The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-08-21
The FIGURES FOR IT
How Canada Expects to Be Able to
Feed the United Kingdom
Herself.
Plenty of Good Land on Which to
Grow All the Wheat That
Will Be Needed.

From staff Correspondent
Ottawa, Aug. 21.-In previous dispatches
from Canada's capital have referred In
general terms to the high hope which
Canada has that the Canadian northwest
is to develop at a rapid rate and even
tually shut the United States out of the
English markets, both as to wheat and
flour. 1t may now be in order to give
somewhat in detail the basis for this
hope, and tell the story Of the Canadian
northwest outlook as it Is told by the
Canadians themselves. It is a story Of
lofty ambition and of sublime faith, not
unworthy a great and growing people
1t may not be realized, but In just the
that it does, the United States
will be harmed In her most reliable for
eign markets, so far as wheat and -four
are concerned.
The Statistical Year Book, issued by the
Dominion government gives exhaustive
figures covering the wheat, oats and bar
ley crop Of Canada for the year 1902,
minus Quebec and the maritime provinces.
These figures may be taken as starting
point. In 1902, Ontario Manitoba and the
Northwest Territories produced, Of wheat,
SO, u.s. $40 bushels; of oats. $3.50, s94
bushels. and Of barley, a. sos, AL bushels.
Canada exported In 1902, to all coun-
tries only 26,117,530 bushels of wheat, and
1,0S6,54S barrels Of flour; 457,117 bushels
of barley, and 5,O30,123 bushels of oats.
Or, stated in another way, Ontario and
the Canadian northwest produced last
year three times as much wheat, thirty
times as much oats, and forty-seven
times as much barley as the entire Do
minion exported. The great balance was,
of course, consumed at home. Now, the
problem is to enlarge the export market,
at the same time increasing the home de-
mand by an increase of population in both
city and country, and thus give room for
an increase in yield of these staples that
will enable Canada to make good her boast
that she Is to become the granary Of the
empire. Corn is apart from the discus
sion, because of the severity of the Cana
dian climate and because, also, the ex-
port trade in corn is not regarded here as
being as important as that in wheat, oats
and barley, more especially wheat.
Last year the United Kingdom imported
from all countries ISL, 061. 654 bushels Of
wheat and 1O,9o7,791 barrels of flour, or
an equivalent of about 2OO,146713 bushels
of wheat, counting four and a half bushels
Of wheat to a barrel Of flour. Last year
the Canadian northwest produced $685.
III bushels of wheat. A trebl1ng of that
output, which Canadians believe is easily
possible, and to which I shall refer at
more length later on. would supply the
entire British demand, even If imports
The wheat acreage in northwest Canada
last wear was 1855, $685. an increase of AZ
per cent in two years. The homestead en-
tries there for the year ending June ~,
1908, reached the amazing figure of 3l,OO2,
as compared with 1929 for the previous
year. ~.- ....
Plenty of Land Left. -
While figuring that this wonderful in
crease in immigration is to continue
steadily for years to come, the Canadians
say that they can easily take care OF IT,
for their expert scientific investigators
have told them that there are 2OO,o0O,0oO
acres of land in the Canadian northwest
capable of producing very superior quail
ity of hard wheat. One of these scientific
experts is Professor Macoun, an eminent
botanist, who has made careful and crit
ical study of the northwest country, eX-
tending over a long period. After de-
Quoting rivers, lakes, swamps and all
other non arabic land, he finds $4,000, 900
acres capable of producing wheat of a
superior grade, which is fifty-six times the
area planted last year, and thinks that an
other 1000 acres, and possibly many
times that amount can be added by irri-
CATION, such as the Canadian Pacific pro-
poses to introduce for a part Of its land
grant east of Calgary.
On the basis Of last years yield, this
area of $50, 0OO,O acres would produce in
wheat 1854, 00O,O 900 bushels, or eighteen
times as much as the British import Of
last year. IL ,
Canada to Feed the U. x. .-
Here, then, are the figures on which
Canada relies for her boast that she will
In time be able to feed the United King
dom. Of course, there are other wheat
producing countries, and Canada is well
aware that before she goes into wheat
raising on scale as large as that just
referred to, she must develop and extend
her own resources and add materially to
her own population. This feeling lies at
the root of the strong arguments one now
hears in Canada in favor of high pro-
tective tariff, on the basis Of the Ameri-
can Dingley law. Such a tariff, it is
pointed out, would encourage manufacture
ing, build up the cities, and in every d.
rection increase the demand for home
goods. Many millions per year are being
spent Of Canadian money in the United
States and in other countries, also for
goods which the Canadians themselves
might as we'll make. Give them a high
protective tariff and the history of the