Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1893-08-10
Why Wheat Is Down.

A correspondent of the New York Sun
has prepared Il careful and elaborate pa
per on the state of the wheat acreage
and market. 1t throws light on the
question why the price of that staple is
lower than it has been since 1145. In
addition it tends to cheer the Respondent
hearts of agriCulturists by the assurance
that in year or two at most the price
of wheat will resume its normal rate
and never again in our time drop 50 low.
In brief, the price of wheat is down
because there is so much Of it for sale;
there is so much of il for sale because
the production has been in advance of
the worlds needs. The production has
been in advance IF the need mainly
because after our civil war AZ area IN
heard of before in history WIS thrown
open in the United States in few years
to cultivation. and it included some of
the greatest wheat lands on the globe.
During the Is years following 1869, 90
per cent was added to the area of our
land under cultivation, and most of it
was used for cereal production. Our
population increased in the same period
only 45 per cent. The Sun writer shows
from statistics gathered abroad that in
creasinG worlds wheat area per
cent beyond the proportional increase of
population reduced the price Of the grain
% per cent in the British market Tho
growth Of the worlds bread eating popu-
lation in the seventies required an aldi-
%
Of II ,OOO, 900 acres. yet in that time the
United States alone added 10, 900, 900 to
the wheat acreage. Is it any wonder
prices fell?
Since 1884, however the wheat acreage
relatively to population has been dccreas-
ing. 1t has been decreasing absolutely
in the vicinity of the large cities every
where, the farm lands there being re-
/ quired for market gardening and dairy
purposes. But the supply Of wheat or
| hand in 1889 was enormous. and a wear or
| two was required 10 consume the sur
| plus. Then came colossal wheat crops in
1SS7-S. These carried the bread caters on
till the harvests Of 1912. The unheard
of cereal production in this country in
| those years, added 10 the great crop in
Europe in 1892, swamprl the world
again, and it has not Yet recovered. We
entered on harvest the present year with
an apparent reserve of ITO 900, 900 bushels
of old wheat still on hand. But the de
mand will presently catch up to the sup
ply. The Sun writer says:
| Such acreage yields from American fields be-
| ing hitherto unknown, il may be assumed thai
| they will but rarely be repeated. and the
| worlds wheat area, with average yields, bciug
| now deficient by more than l2,uoUuN acres AT
| average harvest will produce but $50. duO On
| bushels, while the requirements are now 2,440,
l 0O,0o0 and auGmentlng at the rate of more
| than q, 10000 bushels per annum-the cQuiva.
| lent Of 2,SOO,0D new acres. Therefore we may
| expect prices TO advance TO rcnunerativc
level just soon existing reserves shall
| have been consumed.
| Prices having once reached such 4 level, {
continuance Of their rc1nuncrative Charac;e
is practically assured by the probability tina
such additions are made to the W heat bear
| ing area in the Balkan states and South Amer
| lea will be more than neutralizcd by acrea :.
| losses in western Europe and America.