The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-03-12
GRADES STAND TEST
INSPECTOR REIsHUa GIVES HIS
CRITICS SOME FOOD FOR
DEEP THOUGHT
HERE ARE FACTS AND FIGURES
He Shows That the Minnesota
Grades Are Holding Their Own
in the Eastern and For
eign Markets.

During the past few weeks, the state
grain inspection department has received
much unpleasant notoriety through the
| country press, in consequence of the at
| tacks recently made upon Minnesota
grades and the methods of the depart
| ment. To Chief Inspector Reishus, 1t has
| become apparent that the Republican
country press has been given a false lead
by articles which have appeared in some
| Of the city papers, and to correct false
views. the chief inspector has issued the
| following open letter, In which he main
tains, that Minnesota grain grades are
| standard and that the attacks made upon
the department were based upon misin-
formation, if not malice The letter
reads:
while wishing to avoid the appear
ance of seeking political sl1irmish, ii
has become apparent that the depart.
ment Of which 1 am chief is receiving
uncalled fol" and unjustifiable criticism
at the hands of the Republican state
press. Not alone have the editors of Re-
publican papers throughout the state fall
len into error, but the articles appearing
in ST. Paul partisan papers have been
accepted by them at face value without
a close scrutiny of facts.
Briefly, the charges against the de.
partment are that Minnesota grades are
not maintaining their own upon the do
mestic and foreign market, that the
methods of the department are lax with
reference to the process Of inspection.
and that Minnesota wheat, the contract
grades, are deteriorating Further than
this, the allegation has been made that
the Minnesota inspector has openly
charged Buffalo grain inspectors with
tampering with the grades and lowering
their market values. With reference to
the latter, nothing more than my un-
qualified denial and the statement that
the allegation is false in its entirety Is
necessary.
THE people of the state should know
what methods are employed by this de-
partment and how grain passing through
the state inspector 3 hands is passed
upon for grade. Concerning the charge
that the methods Of the department are
! lax, have only this to say. that with
the one exception that appeals may now
be taken before the state, board of gram
appeals instead Of the railroad and warc-
house commission. the changes made
under the present administration have
been very few. The best methods Of the
previous administration have been re-
| tanned and improved upon. The inspec-
ticn was never more rigid. Briefly, the
l method is this shipper sends his
wheat to the Duluth or Minneapolis mar
kets At that point, 1t is examined by
the track Inspector, accompanied by his
helper The helper uses q probe, pushing
1t through the load froyn top to bottom
and securing a sample. This is emptied
and the inspector passes upon 1t fol-
grade. He also determines the amount
of dockage This is tho method Of in
spectior.
"In the event that the shipper wishes
to appeal from the track inspectors de-
cision, he carries his case before the
chief inspector In such cases, g. rein
spection is ordered and the chief deputy
himself passes upon <the wheat. He
either sustains or changes the decision
of the track Inspector and from such de-
cision there is no appeal except to the
board of appeals, whose decision is final.
The wheat is then subject to market at
the grade and dockage@ determined.
"I quote the following from the stand
ard of grain grades adopted under. the
previous administration, inasmuch as
it concerns the contract grade, No.
northern:
"'No. 1 Northern sp,4ng Wheat-No. /
northern spring wheat must be sound
and well cleaned, and must be composed
of the hard and soft varieties OF spring
wheat.
minimum test weight of this grade shall
not be less than fifty seven pounds to the
measured bushel, and must contain rot
less than about 80 per cent of the hard
varieties of spring wheat
1.-THE following rules are taken from the
standard Of grades as adopted Aug. Is,
1899 by the state board of grain appeals.
It will be seen that in every essential
particular 1t shows the same standards
as the rule formerly used.
" No. l Northern Spring Wheat-No. l
northern spring wheat must be sound
and well cleaned, and must be composed
equally of the hard and soft varieties of
spring wheat and weigh not less than
fifty-seven pounds to the measured
bushel.'
From this it will be seen that, as far
as the standards of grades are concerned,
they are practically Identical. The same
is true of No. 2 red w4nter and all the
other grades of wheat, the different
grades of oats and the important
cereal products. Such changes as were
made were merely for the sake of clear
ness, and the real changes were exceed
ing few. l make this assertion after
a careful comparison of both standards,
the one in use being obtainable from
my office.
From a list of appeals from track in
spectors' decisions which came In from
Duluth today, have examined twenty
five consecutive cases. With one excep-
ton, each of these was an appeal from
the amount of dockage determined by
the inspector, and in the twenty-four
cases out of the twenty-five the change
made by the board of grain appeals was
only half pound This indi-
Gates that the work of the inspectors
is careful and exact. Only one case of
the entire number concerned an appeal
from the grade, and this was In a case
Of no grade wheat
THE statements which have repeatedly