The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1897-09-16
THE HOME MARKET
TIE MAlNSTAY OF THE AMER
ICAN FARMER.

Under the Mckinley Law the American
Consumption Was 1s2,OOO'OOO Bush
els of Wheat and 1,25O,0Oo,O0O
Bushels of Corn Per Annum Greater
Than Under the Wilson Law.
E. F. PARSONS, Special Correspondent.
Washington, D. C.-The last publi-
cation of the bureau of statistics OF the
treasury department at Washington
gives some interesting information.
Among other things it shows that fully
three -fourths Of our foreign commerce
is with gold standard countries. Last
year our foreign commerce amounted TO
$1,817, 100000, two-thirds OF which
was with European countries, all OF
which are upon gold standard, while
but one-fifth was with the silver using
countries of the world. This is sig
nificant fact in connection with the
statement that the United States should
adopt the silver standard. Other hg-
ures of this bureau which are not calcu-
lated to be acceptable news to the silver
people show that Ohio wool, which IN
August, 1896, was worth II cents per
pound, was on July 80, 1897, worth %
cents per pound, while silver, which IN
August, 1896, was worth SO cents per
ounce was on July 81, 1897, worth 5o1a
cents per ounce. Some other figures OF
the treasury department showing the
crop statistics during the period OF
prosperity prior to the operations OF the
Wilson law and the subsequent period
of depression following the enactment
of that law are not uninterestlng. In
1891 the wheat produced in the United
States amounted to Gil, 900, 900 bush
els. At the close of 1890 the consump-
ton of wheat was 6. 90 bushels per cap
tia. In 1894 it had decreased to BAL
per capita. The population OF the
United States in 1894 as shown by the
school census was 68,275, 900, making
loss by under-consumption OF wheatiln
1894 as compared with 1890 of little
over 1872, O0O,0 900 bushels. The con-
sumption of corn in the United States
in 1890 was 5000 bushels per capita.
In 1894 it was only 22.76 bushels, or a
loss of 9.33 bushels per capita, making
a total loss of over 637 900, 900 bushels
of corn in 1894 as compared with 1890.
In 1896, the last year of the Wilson
law, the consumption of corn in this
country was reduced to the low figure
of 14.7S per capita, showing a total
shrinkage in the home market of $780,
2S6,000 bushels of corn.
Statements which are yet occasion
ally heard, that the expectation Of
American manufactures largely in
creased under the Wilson law are easily
met by an examination Of statistics rel
ative to the exports and imports under
this law in comparison with those of
its predecessor and are more than de-
molished by looking at the record of
exports and imports during the last so
years. In the first place the increase
of importations of foreign manufactures
during this period OF the Wilson law
in which our expectations of home. man.
ufactures increased, was over three
times as much as the growth in exports.
Our own markets were filled with for
eign manufactures of cheap goods at low
prices, and our own manufacturers were
either compelled to seek a market
abroad at whatever they could get for
their goods or else close their estab-
lishments. This they did not wish to
do in view of the coming protective
tariff law, and so they exported large
quantities of goods, but at such low
margins and profits as to signify any
thing but prosperity in their business
determined by the study of a single
year or short term of years. Take
the imports and exports of the country
during the past half century and a gen.
eral idea can be gotten of the effect of
tariff upon foreign commerce. In the
last % years, which have been con-
stantly protective, with the exception
of the three years of the Wilson law,
the excess of exports over imports
amounted to about 50, ,000,0 900,
while in the preceding quarter of a
century which was one of low tariffs
with the exception of the war period,
when practically no exporting was done,
the excess of imports over exports W.
81 400, O0O,O These figures, cover
ing two 25-year periods, the first char
acterized by low tariff and the last by
a protective tariff, show the general
effect of the two systems upon the ex-
ports and imports of the country.
Wheat during the past month has ad-
vanced at a rate not known in the mar
kets for years. That the wheat out
look for the American farmer is sur
passing all hopes, is attested not only
by market reports but by general news
paragraphs and cartoons in the papers
of all sections of the country. When
wheat was down to 81 cents bushel,
the farmers naturally lost heart and
were in frame of mind to be con-
WINGED of the assertion that wheat was
dependent upon the price of silver, and
that silver being low, wheat must like
wise be low and could not advance un-
til silver advanced. The silver orators
talk much of "supply and demand, -
applying it to both silver and wheat.
But now the actual supply and demand
of the world has completely destroyed
the silver theory itself and has ad.
vanced the price OF wheat to nearly
double it's last years value and de-
creased the price of silver about 1C
cents an ounce.
The Cleveland Plaindealer, daily
Democratic newspaper of Senator Han.
mas home, reluctantly admits that
there is .'some evidence of returning
prosperity" It is moved to this adj
mission by the fact that a single roll
ing-mill in that place which has beer