The morning call., 1893-06-10
WHEAT FIGURES AND PROSPECTS

NEWS comes from LONDON tndb tuo DTil-
ish wheat crop will be II per cent below
the average, which will involve a rather
larger importation of cereals from this
country than usual, especially as the other
grain crops and the root crop are likewise
short. 1t seems that drought has pre-
vailed throughout the spring with fatal re-
suits 10 the growing crops.
The London Times does not see what
can avert the ruin of the farmers. They
certainly stand a fair chance of going
through dark and gloomy time. But
agriculture in England has been ain il-paid
pursuit ever since our Western pralrles
began to compete with the British farmers
in supplying the British people with bread.
Though the English wheat fields produce
on the average five bushels per acre more
than the American wheat fields, and the
latter are 1000 miles further from Mark
Lane than the former, yet still the English
cannot com pete because the English farmer
pays so much more for rent and fertilizers
than his American rival. Calling the value
of wheat on the farm 65 cents IN this coun-
try, or 3shillings in England. and the yield
per acre fifteen bushels here and twenty
bushels there. the American grower realizes
about $40 an acre. while his English COM
petitor realizes about 60 shillings, or S13 50;
but as the latter has to pay aeout So rent
and not less than 81 for manure. he makes
less money net than his rival.
Wheat-growing was formerly very profit
able in England. Competition from Amer
lea was not so formidable. and the corn
laws gave to the native grower a monopoly
of the market. The repeal of those laws
nearly fifty years ago was the worst blow
the British nobility ever got. So long as
the owner of a hundred OF a thousand
acres could find tenants for them, he was
a power in the land when the day came
that tenants not only could not be found
a e. but were scarce at 81, the political
value of an estate fell off and nobleman
was little better than a commoner.
That is the evolution which is now in
progress in Great Britain. The tenant
farmer is growing steadily poorer aud the
noble landowner finds his income dimin-
ishing yearly. In the old days the law
would have come to the rescue of both. In
a season like the present one wheat would
have risen by leaps and bounds, dealers
knowing that they need fear no c0mpeti-
ton from abroad until the price reached
next to Starvation figures. Now. in the
face of a coming crop which will be II per
cent below the average the wheat market
is tame aud the British farmer is obliged
to be content with 27 shillings ana pence
n quarter. But the rank and file OF the
British people. who are neither owners of
estates nor tenant farmers, 1un no risk OF
dear bread.
Iu this country no attention is paid 10
the news from England. Wheat sold in
Chicago on Thursday at the incredible
price Of 90 cents. and here all the year
options are quoted at 81 % or II cents
pound. The reason assigned for the de-
preston in the market is the good crop
news from the grain States of the North
west. But the most potent cause is the
reaction from a bull speculation which
seems to have been premature. The
lively denizens of the Chicago pit must be
doing something. When wheat is up they
try to make their living by selling it short
and quite often corner themselves and
aggravate the situation which they tried to
turn to account. When wheat is down
they see their way TO a profit in buying
for the rise, and when it dues not come in
time for delivery day they have to sell out,
and so they make that worse which was
bad enough before. In staples in which
speculation rules the operation of the law
of supply and demand is only discerned
on a survey of long periods of time To
him who operates for a short turn that law
is often deceiving. The man who makes
money is as likely to be he who knows
least as he who knows most