The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-02-24
WE RAISE TOO MUCH WHEAT.

1t is very easy to raise, harvest and
thresh wheat in Kansas, but at pre-
sent prices of corn for fattening hogs
and cattle pays better, and there are
other crops that pay still better. Here
in Wyandotte county, fortunes have
been made in a few years by the skill
full cultivation of potatoes; while forty
or hundred miles further west, high
er prices are paid for potatoes by farm
ers, who could raise them almost as
cheaply as we. Cabbages, and other
such truck, are shipped in for farmers
use from Colorado and Utah, when
they could be raised at profit for
cent a pound. But the farmers so on
raising wheat and corn and little else.
Soon they must stop raising wheat ex-
cept for the home market. Russia has
long been our competitor in small
way, but can and will triple her pro-
duct, if the demand in western Europe
justifies it.
More formidable still is Argentine,
whose hundreds of millions of acres of
good wheat which lies near the sea. Tha
country promises soon to become the
greatest wheat producing country in
the world. The shipments from Argen-
tine in 1892 were only about 25,000,o00
bushels; in 1898 they amounted to $1,000,
900 bushels; in the first half of 1894 they
were about 45,O00,000 and before the
end of the year the shipments aggre-
gated 5000 600. Another crop was har-
vested there in December, and this
promises to amount to 10000 GOO. There
are 5000, 900 people in Argentine, and il
we allow five bushels to each for home
consumption there will be a surplus OF
100 600. 900 bushels, and this, of course,
will go to the European markets. The
shipments of agricultural machinery
from this coutry TO Argentine are at
present greater than ever before, and
this shows that the wheat planters
there are preparing to enlarge the acre
age, as the machines most in demand
are reapers. mowers and threshers.
There are other considerations that
make this Argentine competition for
midable. The climate is mild there.
and food is plentiful and cheap. The
laborers co not need to be housed and
clothed so well as those who work in
our harsher climate. Then. again. the
Argentina wheat growing regions are
quite near the seaboard, and there is no
need for a long and costly land haul to
the place OF expectation
Even our eastern market in New
England and New York is being taken
by Manitobans. and hack Of Manito-
bans lies a greater region still, which I
can produce but little else. but can and /
VIII produce wheat immensely
These considerations make Il wise /
for US TO look at the future OF wheat 1
culture in the United States with can I
cor and frankness. II viii not do any
good TO underate the importance OF fac-s !
because we hold the South Americans I
in low esteem. We cannot beat them IN I,
any game that requires the American 4
farmer TO live as the Italian iaborcrs 4
live, who till the fertile soil q the plains 4
OF South America. Nor should our fam 4
ers consider the possibility OF not cul- /
tivatiug any wheat But we should ,
cultivate il more wisely, for home con-
sumption and for the cotton--aising
south, and not 50 largely as we have .
been doing. Subson plough your up !
lands. ana raise corn TO fattsn cattle.
which can be shipped from here as
dressed beef at prices which even now
enable Packers to pay ; cents pound
for good steers.-kausas City Gazette.