New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-02-15

The annual statement by the Department Of
Agriculture u the number and value Of farm
animals requires comparison with statements
II previous years To disclose It's meaning. de
crease appears IN the number Of each kind OF
farm animals. which would not b. fully apprecl-
aicd without the fat that there had been a de
crease in the TWO previous years in every kind
cxccft mules ana mich COWS. The decrease in
,he three years has been in number Is per cent
in mil.h cows. % In mules. GO in horses, IL In
swine. los in cattle and 10 per cent In sheep.
Nearly nfth Of the sheep in the country have
been cxtcrminatcd by three Democratic years.
Rut there ha, also been n decline In the average
price during the same three years notwithstand-
lnc the decrease in number in every kind Of AM
mails except m!lrh cows. which have increase u
IS Der cent. AMI cattle which have increased
per cent. In horses the price has declined 10
per cent. and in muc- AZ. owing to peculiar
causes: In swine - !, and in sheep 3Gl per cent.
Such decline in sheep. added 10 IA decrease OF
10 per cent in number j.. In truth. a surprising
evidence # the boastcl blessings Of Free Trade
p, wool Growers The value Of al sheep on the
farms ha, decreased from Si25.9O9,2Gl To $6J.-
lG7. 81 in three years. nearly Is per cent.
T, this must be- added. i'm order 10 grasp the
fnu virtue Of the Democratic policy for wool
growers. an average loss II cents per pound on
about 5000 600 pounds Of wool In 1893. cents
on 30 NpOoO pounds In 1894. ana . cents on
3lOOOOOpO pounds in 1895 In all about S'l,-
$4,000: 50 that the wrpl growers loss has been
about Sl3l - .OOO or more than the entire value
II all the sheep in the country three years ago
I'm fact II Ncragcs loss Of 50 - for every sheep
then I'm the country OF which the farm value was
~ &c The Senator from Ohio who voted for free
wool and could not explain To the wool growers
why they had lost about $l29lSOO0 in two years,
has been retired. The senators from Texas.
where wool-growers have lost about ST.. $1,000.
and from California where they have lost about
SO 1876. OOO have yet to explain their part Ii Is
n,r,lcularly in order for the frcc-slvcr Senators
70 state whether they mean to prolong or In
creusc the losses for their States, which have
bc,n about S. 721 600 for Oregon, $7,45S,0oO for
Montana. SG247 900 for Utah. $3G33OOO for
Colorado. $685.. 900 for Wyoming, S3.245.0OO for
Missouri, Sab 900 for Washington, and $2,254,-
600 for Idaho. When they have done so, their
constituents will arrive ut their own Judgment.
The losses in number and value of farm AMI
mails are only in part explained by the Increase
in the previous four years. lSS9-'93, In which
there or some KINGS IL HoiiDIc anu pcIhipS
undue increase Thus the number OF horses In
creased I'm these four years lS6 per cent but q
decrease of lI.S per cent in average value indi.
cafes that the gain was excessive, and the num-
her Of mules increased 81 per cent but decreased
in value / 4 per cent Considering the great ex-
mansion I'm other means of lOcomotion in towns
and cities it may be supposed that an excessive
increase of horses caused the resulting decline
both in number and value after 1893, and the
shrinLage in general business and In value OF
important farm products also accounts for much
Of the subsequent decrease. AS mich cows In
creased ~ per cent and cattle 2G in the four
veors 1SS9-93, with a decline Of o. per cent in
average value OF cows and 1916 in average value
OF cattle the fact that the further decrease in
number Of each has been accompanied by some
recovery in price seems not unnatural. The de-
cline of So per cent in swine in the same four
wears brought an advance Of 10.7 In price, but
the scarcity of corn has doubtless been an i'm
Dortant factor in the fall of the price during the
last three years But sheep increased 1913 per
cent in number from 1889 to 1893 and 24S per
cent in value in spite Of that gain In number,
while the decrease In the three subsequent years
has been greater. both in number and In value,
as follows: