Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1896-11-28
HAS SAVED MONEY.
Practiced in the Agri-
cultural Department.
Synopsis of Secretary Morton's Report
Our Foreign Meat rrade-Dignity of
the Farmer Upheld-Some
Suggestions.

Washington, Nov. 25.-l;f his fourth annu-
al report the secretary of agriculture shows
that with the SSO,0OO that may be saved
from the appropriations for the current fis-
cal year, there will have been covered back
into the treasury since March I, 1896, over
S2,000,000 That this great economy was
effected without any loss Of efficiency he at
tributes in large degree to the improve
ment in the personnel of the force under the
civil service rules
One more step Secretary Morton deems
necessary to complete the system of civil
service in his department. This Is the ap-
pointment of a director in charge of bureaus
and scientific Investigations, who shall be
designated to serve acting assistant Sec
retary in case of the absence of the secre-
tary and assistant secretary He declares
that the chiefs of the scientific bureaus
and divisions and their assistants do the
actual thinking and reasoning for the de-
velopment of agricultural science, and adds
that the persons are not adequately COM
pensated He states that during the past
few years no less than 80 skilled experts
In the department service have left 1t to
take positions In Institutes of learning at
salaries averaging fully so per cent. higher
than they were getting from the govern
ment.
The inspection of animals intended tor
food Is treated at length Mr.. Mortonurges
that the government inspection should be
extended to all animals intended for human
food, whether for consumption in the
United States OF abroad, but he maintains
that the cost of this inspection should be
paid by the packers. The total consump-
tion of meat in Great Britain for the year
was l,0000O0 TONS rs per cent. of which was
produced at home, the remaining % per
cent. being produced abroad. OF the live
meat arriving In Great Britain during the
first half of the year of 1896, the United
States supplied 75 per cent. of the cattle
and 40 per cent. of the sheep. The testi-
mony of the department representatives
abroad is that cattle from the United States
n excellent COndl-
| tion. The Glasgow market is especially
commended to Americas shippers, as in
| that city cattle from the United States COM
| pete with the very highest qualities OF
| British animals.
American packers are not participating in
| the profits of the growth in consumption
| of swine flesh and hog products in Great
| Britain as much as they ought to, because
| they do not cure meats to suit the British
| demand; on the other hand. Danish and
| Canadian packers are increasing their
shipments every year. American bacon
| averages about two cents per pound below
| continental and Irish bacon, and about
three cents below English.
The shipment of American horses to Eng
| land is steadily increasing. In 1893 Great
| Britain took 1888 American horses, nearly
23 600 in 1894 and "a, 900 in 1895, but during the
| first nine months of 1896 more American
| horses were shipped into England than in
any previous u months
The seed distributed gratuitously by the
|
weighed 2SO tons and occupied 80 mail cars
| in transit The cost of carrying them
| through the mails was over $4,000. Enough
| seed was sent out gratitously to plant liz
| square miles of garden. Ex-congressmen
| received enough to plant 1884, acres. For
| the current year at present prices the
amount required by congress to be ex-
pended in the purchase of seed will make
| each congressman's quota double what
| it was last year. The secreary regrets this
unnecessary and wasteful expenditure of
public money and hopes congress may in
good time put stop thereto.
Referring to the stress of competition
which the American farmer is compelled to
endure, Mr.. Morton calls attention to near
ly 100000 farms of SO acres each given
away by the government under the home
tead act of 1866 during the past 80 years, and
to the amount donated under the timber
culture law equivalent to over 55O,OOO more
farms of the same size. 1t was impossible,
he says, for farmers in the old states to
profitably sell their products in competition
with those of the newer states, grown upon
lands which cost their owners nothing.
Secretary Morton refutes the idea pre-
vailing that the farms of the west and
south are more heavily burdened with
mortgages than those of the east and
northeast. States along the north Allan
tic, he says. are quite heavily incumbered
with farm mortgages, ana New Jersey car
rjes debt of this kind greater in propor-
ton to its farm valuations than any state
in the union.
Referring to the impression that greater
rates of interest are charged for money
| loaned upon farms than that loaned on
other kinds of real estate, Secretary Nor
ton states that the rate of interest charged
, upon mortgages on residential property
other than farms averages eighty-four hum
| dredths OF one per cent less than the rate of
interest charged upon farm loans. In II
, states the average rate charged upon the
; latter is less than that demanded for loans
upon other residential property. In two
20 aha H1 81,
and rural real estate. In Pennsylvania,
Maryland Virginia, Kentucky, Wisconsin,
Kansas. Iowa, Texas and Alabama the
rates of interest are less for money secured
by mortgages than for money secured by
4 other realty In five states, including Kan
sas the difference in favor of the farmer
is from one-fourth to one-half of one per
e cent, and In Texas it is over one per cent.
If a western farmer pays higher interest
, than the eastern, so does the western mer-
chant. common carrier or manufacturer.
l. During the fiscal year just ended, the ex-
S ported products of American farms aS-
I gregated $570.000,000, an increase OF Sl7,OOO.-
600 over the preceding year. In spite of this,
> there was falling off in the percentage OF
: agricultural products exported to the total
exports, but this was due to the unprece-
| dented sale abroad of American manufac-
tured goods. The principal market for
, American products is found in the united
u kingdom of Great Eritaip and her col
= onies.. These Englsh-speaking people
n DouBht % per cent Vi "PoitS lioii 1nn ems
United States during the fiscal year 1896
i Together with Germany, France, HOLLAND
r and Belgium, they purchased Sl.9 per cent
d of our entire output, leaving lS.1 per cent
- for the rest OF the world
> Prof Willis l.. Moore, chief of the wea th-
u er bureau. has submitted to the secretary
/, of agriculture his report of the operations
N of the bureau during the fiscal year of hi:
administration. Among other things hi
. refers to the kite experiments. on one
l. occasion, he says, an altitude of 1000 fee
" was obtained The use of kites is always
- Knitted by the condition of the winds
There appears to remain but one othe
i means of exposing meteorological instru
k ments at approximately fixed points II
a free air-namely, by the use of devices sus
tained by the action of propellers whic.
either lift the apparatus directly or Civ
1t a specially ascending or descending ma
ton.
DAY TRANSFER LEGAL.