Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1891-09-24
GRAIN SHORTAGE.
The American Agricclturist Con
siders the Situation.
EUROPE IN DESPERATE STRAITS.
Stores Almost Exhausted-Unprecede
Imports of American Breadstuns-Star-
walton Ayerts War-The Deficit at
Least goo, 600, 900 Bushels.

NEW YORK, Sept 21.-An exhaustive
STUDY of the worlds food supply, in the
forthcoming number of the American
Agriculturist. declares that the half has
not yet been told about the European
shortage in breadstuffs, which not even
a bountiful crop this year would have
relieved.
Continental powers, especially In
Russia, suppress the facts as far as pos
sible. In many Russian provinces the
scarcity of food became pronounced as
far back as February last In the
Konstantinovka district many families
have not cooked a meal since Easter,
but subsisted on bread, soaked rye,
grain, etc, bestowed in charity.
The prohibition of rye ex-
ports is followed by a ukase forbid
ding the shipment of bran and other
cereal cattle foods. The astounding
shortage in Russia's yield of rye, an
nounced a month since by the ministry
of finance, proves even greater than the
most extravagant estimates and effect
ually obliterates all possibility of Rus
STA exporting any of her scant wheat
crop.
That eastern Germany is in practic-
ally the same plight admits of no doubt
The European reserves that have
heretofore eked out insufficient harv-
ests are everywhere exhausted The
parade made by Russia of the existence
of stores in the Baltic provinces is done
for effect-to convey the impression
that military stores are abundant
Such reserves are of small Importance.
Indeed, the danger OF famine is des-
tined to spare Europe the horrors of
war for fully a twelve month hence
Accepting the largest estimates of
production, both home and abroad, and
even assuming that the United States
and Canada export 225, 600, 600 bushels
there is a deficit in the worlds food
supply of at least 200. 600. 600 bushels of
wheat and rye, with possibility of the
shortage being twice as great
Added to this is the almost total fall
ure of the potato crop in Ireland and
serious curtailment in the yield of po-
tatoes in the continent. Even with the
utmost economy of distribution and an
unheard of consumption of American
maize, grave distress is before the
masses of Europe.
The enormous experts of wheat and
flour from the United States in August
prove that Europe regards the situation
as worse than it has yet been painted
Otherwise why should she buy in a
single month close upon the harvest
nearly half as much wheat as she took
from the United States during the en-
tire first eight months Of the year fol-
lowing one of the largest wheat crops
and period of bed rock prices Au-
gust wheat exports were almost treble
those of the same month of last year,
and over four times as much as the
average exports at this season last
year.
For the first time in years wheat,
bran and S1iddlings are being exported
to Europe thus early in the season.
These circumstances are accepted as
the strongest possible reason for be-
Heving that prices of wheat are I'M
naturally low. 1t looks for sharp
advance in all cereals as soon as the
demand realizes the limited extent of
the worlds actual supply. Every
bushel of high grade wheat is worth
fully 81 on the farm where it grew.
One of the most marked features of
the prosperity that is already upon
American agriculture, noted by the
same magazine, is the extent to which
farmers are planning to unite in CO.
operative buying and selling.