OO0,000 bushels. These in
creaSes are small when compared with the
increases achieved in France, and as the soil
of the United States is superior to that of
France, 1t is safe to predict that the aver
age" oftwelve or less bushels to the acre in
this country may be raised 10 twenty
and more bushels, so that the present
5000, 900 acres under culture may be taken
TO represent producing capacity of $50, ,0O0,
900 to 1000, 100000 bushels of wheat. At the
rate of five bushels per head, itwould require
2OJ,O000O0 inhabitants in the United States
to consume all that the present acreage can
produce under an enlightened system of cul-
ture. Go further, and conceive the wheat
area extended from $4,000, 900 to ~, O,OOoOOO
acres, which is within the proba bilities, and
the average of thirty bushels to the acre will
mean wheat crop of l,5OO, 10000 bushels.
Density Density OF population implies en- en-;
when once the American deposits Of fertil-
zers are brought into use, all crops will re-
spond by raising their acreage. Natural soils
in the valleys of Oregon and Washington
have yielded seventy-two bushels of wheat
to the acre. When less fertile soils are ruade
to resemble those wonderful western soils,
wheat growing will assume magnitude that
would now seem Incredible. Bulls and bears,
foreign passmists native bockheads and
gamblers in grain the world over should
move the importing date of the United
States forward from 1900 to 900.