The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-04-01
LETAR6ENTINERAIsETHE WHEAT
The Pacific Coast Farmers Cannot Conn
pete With Her.

The Pacific Coast Farmers Cannot COM
pete With Her.
San Francisco Bulletin
Light Is thrown on an interss ting
branch OF the wheat problem by Stats
tics which have been gathered BY the
Board OF Trade of Rosario. IN Argentine.
Every one knows that the Argentine Con-
federation is becoming an important
source OF wheat supply. In 1875 the ex-
port was 5seoo.Go bushels. or nearly
double the export OF California, and in
1884 IL was 40.ea.0o. The quantity OF land
suitable for wheat growing being pracSi-
cally unlimited. those amounts will prob
ably be exceeded by future crops. and il
Is quite possible that the confederat ton
may presently send as much wheat TO
LIVERPOOL as me United STATES
II thus berDEnes very important TO as
certain at what price Argentine can az
ford 70 supply her wheat TO the consun-
ing markets Figures now before Us are
based on the crop OF 1884. which was
short. the average product being thirteen
bushels 70 the acre, about the average
Weld OF the wheat growing area IN the
United States. and three returns ara
given OF ifese the first shows that sfs
cost OF a shipment OF wheat from a farm
In Santa Re was s. cents, delivered al the
port of Rosario. the wheat being carried
by rail. and the cost OF transportation
being - per cent Of the whole This
sum of IS cents covered seed. farm work,
taxes ground rent. and hauling TO the
railroad Another statement gives the
cost of the wheat Ak 81 cents, included In
which was cents a bushel for railroad
transporsa ton. A third report gives the
cost OF shipment AT 4g2 cents. but this
was from light crop. averaging ten and
a half bushels TO the acre. We have been
In the habit of assuming in this state
that where wheat Is not worth hau
cent a pound on the farm there is no
money in growing IL In Argentine the
farmers appear 10 be able TO raise Ii at
a quarter OF a cent pound anu sAai
make money.
Wheat Land In Argentine is lower than
similar land in this state, and worth
about as much as the same kind OF land
used 10 be worth IN the grain states
when the western railroad system was
started In part of the Santa re district
good land can e bought at s. an acre. In
another part the same quality or land
sells for $40 an acre. In a third section
wheat land rents for about so cents an
acre per annum. Money can occasionally
be borrowed on land at 10 per cent, and
where a farmer buys on credit he pays
the same rate OF interest
How formidable a competitor Argen-
tine rs probably destined to prove these
figures show. The area OF the country Is
about 200. 600 square miles. nearly all
arabic With the waterways ana ran
WAYS wheat may be grown at great dis
tances from tidewater and loaded on ship
board at a cost for transportation ana
handling of not over or cents per
husheI. Ocean freights are cheap When
the time comes that the confederation
has 100 100000 or 600 bushels OF
wheat 10 spare California will only be
able 10 retain her hold of the European
market by producing a superior article
of grain, which, happily, can pe ooie.
The farmers OF this state have been
warned time and again that they are
wasting their energies in producing an
article in which Dakota and Argentine
can undersell them. Land in California
ts TOO valuable TO be squandered on
wheat For several years growers IN
Colusa and Stanislaus have been growing
poor by raising h, while landowners LII
Fresno and Santa Clara have been grow
ing rich by concentrating their energies
on fruit. The xwo aforementioned coun-
ties make shift to get along because their
WELD will exceed the average OF the ~hoie
state DIV three or four or 1--WE bushels an
acre. but even then IL takes long tune
for a farmer to grow rich by cuillNaAhs
land which only yields him 50 gross per
acre. and he has 10 pay his farm ia,or
and railroad freight out or that Inc
only countries in which wheat should
constitute the main product are those
which cannot grow more expensive prod
ucts of the soil.
And again. 1t is time that the wheat or
California should all be shipped In the
shane of -four. Our milling processes are
superior 10 those OF Europe, and our hour
viii command IN European markets.
price which the native fiours VIII not
fetch In the not very distant future we
shsu he indeDendent OF the European de-
,pand China will consume all the -four
we can snare. To that country, happily,
We shin no wheat.