The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-05-29

points. lake transportation became sub
stantially an effective eastward move.
ment towards the Atlantic ports. What
this shifting of area meanse to the:
lakes will appear from the following
statistics:
In 1880, 2,1O6OO0 bushels of wheat
passed through the St. Mary's Falls
canal The movement was 1891 900
bushels in 1886; 1881, 900 bushels in
1891; 46, 256000 bushels in 1895, and g.
256,000 bushels in 1896, being, in this
last year, over 100000 bushels more
than were received at Buffalo and Erie.
Once more the adjectives. vast, enor-
nous and tremendous, may well be APP
piled.
Let it be remembered, too, that there
is nothing fortuitous or temporary
about this passing of supremacy in
wheat to the Northwest. The increase
has been proportional with the develop
ment of territory, almost geometrically
SO. Climate, soil and position alike
proclaim that the dominion has come
to the fittest.
Flour has always been faithful con-
comitant of wheat, the miller following
after the harvester. AS the movement
Of the one has shifted, & SO has that Of
the other. Thus 1t appears that 21S,741
barrels Of flour were shipped eastward
by the lake from Chicago in 1860, and
fUC,VcI UdIlSl ny Td1l. III IotV Tic lone
shipments were 574, 1893 barrels. and the
rail shipments 9S9,160 barrels. In 1880,
e27,S73 barrels were shipped by lake,
to 2,264,S barrels shipped, by rail. This
ratio was still more increased in 1885,
the former shipment being e52,373 bar
rels, and the latter 4,450,051 barrels, or
nearly seven times as much. Then the
change began which we have seen in
the cereals, until in 1897 the railroads
carried only about third more, the.
lake shipment being 4 $50, 734 barrels
and the rail shipment Being 1857, 1912
barrels. There are, of course, certain
peculiarities of flour which will at times
render it preferable to ship by rail. The
demand for it is often. peremptory,
while on the other hand 1T cannot be
stored without considerable loss.
MILLS OF THE NORTHWEST.
Chicago flour shipments reached
their height about 1887. Since then
the flour from the Northwest has taken
another course. AS the region west of
Lake Superior has become more and
more the wheat district, so have the
mills of MINNEAPOLIS, and, later still of
Duluth, developed. In 1873 the produc-
ticn Of the Minneapolis mills was 9H,-
600 barrels; in 1886 it was 6,16S 900 bar
rels: in 1890 1t was 6,9S9,000 barrels, and
in 1895 1t was 12,S75, 0O0s barrels. In
this last year, too, the output of the
Duiutn ara west superior mills was
about 100000 barrels What the ten
dency of the -four traffic now is may be
shown by the following: Five hounderd
and twenty-four thousand barrels pass
ed through ST. Mary's canal in 1880.
3.239,000 barrels in $780, and 1888, 900
barrels in 1896.
1t follows, from the above, that lake
transportation must become more and
more an important maHer of considera-
ton for the Northwest How can time
be saved in greater 3oeed and more
effective service? How can grain be
carried in larger bulk, and with better
protection? How may, fates be lessened
and what charges, noHsiHlposed, should
be entirely obviated Hs Such questions
as these must be answered if the lakes
would retain the major share of trans
porting NorthwesterA grains which
they now possess. And how they should
be answered will be considered in an
other article.
Then, too, as has been indicated, an
other phase presents itself when it is
represented that there is a shorter line.
from the head of Lake Superior to Mon
treal, through the canadian Pacific
railroad, than leads by American lakes
and railroads to any Atlantic port.
Naturally the privileges which this
allen road, subsidized by a foreign ma
ton, and the one, too, that is our clos
est commercial competitor, enjoys
through the complaisafaceyo the United
states should be subject of grave
interest; lest it be said that, through
childish heedlassness, we have FILTERED
away our brithrisht.
-Csndt Crane.