The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-19
Complete Statement of the Fluctua-
tions Noted i'm This Country Dur
ing Tyvenfy-Eight Years.
GRAIN BRINGS IN THE GOLD
HIRE BILLION BUSHELS HAVE
SOLD FOR S3,193,S23,4 49,
COmparntiye Fables Clearly Indicate
How Independent Of Each Other
Are Silver and wheat.


WASHINGTON. Oct. 1S.-Mr. John Hyde,
of the United States Department OF Agri-
culture, late special agent of the eleventh
census in charge of the statistics of agri-
culture. mas issued the following very valu-
able facts on silver and wheat. His paper
says: In the twenty-eight years ending
June 80, 1885, the United States exported
more than two billions 2 1868, 224, 154) of
bushels Of wheat and 219. 062, 112 barrels of
flour, all of it of domestic production and
equivalent in the aggregate to more than
three billions (3,O67, or, 5000 of bushels of
wheat. For these enormous exports it re-
ceived over three billions 3,193, 823,4 1859 of
dollars in gold or its equivalent, the aver
age export price for the entire period being
$1.041 per bushel in gold.
The expression lin gold Is used because
from the beginning of the period under con-
sideration down to the end Of 1878 the prices
of all commodities were expressed in cur
rency that was continually fiuctuating in
value. While not nearly so low as during
the critical stages of the war, the currency
dollar was still worth only from 69.7 cents
to 74.3 cents in 1867, from S2.4 cents to 90.3
cents in 1870, and so on until, at the end
of 1878, the approaching resumption of spe-
Gle payments raised it to par. During the
first few years of the period under cons1d-
Grafton So in currency was worth Very little
more than 81 of the money of the other
civilized nations of the world TO whom We
were disposing of our immense surplus
stocks and from whom we were purchasing
such commodities as we ourselves We're in
need of. Before, therefore,, the prices of
American products at any time from 1862
- @ -, - .0~,, a raJ x;4I +6n yarinaG nf
similar articles in other countries or at
other times, they have to be reduced TO
their value in the money of commerce.
AS the principal bread plant of all civil
liked nations, wheat is a product the price
of which is peculiarly sensitive to tempo
rary influences. For that reason it can be
considered most advantageous and most
fairly in periods Of five years, u period sui
ficiently long to reduce minor oscillations
to their true relative Importance and yet
not too long to show the enect OIL any
really significant movement.
Dividing the period under consideration
GS67 to 1850 into five terms of ilVe years
each, and one term, the last, OIL three years,
we get the following result:
Exports wheat Value Av price
Period. and flour bu. in gold. per blu.
June 80, iS72. POI, SIC, SCI s235, 500, 675 s1.1e96
July l.. 1872, to
June 30, 1871. 348,32S,S6l 5yl.oy9'oeS Liza
June 30. 1882. 726. 3zs, 500 $50, Sc, 462 1.1984
June 80, iSS7. $40, 2s6, e27l4 657, s21.s $40 1.o2s6
'G june %, 1892. e4s.5 500. eso1a s4s.le7,n1 1902
june 50, 1886. sol, COS, 4s1 3ss. 165,7 19 .7s47
Totals .......3 ,O67, O27. 9O3 So, 1913, S23, 495 $3.50.
The most noteworthy feature of the fore
going table, aext to its stupendous aggre-
gates, is the fact that it was not during
the five years Immediately preceding 1873,
but from 1877 to 1882 that we received the
highest average price per bushel, Sl.l934.
During that period our exports We're larger
than at any other time in the twenty-eight
years under consideration. Our wheat was
ton with the wheat of other countries that
1t has since had TO encounter. 1t was IN
as inexorabie as the law OF gravitation, its
price rose to even a higher average than
prevailed from 1867 to 1872.
A POPULAR ERROR
But it is not true that during this last
mentioned period, 1867 to 1872, wheat rose
to an exceedingly high price. Was it not
the case that throughout almost the entire
first half of 1868 No l spring wheat was
worth in Chicago from 1898 to S2.15 per
bushel, and No. 2 from $1.S0 to 2.101A. cur
lerscy prices? This is true, and it is a fact
y hich the wheat grower is not in the least
danger of forgetting. But he does not so
reatily remember, nor is he so frequently re-
minded, that before the end of the follow
ing year QS6S) No. l spring wheat was
worth in the same market only from 80
cents to So cents and No. 2 from 1854 cents
to so cents per bushel, currency prices,
equivalent only to from 50 cents to 723
cents per bushel in gold, and this when
!. This period of low prices lasted about
eight months, and was brought to an end
not by any change in the value of silver,
nor by any legislation affecting the curren-
cy, but simply by the breaking out of the
war between France and Germany, which
paralyzed the agricultural operations of
two of the greatest nations Of the world
and aided slightly by deficient harvestS in
one or two other countries, speedily sent
up the jrice OF wheat in Liverpool thirty
logan to rise the moment war was seen to
be inevitable, and within sixty days 1t had
advanced 80 cents per bushel and flour
s1.25 per barrel. The net result of these
various oscillations in values was that
rather less than SLY per bAhel constituted
the average export price of wheat i'll the
United States during the five years ending
June 30, 1872
The second period of five fiscal years ex-
tends from July l, 1872, to June 80. 1877.
This IS one of the periods that witnessed
an extraordinary impulse to wheat growing
10 wheat in this country in 1876 was nearly
100000 acres Cor more, than one-thirdl
was ia, 600 900 bushels Cor nearly one-half)
greater than the crop of 1872, The annual
requirements of our own population had
not increased in the meantime to the ex-
tent OF more than $4,000, 900 bushels, and
had It not been for the astonishing capac-
tty of foreign nations to absorb our surplus
production, a big drop in prices would in
evitably have occurred. AS it was, how
ever. the average export price for the en-
tire period showed a falling off of less than
three cents per bushel. as compared with
the preceding five years.
The period from July. 1877. to June. 1882,
has already been referred to. The average
price of wheat during these five years was
So cents per bushel higher than the aver
age of the preceding five years, and even
higher by 2.3S cents per bushel than dur
ing the period from 1861 to 1872, which pre-
ceded the so-called decentralization of sill
yer. The reason is to be found in a serious
failure of crops in western Europe. The
wears 1S79-S1 yielded in the United King
dem the smallest crops of any three years
since 1852, and it W Is regarded as q matter
OF great satisfaction in that country that
an abundant surplus in the United States
prevented the prices of wheat and flour
from rising any higher than they did. 1t
Il worthy of note that in 1Sb1-'6S the fail
ure of the crops in Great Britain. which
the United States was not able to make |
good out of it's own surplus, caused an adj |
vance in the price of no less than AZ cents
per bushcl. The still more complete crop