The morning call., 1892-10-08
THE FooD WE GROW.

The census bulletin on cereal production
is back number. inasmuch as the crop
with which it deals is the crop OF 1880. The
wheat crop of that year was only 46S, 000.OO0
bushels. Still there is some Information IN
the paper.
The acreage in wheat is given as 100000
acres less than it was in 1850, although the
crop was slightly larger, being 46o,OcO,OOo
in 1890 against AS 100000 bushels IN 1880.
Thus in 1890 the crop was IA bushels to the
acre for the whole country, adding to the
sections where good crop was raised sec
tions where the crop was failure. 1t does
not speak we'll for American agriculture
that the crop should be so low. In this
State, though the wheat fields of Tulare,
Kern aud San Diego are often unpro-
ductiye in consequence OF droughts,
their acreage is counted in with that
of other counties and we seldom strike
a general average Of less than is or 10
bushels. In France the average for the
whole country is often as low as IA TO 10
bushels, but in England, where farming is
more thorough, it generally exceeds "a
bushels. There is no reason why we should
not do as well, and we shall whenever neces-
sity drives the farmers to make The most Of
their opportunities. Whatever is worth
doing at all is worth dong we'll.
The acreage in corn, which Is crop we
do n OF raise IN this State to much extent, is
more than twice as large as The acreage in
wheat. Corn, in the shape Of meal and in
the shape of meat, is the main food OF the
people Of the river valleys, the prairie
States and the cotton States. On an aver
age 80 bushels are raised 10 the acre aud
there is little of the 2.200.C 100000 bushels
which are grown that is left over for ex-
port. The market price of corn is made not
at Liverpool. but at Chicago
There were raised in The United States in
1890. on ., co., 900 acres of land. about A, co.,
coo bushels OF barley. or % bushels TO the acre.
This IS grown chiefly in Iowa. Nebraska and
California. and is largely consumed by the
breweries. From this State some feed bar
ley Is shipped to the islands. Before the
new duty on Canadian barley some 10, 000,-
600 bushels OF ehevalier barley, grown in
the Dominion, were imported by the brewers
Of Illinois and Wisconsin. This trade has
ceased to exist, tie duty being pr0hibtory.
Ii is evident, first, that the country could,
in the event of an embargo on trade, feed
its people without materially increasing the
cost of cereal food; second, that 1t will soon
be unable 10 do anything ia the way of sup
plying the foreign world with cereal food,
unless an advance IN prices should stimu-
late large increase in acreage; and third,
that Western Europe will presently be
puzzled TO know where to get the 200 GEO. 600
bushels Of wheat or its equivalent which in
an average OF years il requires TO import.
The two great sources Of cereal supply
outside Of the United States-Russia and
India-have probably reached the limit of
their possible production. The wheat
growing area of Russia is practically limited
to the valleys Of the Volga. the Dnieper and
the Dniester These are all under cultiya-
ton. There are a few spots in Central
Russia where wheat can be grown, but
thus far the production has not exceeded
local consumption. In India the wheat
fields are at vast distances from the ship
ping ports, and the crop has to be moved
by rail. The Indian railroads are owned
| by the Government. and the transportation
charges eat up the value of the wheat.
When the Indian peasant realizes less than
30 cents a bushel for his wheat he stops
growing it. The Puniab and Dude are in
the same situation as Manitoba. They can
all grow fine wheat but when 1t has been
harvested and sent to consuming market
There ia little left for the grower. These
regions will apparently be driven to export
their wheat in the shape Of beef. which can
be driven long distances on the hO0f. But
this ext edient has never occurred 10 the
Anglo Indian; and raising cattle on wheat
is an untried experiment anywhere. The
climate Of India would interpose formidable
obstacles.
It is quite possible that the southern por-
tion of South America which presents
many points of analogy with our praires,
may take the place of the United States
when the latter cease to be able to supply
Europe with cereal food. No reliable esti-
mates have ever been made of their possible
capacity to produce wheat. But 1t is known
that it must be large.