People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1892-11-25
The Agricultural Denarfment.

hAShlNdioN, NOV. Sl.-CecTcIdTN
Rusk has sought to make his fourth and
last annual report as head of the de-
partment Of agriculture a valuable
document and has grouped together
many interesting facts to show what a
great agricultural people we are and
what proper thing it was to make the
prime commissioner Of agriculture
cabinet officer.
He says we sent abroad last year
300, 900, 900 of products more than we
had TO import from foreign nations, and
80 per cent of these products were
agricultural. He claims some credit
for that because he shows an increase
Of 10000, 600 pounds weight of pork sent
TO countries which formerly excluded
American pork and $40, 900, 900 value in
crease in our exports of live cattle. All
this comes from the increased precau.
tiOns to secure healthfulncss of Amer
lean food products.
The regulations inforced for the pre-
yentiOn Of Texas fever have alone saved
cattle growers more than three times
the cost of running the whole depart.
ment, and as to the suppression of
pleurO-pneumonia, the secretary grows
emphatic and eloquent N0twithstand-
ing the assertions to the contrary of
wicked and prejudiced London newspa.
pers he declares that pleuro-pneumonia
does not exist in the United States
This result. he claims, has been OBJ
tanned at cost less by 500, 900 than
was paid out by Great Britain during
seven years as indemnity for slaught-
cred cattle alone. He also points out
that the total loss to the cattle growers
Of Great Britain by this disease in
deaths alone amounted to not less than
half a billion dollars and that this is
the only country where the disease,
having once gained a foothold. has been
entirely eradicated.
He explains why our wheat did not
realize the big hopes raised by the short
crops in various European countries in
1891 by saying that those anticipations
OF enhanced prices failed to take into
account the changed conditions now
surrounding the production and mar.
keting Of the worlds wheat crop.
lie has undertaken experiments with
imported seed to secure the production
OF a home grown cotton which will
meet all the requirements for which
Egyptian and other cottons are now
imported. He also wants the United
States to raise its own raw silk instead
Of sending s2j, 100000 year abroad for
the raw material, and he thinks we
might also save SCI, 900, 600 year which
we now spend on imported fibers.
Many difficulties have attended the
Introduction of a new food, generally
regarded in Europe as not suitable for
human consumption. A mixed corn
and rye bread was found necessary to
secure keeping qualities in country.
where all bread is made and sold by the
bakeries, and corn grinding machinery
purchased in America is now in use in
several mills in that country. One re.
suit is the maintenance of the price OF
corn in the face of largely increased
exports, conditions which have hereto.
fore always accompanied a great depre.
cation III prices. The corn exports for
1890, the only year in which they have
equaled those of the present year.
brought the price down to a fraction
under - cents bushel at the port OF
Shipment against q fraction over IS
cents per bushel this year, difference
aggregating, on the exports of the past
fiscal year, not less than $4,000. 900.
The report is the first from the cabi.
net to find its way to the presidents
desk.
Secretary Rusk throws cold water on
the rainmakerS. The experiments are
being Loyalty made, as congress direct
ed, but the facts in his possession do
not justify the anticipations formed by
the believers in this method of artificial
rainmaking.
as his last word the secretary ex.
presses his profound appreciation of the
cordial sympathy and broad intelligence
with which the president has uniform
ly needed the needs of agriculture He
predicts that the people of this country
will learn to appreciate that and the
fact that this is the first administration
during which the department of agri-
culture held the rank OF an executive
department OF the government and was
presided over by chief executive who
never failed to appreciate the imp or.
lance of agriculture, its dignity and its
value to the country at large