The Sully County watchman. (Clifton, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1894, 1893-09-01
Why Wheat Is Down.

A correspondent of the New York
San has prepared a careful and elab-
crate paper 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
1745. In addition it tends to cheer
the despondent 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 so low.
In brief, the price Of wheat is down
because there is so much of it for sale;
there is 80 much of it for sale because
the production has been IN advance of
the worlds needs. The production
has been in advance of the need mainly
because after our civil war an area un-
heard of before in history was thrown
open in the United States in a 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. As per cent. The San
writer shows from statistics gathered
abroad that increasing the worlds
wheat area 5 per cent. beyond the pro-
portional increase of population re-
duced the price Of the grain % per
cent in the British market. The
growth of the worlds bread eating
population in the seventies required an
addition to the wheat area all over the
globe of 100000 acres, yet in that
time the United States alone added
100000 to the wheat acreage. Is it
any wonder prices fell?
Since 1884, however, the wheat acre.
age relatively to population has been
decreasing. 1t has been decreasing
absolutely in the vicinity of the large
cities everywhere, the farm lands there
being required for market gardening
and dairy purposes. But the supply
of wheat on hand in 1882 was enor-
nous, and year or two was required
to consume the surplus. Then came
colossal wheat crops in 1878. These
carried the bread eaters on till the har-
vest of 1912. The unheard of cereal
production in this country in those
years, added to the great crop III Eu-
rope in 1892, swamped the world again,
and it has not yet recovered. We en-
tered on harvest the present year with
an apparent reserve of l10,00O,OOO
bushels of old wheat still on hand.
But the demand will presently catch
up to the supply. The San writer
says:
''Such acreage yields from American
fields being hitherto unknown, it may be
assumed that they will but rarely be re-
peated, and the worlds wheat area, with
average yields. being now deficient by
more than II, ,0OO, 900 acres. and the aver
age harvest will produce but 2, ,28O, 600. 900
bushels. while the requirements are now
| 2, 44O, OOO, 900, and augmenting at the rate
of more than 80, 4OO. 900 bushels per an.
num-the equivalent of 100000 new
acres. Therefore we may expect prices to
| advance to remunerative level just as
soon as existing reserves shall have been
| consumed.
Prices having once reached such level,
q continuance of their remuneratiYe char
acter is practically assured by the prob
ability that such additions as are made to
the wheat bearing area in the Balkan
states and South America will be more
than neutralized by acreage losses in
western Europe and America"