The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-08-24
wHIrMAN CoUNTY's HARVEST.


Ten Million Bushels OF Wheat-To Be
Marketed Earlier Than Usual.
OAxEsDALK, Aug. 2s.-(Special. ]-Har-
vest has been IN progress for about ten
days, and about 20 per cent. Of the crop
has been cut. Threshing has just begun
and although little has been threshed,
the result shows that the grain 10 of bet
ter quality and is yielding more per acre
than was expected six weeks ago. True.
the hot weather damaged the crop some
but there will be almost an average yield
per acre and greater aggregate yield than
has ever been known in the Palouse coun-
try. The PosT-INrELLIoESCER correspond
ent has spent two weeks travelling over
Whitman, the grestest grain producing
county in the state, and finds that every.
where the yield and quality are better
than was expected before harvest begun.
In the extreme southern portion OF the
county harvest Is nearly over and the
yield has been from fifteen to thirty-five
bushels per acre for wheat. and the quail
ity is excellent. In the northwestern part
of the county the yield is only from fifteen
to twenty-five bushels per acre, but this
covers only small area. Throughout the
central and eastern portions of the county
the average yield of wheat will be from
twenty to thirty-fve bushels per acre,
with an occasional field running as high as
forty and even forty-tive bushels. These
fields are, however, quite rare.
The average yield for the entire country
will be not less than twenty-five and pos
sibly thirty bushels per acre. This, of
course. is for wheat. With the yield only
twenty-five bushels per acre Whitman
county will produce not less. than 10. 900, goo
bushels of wheat this season. This, at
even SO cents per bushel, will bring more
money into the county than any crop ever
grown in a single year. But there will be
no blockade. The railroad companies are
beginning full early to make ample pre-
parations to take care of the vast crop and
it will be shipped out rapidly from the
start. Grain dealers will sell as rapidly as
they buy and will handle on smaller mar
gins than usual this season rather than
run any risk of bringing on blockade by
holding for higher prices.
The price of wheat is starting off at from
so to So cents per bushel and there is no
prospect of an immediate rise. Dealers
are not offering to contract for future de-
livery which shows that they do not ex-
pect an advance in price. at least for some
considerable time.
There will be little, If any, oats and
barley for export from the Palouse coun-
try this season. The low price of these
cereals and tho high price of wheat last
season caused the farmers to SOW only
enough of the former for homo consump-
ton and devote their entire farms to the
latter. In consequence Of this the acreage
of oats and barley have decreased fully 50
per cent. from last years crop, while tho
acreage Of wheat has increased not less
than Is per cent. This is owing largely to
the large acreage OF new sod that has been
sown this season. New sod always pro-
duces a good crop, and this year is no ex-
ception to the general rule.
Harvest is progressing nicely, and there
is no danger of any of the grain not being
saved. Already headers and threshers are
coming into the Paiouse country from
south of the Snake river, where harvest is
over, owing to that country being nearly
one month earlier than this. These out
fits are finding plenty of work to do. and
as . result the harvest will be speedily
finished and grain will be marketed earlier
than usual this season.
The Farmers Warehouse Association,
which owns and controls about thirty
grain warehouses in the Palouse country,
has decided to build an elevator at tide
water for the purpose of handling it's
grain there. At what point the elevator
will be located has not yet been decided,
but it will be built in time to handle the
bulk Of this seasons crop. The farmers
are getting quite strong organization,
and this season will probably handle Is
per cent. of tho entire crop of the Palouse
country.