The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1899-01-03
THE WORLDS
WHEAT SUPPLY.
The Outlook Not So Gloomy as Sir
William CrookeS SeemstO Think.
A WIDE SCOPE FOR INCREASE
ESpeclally in Amcrica-Somc Interest
ing Comparisons rs to Acreage ana
yicld-"Starvation" is SIN
Very Far ON

WASHINGTON, jan. ~'--SP ~
charge d. affairs at London Mr. 't%hy
White under date Of December z IssN'
sends copy Of a letter appearing ln the
Times OF even date. in answer TO the
statements made by Sir william Crookes
in regard TO the wheat supply of the
world. and also an editorial tr'm The
London Times on the subject The cdiio-
rial as giving a summary of tho contents
OF the letter Is printed below
1.-THE two highest authoiiucs on scien-
tinc agriculture. Sir John Lawcs and SIR
Henry Gilbert. have addressed To JUS
very instructive communication on the
wheat supply Of the world. 10 Is q crit
icism. far from hostile iu spirit and based
on ample knowledge. OF the opinions cN-
ressed by Sir William Crookcs in his adj
dress as president of the British Assoc
citation II Is satisfactory 10 learn that
In the view Of our correspondents. the
outlook is not so gloomy as At was &C.
scribed in that address. We are likely
20 have fluctuations OF prices and alterna-
tons Of good ana bad crops But the
upshot OF the Inquiries Of these authorl-
ties as TO the future Of wheat is that
there will always be sufficient supply at
remunerative prices Sir William Cr00kes
point was that the wheat-producing area
that with the growing calls upon 20 90
minister to an increasing number Of
mouths II must soon DE exhausted. and
that We mlsht az no very remote date oo
in presence az problem of NE and death
Importance which only chemistry could
solve. The letter which We publish too
day mentions facts and figures which
qualify the statements made AZ Bristol as
TO the output OF wheat hy The United
States: but the weight of tho reply lies
I'm the grounds given for believing that
there IS still all over the world, ana IN
particular I'm America wide scope for an
Increase of produce per acre. ihe aver
age produce I'm the United states IS oniy
between u and IL bushels, as against
about d bushels. the average yield OF the
much poorer soil OF these islands
SIGNIFICANT FACT
There Is the significant TACT lhat llo
famous experimental wheat helo III
Rofhamsted. an unmanured plot OF COM
paratively poor soil. has yielded lo' over
fifty years i'm succession more '"'n
bushels an acre. Zoo other words some
what mora than the average Of the whole
Of the wheat-gr0wing area of the Oniito
STATES with their tracts OF prairie ianu'
The Weld per acre in Russia. "hich
comes next 20 the United States as am
exporter of wheat. ls very low; and before
Canada. some parts of which are stated
20 contain the finest undeNfloped wheat
delds I'm the world We may De sure
that there are vast possibilities. II lho
comparatively poor lands Of the Onlteu
Kingdom Weld good return because the
land A. well cultivated and there is
prcper system Of rotation; II for half
century the Rothamsted field can Keep
M an average of more than thirteen
bushels an acre. what may not be In
store for consumers as the result OF
high farming an over the wheat growing
areas of the world. Most Of the export
lands of the United States are scarcely
more than SKINNED over by the pillow.
scarcely any labor is bestowed on clean
ing. weeds largely rob the fertility the
straw and weeds are TO a great extent
burnt. and manure is often wasted In
face Of these facts, the two authors of
the communication published to-day
think that there is "a great inherent and
unused capabnty for Tho production of
wheat both IN the United States and
elsewhere I'm TRUTH ass the economists
long ago pointed out. and as Sir John
Lawcs and Sir Henry Gilbert have shown
in various papers ON the effect of the
depression of corn prices. the question
OF the margin of cultivation Of wheat
is largely a matter of price. For many
years back with Few interruptions, and
those only OF brief duration, 10 has not
been worth while 10 bring new land under
cultivation here or 90 farm high la new
countries With us il does not pay 10
grow wheat whore anything else can -
grown. But let prices rise continuously:
yet tho scarcity which Sir William
Crookes breads be experienced. and there
will be gradual movement toward new
lands and a resort TO the methods which
Sir John Iawes and other scientilcNin-
quirers have proved TO Zoe efiicaciOus
starvation" and "the grip of actual.
death" are probably far OF. even If we
90 not devise new model Tor the hxation
OF atmospheric nitrogen.
CLIMATIC CONDITIONS
The truly original part of the letter re-
lates TO the climatic conditions necessary
FOR successful cultivation Of wheat and
the supply of nitrate peccssary. if the
YIELD OF wheat is to be materially in-
creased Sir William CrOol,os pointed out
that 20 Increase the average yield of
wheat from l21 bushels taken as the
present figure 10 90 bushels 10 woaid be
necessary arthcially 90 increase greatly
our supply of nitrate of soda 10 would
require. ne estimated. Z2.e5 pounds of nit
rate 20 obtain au increase o. % bushcl
In round figures an addition of 100000
tons of nitrate would bc needed to bring
up tho yield of wheat Co the point which
Sir William CrOokes regarded as "a mimi
mum. Where Is that supply 10 be cot If
no fresh nitrate beis of good size are
likely 10 bee discovered and n tne avail
able deposits viii not last. ass las been
predicted. much ilorc Than 'our Years?
Sir William Cr0okcs had am iuGcnious
idea as 10 tho mode Of sLpph ing agIlcul-
turisis with this prime necessity of an
abuDdant wheat crop. Tn this free state
nitrogen ahounds. the problem is to fN a.
By water or wind power this problem. 81
was suggested must be- solved: from the
free nitrogen Of the atu.osphs ere chcmis-
try must procure nitrate suitable for ag-
rlculture. Niagaa was p0Hieo4i0 as The
possible motor power for such manu-
facture Tho lettcr which we publish to-
day mentions some remarkable facts. de-
duced from experiments az ROthamstel
which show that humanity IS not in so
awkward a corner as we have been asked
20 believe. and that Nature has ways Of
getting the necessary nitrate which few
chemists have realized 10 IS found that
some doeD-roOted icrumiulus plants send
their roots az FAR down as Jos inches and
draw nitrate even from That depth. Con-
filming fhclr observations TO the sCrface
stratum the writer's az tho letter find
that even in the Rothamsted soil the
amount OF combined nitrogen IS very
large. and they contend that. under fa-
vorablc conditions Of agriculture, The rich
United states Canadian. ana Russian
soils would Yield un very much more ni-
trogon IN an available form than they
haze hitherto done and very much more
Than the poor Roihamstcd SOIL In short,
even ia land not pn,icuiarly rich ard
much more IN the hest soils Of Canada
ffy