Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-18
WHEAT HARVEST ABOUT OVER
South Dakota Farmers Have Golden Grain
All in Shook.
COOL WEATHER ASSISTS WORK GREATLY
Breezes Temper the Heat OF the sun
aud Thus Enable Farmers to
Break harvest Record OF
Many Years.

SIOUX FALLS, S. D., Aug. 17.-(specisl)
Wheat harvest throughout the state is
now practically completed. only a compar-
atively few fields of late sown wheat yet
remaining uncut.
The weather during the height Of the
harvesting season has been ideal, being in
marked contrast to the harvest season Of
fast year, when thermometers registered
from 100 to 106 degrees in the shade during
the day. and hundreds Of horses dropped
dead in their tracks from the intense heat.
One man lest his reason because of the
excessive heat at hat time and hundreds
Of others were Frustrated.
At no time during this years harvest was
the temperature very much above 80 de-
grees in the shade, and during the greater
part OF the time It was much below this
figure. Cool breezes every day tempered the
heat Of the sun and enabled farmers to
rush their harvesting operations to such
an extent as to break the records Of many
past years.
During nearly the whole of the past week
rainy weather has been experienced over
practically the whole Of the agricultural
portion Of the state. This has proved Of
wonderful beneht TO corn, fax, potatoes
and other late crops, but has delayed the
work OF threshing and stacking in parts OF
the state where threshing had commenced
and where stacking had not been COM
pleted.
Although frosts have visited the state
each month so far this year with the ex-
ception Of July, the season, generally
speaking, has been a decidedly favorable
one for the farmers Of South Dakota.
Crop Best in Years.
The small grain is certainly the best for
years. Owing to the recent heavy and
soaking rains corn, with two weeks more
of hot weather, will be out of danger in
the southern part of the state.
1t will, Of course, take II longer than
that to mature In the northern part, but
there are those who still maintain that
corn will yet make a good crop in north
ern South Dakota, where II had a very late
start, owing to the unusually backward
spring.
According to reports received concerning
the reported damage to corn and fax by the
frost on the night of the 10th inst, the rains
during the few days following the frost Wis
itaticn have in many localities revived corn
and fax which was thought TO have been
completely killed.
Some fields Of corn in the northern and
eastern parts Of the state which were stu
ated on extremely low ground were seri-
ously damaged, but che rainy weather which
continued up to Saturday has proved that
the damage was far from general in any
part Of the state, only fields here and there
having been seriously affected.
Stacking is completed in many localities.
Owing to the rains Of the last few days more
threshing will be lone from the shock than
had been anticipated earlier in the season.
While the yield OF oats, barley, rye and
other grains is the best for years, Interest
naturally centers In the wheat production OF
the state.
In. the tens Of thousands of shocks and
stacks which now thickly dot the entire ag-
ricultural portion of the state is contained
the wheat which will a little later be ex-
changed for sums aggregating many mil
lions of dollars.
Whether the estimate Of 40, O00, 600 bushels
as the states wheat production this year
win prove to be accurate, only the future
can determine. That 1t will not run undel
this figure appears certain, while everything
indicates that 1t will exceed the estimate
perhaps by as much as 5000, 900 bushels.
Preparatory to handling the vast quantity
OF wheat and other grain which will b.
shipped out OF South Dakota this fall, new
grain warehouses and elevators are being
erected in all parts Of the state east Of thu
Missouri river, while the capacity of ole
elevators is being greatly increased, II
many instances doubled.
Some threshing has been done, and, com.
mencing the first of the coming week. 4
will, II fair weather prevails, be resumed
and become general in a great part OF the
state.