The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-08-19
THE HAY WARTS OVER
r.ymers Force Suicidal Deal
ers to Come to Terms.
~, ]. NOT SHIP FOR Low PRICE.
uo~ the Price Has Declined Since
Railroad Days-Producers Now
Raising Cattle.

.ssa feafure--tne low price 10 Apply a
@s.ssa and II possible 10 remove 10 or
800 The situation is the hope Of farmer
a. dealer aiike-the wish OF every one
- desires tine welfare OF the state and
~ producing population
raa immediate cause OF low prices in
as civ Il an unatural hay war. which
"a h<en raging constantly among deal
- eyer since the opening OF the season
~gtb the new crop. New hay, worth
twies the amount, actually sold Tor less
ssaney BIZ 81 30 ton than the old crop
t-ss,gsst 4 month since. Certain dealers,
snwsyer. reached an agreement Saturday
sfun they think virtually ends the tight.
So there are others vino still hold out.
-. farmers have taken a hand. and re-
ssaA 70 ship az the prices offered. Their
s15ependenca probably has carried the
dsv. and s. % a ton is expected 10 rule
for some time.
yyhtia the local hay war among dealers
has had a most disastrous effect upon
.@ss saa@on's crop, IL is not the cause OF
- great decline which has been expert
snred in this city within the last five or
~ wears. On account Of combination Of
rirrunstanees hay was abnormally high In
,ass cts during the great boom, but now
ashsr conditions have pulled down the
price TIL there Is little profit for the
ssaler. and in proportion 10 the outlay.
less fer the grower.
Hay In the Railroad Age.
tn understand the exact conditions pro-
sucinr this result it is necessary 10 call
Attention to the market and consumption
4, the years OF maximum prices. There
.re many causes to consider. In the
Norshwest the railroad grading and in
tie cities the street paving have dropped
10 a small proportion Of that OF former
Years. and in fact is SO small as 10 not
IL worth mentioning. From 1883 to 1887,
When the Northern Pacific was being
graded. to 1855 and 1885, when the Seattle,
lake Shore L. Eastern was built. and 1891
ard lse2, when the Great Northern tracks
we're spanning the state, there was a dec
sae Of hay consumption that could never
b. eaaaled under any other circum-
stances The horse and mule teams
formed an army of the most stalwart OF
their kind that only exceeded the
hay consumed by the miles OF track they
made smooth. That was the railroad
building age in Washington. No one re-
epiyed more profit from ii than the farm
era who reaped the hay and sold Ii TO
the Transfers. The loss Of this trade
probably has caused "A greater reduction
IN the price than any other factor for the
state.
influence of Logging Camps.
The next loss in Importance has been
the stagnant condition of the Logging bust
ness The operating OF logging camps
throughout Western Washington was for
raerly done hy oxen. Oxen are the great
est consumers of hay. When working,
well cured timothy is their staff of life.
They can do well on that food alone. For
them Ii is cheaper and the quantity con-
sumed Is easily counterbalanced by its
economical side as compared TO grain;
Tor when hay was high. grain was also
high. The logging business is reviving.
but under new conditions. Horses which
eat less hay than oxen are being used to
quite an extent in drawing logs, and in
The big camps steam engines. which eat
none at all, are doing all of that work.
Cheap Horses Demand Cheap Hay.
Another cause of cheap hay, and a
more general one than any, is the cheap
ness Of the horses themselves. Who could
afford TO feed a S15 horse more than three
tons OF 80 hay If the horse was unem-
rloyedg The eheapness of horses has
been accounted for in various ways. When
railroad grading. freighting and street
leyeling was at Its height in this section
few years ago "A 8 200 pound team fire.
euently would bring $500 to $3.50. Now.
While a team OF that size might find
purchaser at $50. the smaller ones. ex-
cept biooded animals of some kinds. find
absolutely no sale at prices that would
pay for raising. When horses brought
such fine prices hundreds of men rushed
iHso the business OF horse raising. Thou
sands Of fine Clydesdale. Norman and
Percherons roamed the Washington, Ore
son and Montana plains. Soon the horse
market was glutted, The young ones
coming or for the first and the second
years sale were more numerous sttll. BY
ne TIME the last matured such an unus-
nal over-production or draft animals re-
suited that the price went down 20 its
kTest ehh. Then the driving animal
rene- The breeder quickly faced about
10 new condition. which he thought was
. yield big returns. when he was con-
eycie
Reports from Denver, the city OF 10000
ncyeleS. where horses were so universal
ridden and driven. and from Los An
gers. where also there are many wheels,
Hhsleate another cause Of cheap horses.
ana consequently OF cheap hay. For as
lhdicated under the present state of af-
AIRS none can afford TO feed high-priced
nay to cheap horse.
Rise and Fail OF the Price.
The history OF the hay business in this
cry mas been one OF great interest. As
ar back az 1859 good haled timothy sold
- sea'tie al se5 ton From that year on
=. y. Ss< X never was known to he less than
- ss hlsh as $50 has frequently been
sasrged In MAY. 1880. IL sold at $50. but
IN June 70 January. 1890. II averaged
- 5asy. $50. for few DAYS found hay
lbs ri 81 ~ that tirnc twelve car
,aa1s from Nebraska sold inside Of two
GAYS. and the price quickly fell. That was
Ifoeahiy the longest haul ~ that kind OF
Arse N the history Of the business, II
- efiy done then 70 relieve q famine OF
brought sss n tor
~ lNl hay ard feed began to decline.
toflner brought 81 IN January. SO in
,sasea. In larUavy. 1N9e. 81 was down 20
~ and & wear later IL could he had at 81.
So, ae11 Steady at near that figure until
@'s season. and now Y sells at $50 ton.
when Money Was Made on Hay.
.,a,aFtns the high prices tho dealers prob
~ made more money in one day than
80, 49, now clear for whole season. They
So made More proat on one ton OF hay
- We farmer now sets for n ton. For
aaeF - clear s. on every ton above
- eNoFnse for handling or delivery
- oeb 'hooEht the least remarkable. and
Vata1Ster who delivered n secured any
Were from s. to e q ten. ard ne never ac-
So bargain at odd cents between the
amounts. Now the tcayuster IS clam
-. toF the same work at - cents n ton
- mr. greater distances.
- hFower vas never behind s. a profit
= !, on the Sw3nnmish Cats the late
i. p" hit7ey- afterwards MAYOR ~ Ana
sttS' asserted that his average clear
- Was SO a. ae~a for the season. Meth
80 teas unusual Ger MANY growers
So even @crr The Weld IN that couu-
So ms ABOVE six tors 70 the acrs. The
-. .ost 10 more than - a ton. the
~ Iaeor costs 50 q month Freiehting
-. heils high. but 10 ore cared for