Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-13

like three billion bushels Indeed, It is
often much less. Last year Canada raised
one hundred million bushels on four or five
mllllon acres. Among the lowest estimates
or the wheat lands are those which put
them at one hundred million acres. The land
mere produces almost one-third more than
IN the United States. 1t will average at least
twenty bushels per acre and this would
mean crop Of two billion bushels If the
wheat belt should all be cultivated This
is more than two-thirds of all the wheat
now raised by man. Our crop of last year
was only 6S4 100000 bushels, and it was the
second largest we have ever raised. l he
neVe the acreage was something like fifty
millions The average Canadian, however,
Will tell you that their possible wheat area
is far more than one hundred million acres,
and that Canada can let one-third of its
wheat lands lie idle and still control the
markets of the world.
In the Wheat Fields.
But come with me and take a look at this
mighty granary. We shall go on the Cana
dian Northern, one of the new railroads
Our companions are young men many
of whom are land seekers and settlers
Some have money with them and others
have their household effects on the way
There are colonist cars in front of the train
flled with emigrantS from Europe and
there are tourist sleepers containing farm
ers from the United States. Our route is
through a new region. The track was laid
t"o years ago, out all along 1t there are
now plowed fields interspersed with I'M
broken prairie. The time Is the autumn
The wheat has been harvested and great
straw stacks stand here and there over the
plain. Much of the grain is still in the
shock. 1t will be hauled direct to the
thresher, the wheat going almost straight
from the field to the markets.
everywhere men are blowing. Notice the
SOIL 1t shines like black velvet under the
sun. What mighty plows! Each is drawn
by six horses and long lines of them fol-
low one another over the fields. Here and
there, at long distances, steam plows may
be seen.
The threshing is still going on We can
see the smoke rising from the machines
scattered over the landscape. The chaff
flies out like smoke from the end of the
stack. Every railroad station has long
teams of wheat wagons. The beds of the
wagons are filled to the top and the grain is
unloaded at the station elevators. In some
places the wagons drive up on platforms
and unload direct into the cars.
Pioneer Settlements.
The towns are new. And such towns!
They look ragged and most of the buildings
seem to be knocked up with hatchet and
saw. The average settlement consists of
one street of irregular one and two story
buildings facing the railroad A wheat eie-
vator stands near the track, and often the
elevator and railroad station are the only
buildings. The sound of the hammer and
saw is everywhere heard. Nothing is old
You can smell the paint on the houses and
the aroma of the pine boardwalks which
run along the street.
Now we are again off in the country.
Notice the straw stacks which run in long
rows through that hundred-acre field. Each
has about ten burrows plowed around It
within one hundred feet of its edges and an
>other ring of burrows outside, the strip be-
tween being burned over That black cir
Gle is to ward off the fire god. There are
9irin firac y1I1ip ,,rrI,
the stubble, and We're it not for this fire
proof carpet the wheat stacks would burn.
Those stacks are yet unthreshed. Each of
them is a little gold mine which has only
to be passed through the threshing machine
smelter to be turned into bullion. Each con-
tains hundreds of bushels of wheat, and the
smallest of the stacks is worth two hun
dred dollars.
Speaking of fire, as nightfall approaches.
the red flames are to be seen on each side
the railroad. They come from the stacks
of newly threshed straw, which are burnt
on almost all these Canadian farms. In
New York Chicago such straw would
bring five more dollars per ton. Our
farmer would save it for stock feed or fer
tiljzer. Here it goes to waste and the marks