Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-03-09
COUNTRYS GRAIN TRADE
Monograph by the Treasury Bureau of
Statistics.
How Railways Built Up the Lake
Business-Area of Cultiva-
ton Shifted.

The Grain Trade OF the United States"
is the title of monograph just published |
by the treasury bureau Of statistics as the |
first of series of studies upon the pro- |
duction and transportation of the great |
| staples and upon the internal commerce of
the country. |
The present article points out the i'm
mense increase in the agricultural produc-
ton of the country, the rapid and con-
tinuous westward shifting of the area of
cultivation, and the changes in the routes
by which western grain reached the east
ern consumers and the European markets.
The development of the grain production
| and trade is traced from colonial times 10
| the opening up of the Mississippi route by
the purchase of louisiana when the shall
| low barges and later the steamboats, de-
scended the Mississippi, and New Orleans
shipped grain to New York and Boston
After the completion of the Erie canal in
1870 and the settling of the Lake Michigan
| territory the great bulk of the western
gram traff1c moved eastward over the lakes
| anu tne canal, and New York became the
great grain shipping port of the country
Tributary, Then Rival to the Lakes.
The discussion shows how from Chicago
| network of railways radiated to all noints
and acted as tributaries to the lakes and
| later how the unified and amalgamated
| railways competed with the lakes for the
east-bound traffic. The traffic in corn and
hour was diverted from the lakes to the
faliroads, and, while the lakes regained
part OF TINS lost traffic later the Erie canal
was unable to compete with the railroads
from BUFFALO, and grain which formerly
reached udewater at New York 10 nov,
largely diverted to PHILADELPHIA. RaJtimore
Gnu m more southerly ports. The struggles
| OF the railroads and of the norts amona
themselves are described and the hjstorS
Oh o. the existing rate differentials is given
dos me report confines itself to history and
|
| deVelopments. iu'uie
| Recent Developments.
The monograph also nrase,ts h.
| pear as the two most recent dova,onn,o,,.
| VI the grain trade of the United states
tis'' the partial diversion of the wheat and
nour trade from Lake Michigan to Lake
| superior ports and the rise of a great mill
ing ing INDUSTRY at Minneapolis and DuIutb.
| superior; secondly, the increased movement
NJ nor gram sand notably of CORN to the gulf
| poi - partiy by river, to a greater extent
ny rail' from st. Louis and nearby points
ana 10 an eVer-growing extent by direct
| corn belt, ~ h"esteih
The report which is quite comprehensive
CONTAINS series of tables dealing with the
rise ana development of the grain trade st
| various collecting and distributing nointS
| the efforts of the several railroads to nnn'
troll and effect the ever-increasng trans
| portatlon or grain and the distribution Of
| @Aic eidihC Among the various routes
great amount of information is ru-
| hished ABOUT rail, canal and ocean freight
| rates; about the production, distribution
| ana consumption of cereals and a special
| paragraph is devoted to the subject of the
| foreign market for American grain The
monograph includes a number of tables re-
| garding acreage production, imports, ex-
| ports, consumption, prices and rates of dutv
| for wheat in all the principal countries ~
| the earth, as well as map showing in gem
erai outline the present wheat area of the
world.
Light on the Wheat Outlook.
The statistics contained in this report
! throw light upon the present grain and
| more especially wheat situation of the
United States. They show that the expor-
| tation of grain is increasing with great
rapidity, that both the production and ex-
portation of corn are assuming a greater
volume and that constantly growing Dor
ton Of our wheat is exported in the form
of flour During the last thirty-two years
the amount of corn produced has increased
from 600 to 1924 100000 bushels an |
increase of 122 per cent, while the exports
of this cereal increased from 100000 to |
111OOOOOO bushels, or over 1000 per cent.
During the same period our production of |
wheat increased from 1872 100000 to Ga, oo0,- |
600 bushels, gain of 344 per cent while |
| our exports increased from 1916 to ODD 6 mil
lions of bushels, or almost eighteenfold, |
and our net exports of this grain increased |
at a still more rapid rate. |
Increase in Flour Exports.
From this report it also appears that |
since 1875, and notably since 1880, an ever |
| increasing proportion of our wheat exports |
has been in the form of flour, and that in |
this important branch of manufacture |
Americans have been able to compete with |
European millers, even in the face of add |
verse legislation abroad. In 1880 only 1898 |
per cent of our wheat was exported in the |
form of the manufactured product, flour, |
while in 1899 the proportion was 3739 per |
cent, and in 1896. 52.O3 per cent. In 1876 |
less than 100000 barrels of flour, in 1899 |
over 1900, 600 barrels were exported from |
this country.
The year 1895 shows the United States |
to be easily the first wheat-producing |
country of the world, production |
| amounting to 675,0O0,OO0 bushels. nearly |
one-fourth (23.4 per cent? of that of the |
whole world. Russia Doth European and |
Asiatic) is second with 173 per cent. then |
France with 1919 per cent: British India |
with S4 per cent, and Austria Hungary
with 80 per cent. Our precedence in |
wheat production is largely due to our i'm |
n,ense tracts of available fertile land our |
admirable transportation facilities, the re- |
markable system of handling the grain, |
both physically and commercially. and the |
exceedingly low freight rates which obtain |
on railroads and lakes.