The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1894-05-11
Possibilities Of Wheat Raise:n5 in South

west KANSAS
By J. 8. Finley, Of Ford county. read before The
ennnal meeting ct the State Board OF Asra-
This article is written more in the in
terest Of southwest Kansas, more par
ticularly the sixteen counties - divided
BY the Secretary of the State Board of
Agriculture, but Is applicable to all Of
western Kansas west of the ninty-ninth
meridian. The amount of wheat raised
in the sixteen counties this year ID at
least 5000, 900 bushels and not one-tenth
of the land Is in cultivation and nearly
one-half of that In other crops beside
wheat, such as corn, sorghum, cane,
barley, oats, rye and vegetables. If tho
poor plan Of cultivation and planting
generally followed by the average farm
er, that is BY blowing the ground form
two to six inches deep about once in
three years, then drilling in without
further cultivation the second year, and
the third running over once or twice
with the disc harrow and drilling in
about three pecks to the acre, so much
wheat can be raised, how will It be when
the demand of the world makes it nee
essary to raise the full capacity Of the
land and it is all put under Is high q
state of cultivation as it ts capable of?
That is, by blowing deep, say eight to
twelve inches once in three years and by
lighter blowing each other year, by
thoroughly pulverizing and rolling the
grouLd before or after planting the
wheat either with hoe or press drill,
aud by tbs manner of cultivation put
ting at least one bushel of wheat to the
acre, am satisfied that the number of
bushels of wheat can be double on every
acre of land not now so cultivated. The
report of our Secretary for fho month Of
November fully bears me ont in this
statement. He gives the statements of
large number of farmers from nearly
every part of the State of the large yields
of more or less acres, nearly every one
showing the large yields were on land
well and deeply cultivated. In my own
experience l find 1t to be the case, and
the largest yield in this, Ford county,
sixty-one bushels to the acre. raised by
Judge Weston near Ford City, the
ground was plowed deep in July and
August and planted in September. If
by this manner of cultivation such results
can be realized, what will be the posi-
bilities of southwest Kansas when
the world demands the wheat and the
other nine-tenths of the land is put in
cultivation? l believe that southwest
Kansas can raise 50, OOO, 900 to 1OO,OO0,OOO
bushels of wheat, and will do so as soon
as their is demand for it throughout
the world at remunerative prices, and,
although we can raise wheat at so cents
per bushel and live, we cannot lay up
much m oney or pay off very large mort
cages. II tie price of wheat should go
up to 81 per bushel at the railroad sta
tons in southwest Kansas, we would
astonish the world the next year or two
after and likely break the price down to
80 cents again. We believe out home
that there is no limit to the raising Of
wheat, nor do we believe that alternating
crops is essential to the result, as we
find by good cultivation The older the
land is better the crop for, say, ten to
twenty years, as long as any land has
been cultivated to wheat here, though as
great statistician as G. Wood Davis
says, "The limit of wheat raising has
been reached in American" believe
that it has hardly begun to be realized
how much we can raise, and, even if the
population in this part of the State
should increase in proportion to the de-
mand of the world, We can, with the
modern appliances that are now being
used, such as the steam pillow, that can
prepare fifty acres of ground per day and
plant it, and as we fully expect soon to
have the aid of electricity to aid US We
will try and fully meet any demand the
world can make for bread. And when
some system of irrigation has been sys-
tematized and put into pratical use for
the purpose of irrigating land, and not to
irrigate the pockets of corporations with
foreign gold, the quantity Of wheat raised
will be only limited in my humble opin-
ion by the demand the world will make
for 1t q: fair prices. And believe the
demonetizing of silver has very little to
do with the price of wheat, but supply
and demand is the only reason for wheat
to be low or high, as witness the present
price of hogs. For though the demand
from Europe brought by reciprocity may
have raised the price cent per pound
it certainly has not raised 1t 8 to s cents
per pound, and, therefore, look for
ward hopefully to see the price Of wheat
90 once more to 81 per bushel on the
plains of Kansas and to see the most
wonderful corp Of wheat raised on these