Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1900-03-16
AMERICAN GRAIN TRADE
How II Has Developed Since
Colonial Times.
FIGURING INDUsTRY's GROWTH.
ing nespite Adverse Foreign Leg
islatioh-J ntted states the Worlds
chief wheat Producing Country.
Effect of Railways ou the Grain
Carrying business.

,"
chief wheat Producing Country.
Eject of Railways on the Grain
Carrying business.
The Grain Trade Of the United
States il The ti'le Of n monograph
Just published by the treasury bureau
of statistics at Washington as he first
Of series of studies upon The produc-
tiuu and transportation of the great
staples and upon the Internal cum-
Inerce Of the country. The d"N".up.
ment OF the grain production ana trade
is traced from colonial Times 10 The
opening up of the Mississippi route 10y
the purchase of Louisiana. when the
shallow bargcs anu .ater the steam
boats descended the Mississippi and
New Orleans shipped grain io New
York and Boston.
After the completion Of the Erie ca.
nal in lS2J and the settling Of the Lake
Michigan territory the -rrat bulk ut
the western grain traffic moved east,
ward over the lakes and the raual. and
New York became the great grain ship
ping porl uf the country. ihr discus
sion shows how from Chicago a net
work OF railways raIiated to all points
and acted as tributaries to the lake and
railways competed with the lakes for
the east bound traffic
The traffic In corn aud flour was di-
vrrTcd from the lakes To the railroads.
and Whilr the lakes rcgaiued part Of
thi- lost traffic later the Erie canal
Wa, unable 10 compete With thu rail
roads from Buffalo. and grain which
formerly reached tldrwaler at New
York is now largely diverted To Phia.
delphia. Baltimore and more southcrly
ports. The struggles Of the railroads
and Of the ports among themselves are
described, and the history OF the exist.
lng difiereutials is given.
The monograph also represents what
/ appear as the Two most recent develop
ments OF the grain trade Of the United
| States. Firstly, the partial diversion
of the wheat and tiOul trade from Lake
| Michigan TO Lake Superior ports and
| the rise Of a great milling industry al
Minneapolis and Duluth-Superior; Src-
ondly. the increased movement of grain
and notably Of corn. to the gulf ports
| partly by river. to greater extent 10y
rnil from ST. Louis and nearby points
and to an ever growing extent hy Iii.
! rect rail routes from cities in the south,
western corn belt,
| The report, which IS quite Compre
/ hensive. contains series of tables
tcaling with the rise and development
: tine grain trade at various collecting
and distributing points, the efforts q!
! the several railroads TO control and rf
| feet the ever increasing transportation
Of grain and the distribution of tht
trattic among the various routes. 4
great amount of information Is fur
nlshed about rail- canal and oceaI
! freight rates, about the production, dis
tribution and consumption OF cereals
and a special paragraph Is devoted Il
the subject of the foreign market fo'
American grain. The monograph in
cludes number of tables regarding
acreage. production, imports, exports
consumption. prices and rates OF duty
for wheat In all the principal countrie'
Of the earth, as well us map show
ing in general outline the present
wheat area Of the world.
The statistics contained in this re
port throw light upon the present grain
and more especially wheat, situation
Of the United States. They show tha
the expectation OF grain is incrcasln!
with great rapldty. that both the pro
duction and expectation Of corn ar
assuming a greater volume and that
constantly growing portion of on
wheat is exported in the form of -four
During the last 80 years the amount o
corn produced has increased from S6S
100000 to 1924 0O0,O00 bushels. an IN
crease of I'D per cent. While the OK
ports of this cereal increased from l6
600, 900 to l1I00o.0OO bushels. or owe
1000 per cent. During the same perio
our production of wheat increased fror
152 .O0nNO to GT5OOO,0u0 bushels,
gain of 81 per cent, while our export
increased from l2.GO0,OOO TO o2222 600
900 bushels. or almost eighteenfolC
and our net exports of this grain II
creased at still more rapid rate,
From this report it also appears tina
since 1879, and notably since 1850, n
ever increasing proportion of on
whpat exports has been in the form q
flour and that in this important Dranc
Of manufacture Americans have bee
able to compete with European miller
even In the face Of adverse lrgislatlo
abroad In 1880 only 1903 per cent G
our wheat was exported IN the form 6
the manufactured product, -four. Will
In 1889 the proportion was 31.39 pc
cent and In 1896 sos per cent. |
1876 less than 1000. 900 barrels of tlou
and in 1899 over 1S,0OO.O0O barrel
were exported from this country.
The wear 1898 shows the Unite
States to he easily the first wheat pre-
lucing country of the world, our pre-
duction amounting to GI5.60O. COO buSl
els, or nearly Onc-fourth (23.4 per cen
Of that Of the whole world. RusSi
(botb European and Asiatic, is secon
with 1T.3 per cent, then France wit
1919 per cent, British India with 81 pc
cent and Austria Hungary with 80 pt
cent. Our precedence in wheat produ
ton is largely due to our immen,
y
mirable transportation facilities. ii
remarkable system of handling I'll
grain. both physically aud commercin
", aud the exceedingly low freiSl
rates which obtain Oh our railroads an