The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-06-09
TAKES ABIG DROP
Wheat Condition in Kansas Not
Encouraging.
Mr. COburn's Report Places 1t
at Seventy Per Cent.
DECLINE is 10 POINTS.
Corn Also Backward Due to Dry
Weather.
Recent Rains Have Caused Some
improvement.
DECLINE is 10 POINTS.

According to the crop report issued
today by F. D. Coburn, which is prob
ably the last to be issued under Mr..
Coburn's direction for a long time, the
wheat conditions in Kansas are rather
discouraging at this time, the condl-
ton being 70.5, a decline of - points
since AprIfs report. Indications, are
therefore. that kansas will harvest
only three-fourths OF a full crop TINS
year.
Corn, while it is backward in the
northern counties owing TO dry wealth
er, has been helped materially by re-
cent rains. me condluon is 8, which
compares favorabiy with the past three
years. -
oats are in bad condition. and their
conoluon IS only % per cent
Inc report IN tuII IS as IolIoWs'
~ he Kansas board of agriculture
today issues a report bearing on me
present conditions of the more I'M
porLant crops growing in the state'
based on a thorough canvass Oh the
situation June 4, as conducted through
it's well organized and equally dis
tributed corps OF volunteer FARMER cor
respondents. Summarized, 1t says;
Winter WheaU.=Lack Of sufnclent
moisture has been the principal cause
of a general decline in the promise OF
the wheat since the boards April re
mort of seven weeks ago, when the
average condition for the whole was
1915 per cent; now, on the same area
it is 7O.5, a falling away of Is points
The fields of least promise are IN
portion of the state where condiuons
have been more or less continuously
lInfavorabIe for wheat since before
sowing time last fail. This especially
applies to twelve or more counties that
in April reported the larger areas
pIowed up or abandoned, ana some
what peculiarly embracing a territory
of adjoining counties, in extent about
so miles wide and 100 miles north ana
south composed of Phillips, Norton,
Decatur, Sheridan, Graham, ROCKS,
Ellis, Trego, Cove, Lane, Ness ana
Rush; likewise very similar conditions
seemed to prevail in the adjacent coun-
ties Of Osborne, Hodgeman and smith
The unfavorable situation in these M
teen counties remained unchanged I'M
til too late, and the yield OF wheat
there must be comparatively light. A
strikingly odd feature in this connec-
ton IS that Immediately outside of ana
surrounding the block of territory
these counties comprise the prospect al
once is in comparison nouceably i'm
proved. Eliminating the fifteen coun-
ties above named, and which report
an average condition of 1875 per cent
on their total area, the general aver
age for the states remaining area, ap-
acres. is n per cent Seventeen coun-
ties aggregating over one-half Of the
states wheat area report an average
condition of 1874 per cent. Calling
satisfactory situation 100, the hlghesL
average condition for any one county
is s5. in Sumner, which also has the
largest area in wheat, or 262,95 acres
Harper, Cowley, Butler and corey
also report average conditions OF 30 or
above In April seventeen counties re-
- -. - ~ ~. oh
AZ ranged between 80 and 100. AS
before the wheat in the counties of the
eastern half of the state promises best.
While too late to materially improve
the wheat prospect IN some countleS
and numerous localities, on the whole
the more or less general recent rains
benefited the wheat not little, Wen
nigh assuring its satisfactorily filling
where circumstances had previously
been favorable to growth and normal
"Corn-The total corn acreage for
the state is not yet known, but judging
from the 1905 assessors returns recelV-
ed from "a counties, including several
of those foremost in corn production, 1t
is doubtful if the total area viii be in
creased, or even equal that of last year
which was 6,799, T55 acres. Calling sat
isfactory growth and stand 100, the
general average condition for the state
present stand of corn is 49, as against
e6 in 1905 1876 in 1904, and 1873 in 1908,
at about the same dates. 1t IS notice
able that many of the higher county
averages are in the west, and in terri
tory not especially noted for corn areas
or productions OF the 10 counties re-
turning averages of 80 or better, nine
are in the western third OF the state,
and the two furthest east are the
central counties of Ottawa and Mitch
Ell The corn areas in the western
counties, however, where the best con-
ditions prevail are in the aggregate so
comparatively insignificant that their
influence is virtually lost on the general
average for the state, which is largely
fixed by the relatively few. For in
stance. the "a eastern counties having
probably one-half of the states corn
area, report an average on their total
acreage of 7S-but one point below the
average for the entire state The high
est condition reported is SO in Scott,
which likely has an area in corn not
to exceed 5000 acres; the lowest con-
dition is so, in Brown, where the nor
nal annual area approximates 125, 600
acres Since receipt of this infOrma-
ton however, rains in northeastern
counties as we'll as in other sections
of the state, must have materially i'm
uroved conditions for growth and culti-
Walton. The correspondents reports,
based on the situation existing June 4,
indicated that Brown, with Jackson and
Shawnee comprised a strip of country
where circumstances were quite unfa-
vorable for the prosperity Of corn, prin-
cipally owing to the late planting and
scant rainfall since Late planting,
however, seems to have been common
throughout the main corn counties.
Many of the more northern fields es-
pecially have only been recently planted
and much IS yet scarcely up. Dry soil
and cool weather over the greater poF-
ton Of this section have resulted in
the corn planted earlier making slow
growth and IN consequence it is small
and backward for the. time of year. Re-