The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-05-23

Washington, May 23.-The depart
ment Of agriculture has issued re-
port on 1.-The nations farm surplus"
1t gives $4,500,000,000 as the value
of farm products not fed to live
stock in 1908. The value Of the ex-
ported farm products was in 1908,
$S78,479,451, and the highest value
reached during the last eleven years
was $951,628,3S1 in 1901, due chiefly
to cotton.
The value Of the exported farm
products Of this country is concen-
trated mostly in a few principal prod
ucts. In 1908 cotton constituted SO
per cent; grain and grain products, 20
per cent; meat and meat products and
live animals, "a per cent-these prod
ucts equaling over IS per cent of the
exports Of farm products last year.
Adding tobacco, exports of which
were valued at over $35, 000,0O0; OIL
cake and oilcake meal, $ls,s3s,27s;
fruit and nuts over $1S,OOO,O0O, and
vegetable oils over s16,000,000, gives
total of eight classes Of products.
each with an export value of over
$10,000,000 that comprise almost So
per cent of the entire farm exports of
1903.
Within recent years, ending with
between three and four billions OF.
pounds. and the export fraction Of
the crop has been between So and
II per cent for a long series Of years.
Fraction of Wheat Crop.
The fraction of the wheat crop ex-
ported in the last dozen years has
been about 81 to Al per cent, and
the exported wheat and wheat flour
have yearly averaged somewhat more
than 200,000,000 bushels since 1897,
before which period for many years
the quantity was usually $4,000, 600
to 100000 bushels less.
Only small portion Of the corn
crop is exported as corn, the highest
percentage-11 per cent-being for
1898. Notwithstanding the small per-
centage, the exported bushels reach
OO,O00,000 to 200,000,000.
The beef exports weighed Ss5, ooo,-
oil exports, 126,000,0o0 pounds, and
tobacco, 36s,oo0.ooo. Butter and
cheese exports have decidedly de-
clined within two or three years.
The report says that within a few
years the results will begin to APP
pear and some of these results may
be in much increased fruit supply
matter are losing ground relatively
| with q corresponding gain by vegeta-
| BILE matter.
Taking up the destination of the
surplus, the United Kingdom takes
about one-half, Germany about one
sixth, and France, the Netherlands
Belgium, Canada and Italy from to
| 5 per cent each.
| China Takes Million.
China in recent years takes a million
| dollars worth annually, and they &c
| to Russian China, Korea and Green
land and Iceland and other remote
portions of the earth. From 85 to 80
per cent Of the total go to Europe,
| to Z per cent to North America, and
| less than 2aperJ cent each to- Asia
South America, Africa and Oceanica. Il
a& The report also takes up the compel
tition Of this country in foreign mar.
kets, showing that this country fur
nishes 80 per cent Of the United King
dom's imports of farm products, thus
leading in these imports.
The United States has a long leat
over it's competitors as a purveyor o
meat and meat products and live ami
male, is likewise pre-eminently con
spicuous in the United Kingdoms i'm
ports of cereals and cotton, but Is ia
behind in dairy products
In German imports the Un1te'
States leads with % per cent in al
farm products, So per cent in cereals
furnishes barely three-quarters of
per cent of dairy products, contribute
the principal portion Of importe
maize, two-ffths Of the oilcake an
.. oilcake meal, but is exceeded in whea
flour supply by Austria Hungary, an
3 makes a bare showing in barley an
only little over 2 per cent in fruit.