The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-12-05
A DEMO~kA. OF DEMOCRATS.

"a
We have frequently had occasion to
comment upon the excellent sense and
sound Democracy Of Mr.. Morton, the Sec
rotary of Agriculture. There is not a
sounder man in the Democratic party ana
if we should make him our candidate
for President in 1896, we would make no
mistake. We take from the New YORK
Journal of Commerce the following IN
teresting article on his report to the pres
ent session of Congress:
The report of the Secretary Of Agricul-
ture is more Teauaole. and also more
valuable, than these official communlca-
tons TO the public at stated intervals
often are. To begin his report where
ne leaves off, Mr.. Morton presents Ia
BILE showing that Of the total exports
from this country for the fiscal year
1894, 72.& per cent. were farm produce,
ala per cent. were manufactures; o.--
were forest products; 2.35 mining products
40 products of the fisheries, and 81 per
cent. Of the exports were of miscellane-
Gus commodities. Mr.. Morton has never
concealed his views on the tariff or the
currency. and he finds room for their
expression, even in a report on the De-
partment of Agriculture. The farmer
surplus which fixes the price Of his whole
| product is sold in the open market IN
! competition with all the world. and he
| claims for the farmer the privilege of
| buying in an equally open market. with
| as much competition in his favor when ne
| wishes to buy as there is against HIM
| when he attempts to sell. The farmers
| exports were sold for gold, and he asks
| the farmer whether ne would not have
been worse off had he been paid I'm silver
! instead Of gold. HI urges the farmer to
| insist on being paid in the best money,
the most valuable money, there Is.
The Secretary devotes considerable space
| to the use of American beef in england.
n
year the value Of live animals exported TO
! England was about ten million dollars
greater than in the corresponding period
Of last year. Under present conditions
the Secretary thinks ii is a little better
for the American to export meat than
live animals. The increased use Of New
Zealand frozen mutton is somewhat af-
feCting the English demand for American
bacon. but the Secretary does not seem
TO think that the English taste for a
| bacon breakfast is likely to change radi-
cally.
on the subject of bacon, however, he
makes some Interesting suggestions. The
| English taste is for lean and mld-cured
| bacon. Denmark caters TO this and
| Danish bacon brings $l4.l8 per hundred
weight while ours sells for 1912. Canada
| has no advantage of position, as Den
| mark has, in competition with us but
Canadian singed sides are 10 or 10 per
! cent. leaner than American, and they
command a better price. The position OF
| Danish dairy products in the English
! market is due to their quality, as TO
which, there is room for improvement in
the American goods offered for sale in
! England. American lard appears to be
sold in England generally in lightweight
packages and for this discrediIable rea-
son. ii is being Disseminated against.
Fifty pals put up by one of the most
prominent manufacturers. warranted to
contain % pounds net per pail, showed
an aggregate shortage of A pounds. The
cost of meat Inspections has been reduced
advises no
charged against the shippers of the meat.
The Secretary looks for no advance in
the price of wheat. except in years of
scarcity and expects greatly increased
production by Australasia, the Argen-
tine Republic and Russia. He remarks
on the extensive sale of American agri-
cultural implements and MACHINERY 81
the last-named country, but he might
as well have included all of them.
In view of the fact that a hieh duty
on barley has been insisted on, in order
10 protect American farmers from Cana
dian competition, il is interesting 10
years the export of barley from the
United states to Great Britain has grown
from nothing 10 very considerable
trade. This demand amounted during
me hrst nine months Of 1884 to an in
crease over last year of Is, 900 900 bushels
Hard, firm and bright-gran bar
ley from the Northwestern States and
California, commands higher prices than
many European barlcys"
The Secretary Is getting the whole of
the force Of his department unier the
civil service system. and ne urges he
abolition Of the provision for the ridicu-
lous custom Of distributing seeds among
the constituents Of congressman. He
gives several Illustrations of the value
OF the weather service 10 nay igation: he
regards its value 10 agriculture as not
less, and probably very much more but
the means of making even rought esti-
mate do not exist.