The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-10-14
HALF TnE wHEAr cHor Losr.
Disastrous Results Of Faiouse Esf1stsrsn
fine Farmers shsw Grit

w. E Blackmer. editor OF the Ritzviiie
7Enex and proprietor of the Touring mill
Al that city, hc IL a. the Grand. having
come 70 the city on business. gives 8
gloomy account Of the condition Of the
wheat crop IA The Paiozss country In con-
sequences Of the long period Of vet weather.
He said ia an interview:
''Is has been raining almost continu-
onsly for two weeks ard had inst cleared
up when ! left RiiEyilIe NJ o'clock this
morning. I have been ali through the
Palouse country and, though IL ought TO
be dry for the harvest. the fields are at
muddy, the teams mire in them and the
heavy heads Of wheat have broken the
stalks In the middle and dropped TO the
ground. The fields are green with
the sprouting wheat. When the
rain began the farmers were too
busy with the threshing 10 move the
sacks out OF the fields, and even If they
had done so, they have no granaries. Now
the gram 10 sproating through the sacks.
50 that they look like green logs. Where
IL vas left in stacks il was not stacked up
well, as wet weather vas not expected, and
the rain has gone right through aud made
IL spront. Thousands OF acres have not
been cut yet, though II should have been
in stack by the end Of September. and in
the Palouse country. near the foothills,
over one-thisd has not been cut. and do
not see how they can save IL. From one
third to one-half the crop will be only At
for hog feed, even il the weather continues
Clear from this time on, and what Is saved
will not be OF the first quality
adams county is the only one that has
good wheat. for our harvest was two or
three weeks earlier than that OF the Pa
louise country. and thus the grain vas in
the stack before the rain set i'm. The
stacks had settled down and shed the rain,
30 that the grain was saved. Our county
will have about 100000 bushels for en-
port and the miIiers say ID IL about the
only good milling wheat in that country.
j am here trying TO get the shippers TO
handle the surplus, as it will be quite an
object 10 the millers TO get IL, and also to
dispose of the surplus output OF our mill.
which has capacity of rs barrels day.
Our acreage was doubled or trebied this
year. and the crop will average eighteen to
twenty bushels,
There is also bad state of affairs in
the Big Bend country, for there has been
more rain there than ever before, but they
WV a 4ttttS <AtAtSI bEtu tue udTNt3Lo tn1n
the other districts. and so will save more
of the crop.
Another bad feature Of the situation Is
the high price OF sacks. which is or cents,
thus adding nearly cents per busnel TO
the cost. At the opening OF the season
sacks from the penitentiary were selling
at 6is cents, but not one farmer in a thou
sand had cash to buy them, and they
seem 10 have been bought up by specuia-
tors. Even If they had been sold only TO
The farmers, as the Law requires, the jute
mali at the penitentiary would hardly sup
ply Waila Walla county alone. The
Farmers Alliance is still running ware
houses and at our place buys the wheat
and gives check payable far enough
ahead to get 1t delivered on the Sound and
paid for. say five 20 eight days. At some
warehouses they are paying cash.
I'VE are having hard times all over
Eastern Washington. and the price Of
wheat Is so low-only about As cents-that
II will hardly bring the farmers out even.
still. il they can sell their crop and paw
their debts they are prepared TO start
anew. They are determined TO go through
with 1t and are breaking up moro ground
and putting In moro wheat, believing that
Dext year will be good one"