The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-08-30
''is the Farmer Holding His
Wheat P"

Under the above caption, Bradstreets
for Aug. 81 presents certain interesting
views to disprove this assumption,
meanwhile, however, only partially &C
cepting the opinion of the Cincinnati
Price Current to the effect that the de-
mand by country millers, with its con-
sequent absorption Of wheat near the
farms on which it was harvested, is In
large part responsible for the compare
tive shortage of visible supplies in the
interior markets.
The wheat movement in the United
States during the six weeks between
July 1 and Aug. 13, in bushels, is thus
given b. Bradstreet's:
y yisSs supply supply i suly b. @ go
feceipts wheat ten primary
Receipts flour ten primary '''-''''
points, equal wheat 80. 5771 426 6533 424
Exports, wheat and -four. S154 ,72S 16,11554S
Six weeks consumption. 81, 100000 81, 800 900
Six weeks exports. .... Is, I54, 72S 1918 54s
How Provided For. ''''''''-' ''''-'''''
Primary receipts. wheat
Taken from visible .... sf79,oSo $500
secured from other de-
Totals $50. ....55, 654, 1923 81, 615,54S
These figures show that there was a
decrease in the visible supply July 1
this year of 1861, 900 as against the
same date last year, and that on Aug.
IL OF this year there were 1925, 600
bushels less visible wheat than on the
same date in 1897 More than this.
they show that there was a decrease in
the visible supply between July / and
Aug. is, this year. of SIT, 600 bushels,
while last year, during the same period,
the decrease was only 1856, 900 bushels.
Between these dates of the present
year, $685., 1874 bushels were received at
the ten primary markets embraced in
the computation against Is, SGT, O2O last
year. But the decrease in the receipts
between July 1 and Aug. IS, 1898, is
shown to be S.456282 bushels, or about
T. per cent, as against 15,499,172 BUSH
els, or about 81 per cent, in 1897
the total amount consumed and ex-
ported between July 1 and Aug. 10 is
set down at 1854, 72S bushels, or about
ZooO,OoO bushels more than last year
during the same period. With the
consumption and expectation of 1897
between the same dates as a basis for
computation, namely 53.615,543 bushels,
this conclusion is arrived at, viz: Only
10000, 900 bushels were received this
year at the primary points named.
there was decrease in the visible of
100000; the amount Of consumption
and expectation was figured at 55654,-
72S bushels; the deficiency represents
in round numbers 27,5OOoOO, against
q, 100000 bushels in 1897.
From this line Of reasoning. the
wheat must have come from some
source to supply the volume unaues-
tionably absorbed, and the natural as
sumption is that it went directly from
the farms to the country millers and
failed to appear in the reports Of
receipts or visible supplies at the pri-
mary markets, having been transported
directly as flour. without being re-
corded for the benefit Of the trade and
go. sI"tisticians In discussing this
feature. Bradstreet's refers to the prob
ability that these shipments We're from
gulf ports. which must seem to be the
most reasonable theory that can be
advanced.
This method Of analysis, however,
does not altogether answer the query
made as to whether or not the farm
ers are holding their wheat, because
of its too general scope. The belief
cannot be overcome that there Is a
disposition in some localities to defer
ma rketing in large lots until foraion
conditions are more thoroughly as
sured. But. very shortly, the records
of the railroads will, by the comparison
of movements this year with those Of
last, afford much light upon the situa-