The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1897-08-25
NOW FOR A FARMERS YEAR.
EurOpe Already clsmOring for Our Wheat

| United States looking for its wheat sup
ply, and there is every indication that
we will have wheat enough to sell TO
make us feel rich and happy. Besides
the great ships of the regular transatlan
| tic lines, which in the aggregate carry
more wheat from this harbor than the
| entire output OF some OF the other big
grain shipping ports, there were nearly
/ dozen steamers under charter and load
/ ing here last week. Their total capacity
was =, ,Id2 tons estimated burden, and as
| every vessel can carry from two to two
and one half times this in grain, their
cargoes amounted probably to about l.,
$1,000 bushels.
This. however, Is only the beginning of
| the business Of wheat moving at this
port Late in August and September the
/ heavy movement begins, and thereafter
| the grain goes from here to Europe in a
| constant stream, amounting in ordinary
years to about S5.OO0.Oc0 bushels, and it
has run up to I32, SIS, 336 bushels during
this period.
IL has been said frequently that New
York was losing her hold upon the grain
business, which was going to other ports.
This is true only in a measure. Former
ly, when nearly all the grain came to sea-
| board by canal, New York did practical
| ly the entire shipping Of it. Now that all
the great railroads have taken to hand
ling grain in competition with the water
ways, New York ships little more than
| one -halfthe total export, but this half is
vastly greater than the total was in the
old days. The canals brought to US in
80 over 1850, ,OoO bushels. while the rail-
roads brought 72,77s, ,335 bushels. and
coastwise vessels brought enough more
to bring the total up to s7,93l, ,9iS bushels
for the year.
In the phenomenal year of ls92 our
shipments amounted to l32 SO, ,G36 out of
a total export for the country Of about
! 22G, 90, 90 bushels, and in lsg3 New York
handled IO6, 81, 40 bushels out of total
| OF Ie.2. .Oo0. 600. 1t would not surprise any
Of the more experienced of our wheat OPP
orators if the United States were called
upon this year To supply 10 the world
something like 3O0,0o0,OOO bushels of
1 wheat At - cents bushel this would
bring into the country sI6O, 100000 in gold
or its equivalent. Such enormous sums,
| however, are not earned without an
| enormous amount Of labor. Part OF this
Is that Of the farmer, but another part,
and one that forms large share Of the
total cost TO the consumer, is that of
| transportation.
Ancient LONE was for long time de-
| pendent upon the wheat fields Of Africa
| for her supply, but that is perhaps the
only important example until very mod
ern times when any large section Of the
world was dependent for food supplies
upon foreign countries and upon COM
merce. To-day the wheat fields of Eu-
rope fall so far short Of feeding the peo-
pie about them that hundreds of millions
of bushels are drawn from sources thou
sands Of miles distant. The three great
wheat fields for this supply are our own,
| those Of southern Russia, and the newly
| developed ones Of the Argentine Repub-
| lie. The total exports from these three
countries last year were 100000 bush
| els. This was 2, 10000 bushels less than
the average for the last six years In our
great export years Of lS92 and 1893 we
had crops to draw upon of 6S5,0o0,0OO
bushels grown in 1901, and 5S0,GOO,OOO
grown in ISs2. Last year our crop was
f71.Oc0,OO0 bushels, and this year it is be-
lieved to amount to 575, 90, 900 bushels.
From the moment this crop leaves the
hands Of the farmers it is the subject Of
the operations Of a set of clever men,
whose calculations are made upon such
an accurate basis that the manner in
which the wheat is handled. the lines
upon which il shall reach the seaboard
and the ports from which il shall be
shipped would be determined by diff
ference Of I-I6 Of cent bushei. As a
result the method Of gathering and for
warding the grain has been reduced To
science, and the cost has been brought TO
the lowest possible figure. Preparations
for buying the grain are now begnn
months before it is cut. Every buyer
knows not only the exact acreage planted
in the section Of the country which he
operates. but also the entire acreage it
would be possible ~ plant there. From
week to week, as the crop natures, he
gets telegraphic reports Of its condition
on each farm, and when it is ready to sell
be j. on the ground informed To the
hour.
Formerly the operators were often
hampered for cars in which TO receive
the grain, and this is so in some localities
vet, but within a few years there have
sprung up thousands Of small elevators
thickly dotting every feeder, as well as
the main stem railroad lines in the grain
regions. Some Of these are mere road
side bins, where the farmer may drive
no upon an incline aud shovel his load
out, but many Of them have a capacity Of
5000 10 40.00O bushels, and have an end
less belt elevator, bins for different quail
ties of grain, and big hopper scales for
weighing it. 1t is chiefly from these
way-side store houses that the grain finds
its way into the enormous elevators at
Chicago, Duluth, Superior, St Paul. st.
Louis, Buffalo, and other railroad Gen.
tres on the way to the seaboard, east or
south.
The biggest elevators are those at Chic
ago and Buffalo, and the greatest of all
grain routes is that over the great lakes
TO Buffalo. From Buffalo half dozen
trunk line railroads carry the crop TO the
sea. In addition to New York wheat is
shipped from Boston, Philadelphia, Bal
timore, Newport News, Norfolk, New
Orleans, and Galveston. At each port
are elevators in which the grain is receiv-
ed, graded. stored, and finally passe1 out
10 ships which take it across the ocean,
New York harbor has four railroad ele-
vators. each of which will hold about
one and half or two million bushels,
and there are besides dozen or more
private grain storehouses along the
Brooklyn water front, which viii hold in
the aggregate seventeen or eighteen mil
lion bushels.
Wheat is shipped in only one kind Of
car-the box car-for il must not be ex-
posed to the weather. The Standard size
holds l,Ooo bushels or $1,000 pounds. A
few ears are made which hold 5000
pounds Regular grain ears have an in
side door OF light pianking which is hung
on hinges that slide down rods set in the
car. one on each side of the doorway.
When this door is not in use il is raised