Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1896-12-03
in A STEADY FLOOD.
RuSHO GRAIN FROM THE WEST
81 FOR SHIPMENT.
Difficult to Get Lake Vessels to Ac-
csmmodate the Immense Traffic
One Train to Carry the Corn Crop
Would Encircle the Globe.
Method of Handling Grain.


shipment-the elevator and the vessel
men. That amount of grain is somer
thing enormous 1t would fill train
OF 3,692,30S cars of the average size
OF ESQ bushels capacity, and such a
train, 222S3 miles long, would nearly
encircle the globe; it would make car
goes for $4,000 lake steamers of the
average capacity of 100000 bushels.
but. of course. from this amount should
be deducted the amount used for home
consumption. and from the estimate
of lake cargoes liberal allowance
should be made for the portion which
goes by way of all rail routes to the
coast.
Chicago handles so much grain when
now double large crops are in move
ment, that for many weeks in the fall
OF the year there is car famine on all
Its diverging railroads, while storage
room is at premium, and scarce. In
a single month Chicago can take care
of 22OO0,0O0 bushels of grain of lake
shipments, and 100000 bushels a day
of rail receipts, The receiving facili-
ties are so great and so accurately sys-
tematized that where person unfa-
miliar with the business would antici-
pate tremendous blockade, every car
coming in Is moved to its proper place
by an unvarylng routine, dumped sent
out again; every other carrying We
hicle is brought to its dock, and the
long chutes of the elevators lick up
ltne grain in a continuous stream, dis
tribute II, transfer 1t, as easily as
pouring water from one cup to another
1t Is at Buffalo where the blockade
usually occurs. There cargoes have to
be shifted for seaboard events. Boats
ARE sometimes detained, awaiting a
chance to unload, anywhere from a
week to ten days. Craft moored along
side each other get in a jam every
hour. In some cases steamers with
cargoes OF grain billed clear through TO
the seaboard, with ocean room en-
gagged TO take the grain to Europe. are
towed directly to the elevators on ar
rival and unloaded, but in any case
where there is a chance Of being de-
Hained in the elevator any time at all,
the boat is compelled to hold its load.
In busy season, storage room at these
great grain points is completely filed.
and elevators are barely able to handle
cargoes direct from boat to cars.
The contents of small country ele
,vator, located at some little railway
town, soon lose all independent iden-
tity when the selling movement starts
I'm. The corn Is loaded into cars.
which are added TO a long freight
train made up Of similar cars OF corn
and started toward Chicago. Each car
load is noted.by itself and has a place
In the records of the railroad COMPANY.
The Journey is soon made to the ont
skirts OF the city, and, after being
bumped about over miles of switch
yards, the consignment from the coun-
try is run into some big elevator. The
doors are opened and the grain in
spector passes along from car to car
carefully Inspecting each sample taken.
The corn is up TO the grade and the
grain doors are lifted out. The vel
low corn pours in bright stream into
the chutes on either side of the track.
where IL Is Immediately caught IN
10y conveyors and carried up into the
Dig cupola on top of the elevator. The
weighing hoppers are ready to receive
at, and after being weighed'it is run
unto bins Of corn of similar grade. The
identity of each car Is now lost. and
1t only appeared on the receipts of
the Board Of Trade as a unit in n con-
signment.
The following morning n representa-
tive of some large commission firm, to
whom the grain has been consigned.
appears on the floor of the board of
trade, walks over to .'vesselmen's
aisle" between the corn and provision
pits, and salutes vessel broker with
an inquiry as to the rate for corn to
Buffalo. Say it is stated at 2b cents.
The operator offers "a, and interviews
many brokers, until he secures his
rate. He demands a 15-minute option
on the steamer finally accepted. 1t
carries 10000 bushels. In five minutes
he hasvsold that amount of corn by
telegraph In New York, has engaged
elevator room at Buffalo, and rail ship
ment thence to New York. He then re-
turns, to the vesselman and completes
his charter. In all probability the re-
ceiver of the grain at New York has
I'm ten minutes more sold the grain TO
a Liverpool firm and in a very short
time charters the ocean room to carry
1t there.
The vessel agent, having placed his
boat at once arranges for the loading.
The orders for the grain at the ele-
Nator, are given him, he engages the
trimmers and tally men, and as the
steamer Is ready to load, in an hour
tugs pull 1t up to the dock under the
towering walls of the elevator. The
hold is all clean, all the coal dust from
the up cargo having been swept out.
The spouts ut the bottom of the bin
where the corn has been stored are
opened, and the yellow grain pours into
the same hoppers in the floor where 1t
entered on its arrival. Into the same
conveyors Il goes and again Is shot
into the weighing hoppers. All grain
must be weighed in and out of an cle-
vator, for that is the way ii is meas
nred. After being discharged from tho
weighing hopper this time it is turned
into the spouts and takes leap into
the sunlight and then into the deep
hold of the steamer There it encoun-
tiers the grain trimmer, scoop in hand
and dusty in appearance. There are
ten in the gang, and they shovel the
grain back under the deck until there
IS lust as much IN the steamer as il will
hold. The decks arc swept Of chaff
and grain, the hatch covers are put in
viace and tho signals to the engines