The Wichita daily eagle., 1891-10-18

first he had no thought of publication, but
later gave his work to the press and was
astOnished to find himself famous almost
in a day.
His articles were quoted everywhere, and
he found himself overwhelmed with orders
for more matter lie had eollated his sta
tistics so carefully from official reports,
specially gathered figures furnished by
American consuls and ministers in almost
every civilized nation, as well as foreign
embassies, that he was recognized as being
admirably equipped for the unique line of
discussion he followed. The Arena, The
Review of Reviews and other. leading mag
azines have contained articles from his
pen, and it is stated that the recent ex-
haustive leader in the New York Sun on
the worlds food supply was written by
Mr. Davis.
The most remarkable feature of his dis
cussions is that he found not reason for
discouragement and complaint, such as the
Farmers Alliance and other agricultural
organizations advance, but cause to believe
that the farming world is on the brink of
the most successful period of the nations
history Calculating the food supply of
the civilized world he prophesied that
wheat would bring a vastly higher price
than il had reached last July So convinc-
ing were his figures that upon the strength
of them millions OF bushels that would
have been marketed were held in the farm
ers' granaries, and the Alliance through
out the western states exerted its power to
Induce its members to wait a few months
before disposing of their crop. Men hailed
the modest farmer living in an unpreten-
hn-,na Halixrprar and ba
urged to take the stump, to run for Office,
and indeed to follow the usual public
career of the average reformer.
He refused and continued as before to
enjoy with his sweet faced wife the COM
forts of home. He is emphatically stu
dent, believes earnestly what he sends
forth and is content 10 occupy his present
position rs a magazinist and an economist
rather than seek more gaudy but less en-
during fame
Mr. Davis theory can be best summed
up in the following aiagraph from re-
cent article from his pen:
Given a bread eating population-the
worIds-increasing at the rate of IA per
cent. in ten years and aD acreage in grain
and potatoes increasing at the rate of per
cent, it is only a question of time when
scarcity and high prices will result
The impossibility of making good the
deficit in the worlds food areas while
population continues to increase at the
present rate assures the prolonged contin-
uance Of such prices and high prices for
farm products that the farmer will not be
compelled to labor fourteen to sixteen
hours day He will build better houses
and granaries and share the good things Of
life"
Mr. Davis is personally thorough gen.
tleman, and impresses one as man who
has spent more time with the study lamp
than among men His predictions as to
increased wheat prices have in Kansas
markets been already partly fulfilled and
have gained for him the attention of many
who would not appreciate his elaborate
world statistics Mr.. Davis has counted
among his intimate friends many prom
inent characters. With General Fremont
he was as familiar as a brother, while of
today's notables he probably knows as
many as any man in the state.
O. NJ. HARGER