Gilpin observer., 1904-05-26
LATEST NEWS FROM WASHINGTON
our AarIeuItura! Exports.

The Department Of Agriculture has
issued q report on the Nations Farm
Supplies" prepared by George X
Holmes, chief of the division of for
eign markets.
It gives $4,000 .000, 900 as conserva-
tive estimate. of the value Of the farm
products of the country not fed to live
stock in 1903 on the basis Of the CEN
sus valuation. The value Of the ex-
ported farm products Of this country
| was, in 1903, $878, ,479. .451, and the high
est value reached during the last elev-
en- years was 1851, 1,628, ,331 in 1901. due
chiefly to cotton.
The value of the exported farm prod
ucts Of this country is concentrated
mostly in a few principal products. OE
| it Ia 1903 cotton constituted thirty-six
per cent, grain and grain products
twenty-five per cent, meat and meat
supplies and live animals twenty-four
per cent, these products equallins
over eighty-five per cent. Of the ex-
ports Of farm products last year.
Adding tobacco, whose exports
were valued at over $35,000,000, oil
cake and oil cake meal, $19,839,279;
fruits and nuts over $18,0O0,O0O, and
vegetable oils over $16,000,000, gives a
total Of eight classes Of products,
| each with an export value of over
| $10,000,000, that comprises almost
ninety-six per cent. of the entire farm
exports of 1903.
Within recent years, ending with
| 1903. the cotton exports have been be-
tween three and four billion pounds
and the exported fraction of the crop
has been between sixty-three and sew
enty-one per cent. for a long series OF
years. The fraction of the wheat crop
exported in the last dozen years has
been about thirty-one to forty-one per
cent. and the exported wheat and
wheat -four have yearly averaged
somewhat more than 2O0,00o,0O0 BUSH
els since 1897. before which period
for many years the quantity was usu-
ally 50.000,000 to 100.000,0O0 bushels
less.
Only small portion of the corn
crop is exported as corn, the highest
percentage, eleven per cent, being
for 1898. Notwithstanding the small,
percentage, the exported bushels reach
100,000,000 to 200.000,000.
The beef exports weighed 5000.
900 pounds, pork exports 551, ,000. 900.
lard exports weighed 490,000.000, oleo
oil exports 126.000.0O0 pounds and
tobacco 368,00O,00O.
Butter and cheese exports have de-
decidedly declined within two or three,
years.
The report says that within few
| years the results of an enormous ex-
tension of orchard planting will begin
to be shown, and some of these results
may be in much increased fruit sur
plus for export. The exports of ami
NAL matter are losing ground relative
ly with a corresponding gain by vege
table matter.
Taking up the destinations of the
surplus the report says the United
Kingdom takes aOout one half, yer
many about one-sixth and France, the
Netherlands, Belgium, Canada and
Italy from three to five per cent. each
China in recent years takes a mill
lion dollars worth annually and they
go to Russia, China, Korea, Greenland
and Iceland and other remote portions
Of the earth. From eighty-five to nine
ty per cent. of the total goes to
Europe, six to seven per cent. to North
America and less than two per cent
each to Asia, South America, Africa
and Oceanica.
The report also takes up the compe-
tition Of this country in foreign mar
kets, showing that this country fur
nishes thirty-two per cent. of the
United Kingdoms imports of farm
products. thus leading in these inn
ports.