The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-05-20
Crop Scare in Prospect

wheat fields, growing louder from day
to day. and breaking out finally into
drought reports and advices Of the i'm
mediate need of rain. There has been
Hood OF damage news, but good re-
ports have been coming also, and out of
it all determination of the exact posi-
ton of the crop has been difficult. The
grain trade had about forgotten that
there was such "a place as "bleeding
Kansas Indeed, that state has been
anything but dry in recent seasons, and
heavy losses Of winter wheat in a par
ticular year were due to excess Of
moisture and floods.
It is a long time since the drought
complaint has gone up, yet once the
whole southwest was considered likely
to suffer in any season, and cry for
rain was the expected thing. If it be
true that just so much precipitation and
no more and no less is received over
period of years and that unevenness
Of distribution alone makes drought or
flood In country, and that the south
west has been experiencing series of
years of good rains, rather. than any
permanent change in conditions, then
it would seem reasonable to look for a
dry year or two to- counterbalance.
However: this may be, it is certa in that
the winter wheat country, Kansas espe-
cially, has had less than the normal
rainfall for the past two weeks. 1t
does not follow that irreparable damage
has been done, and, indeed, best opin-
ion is that good rains coming soon will
put the country into splendid promise
, again. Various conflicting . interests
have been at work in the grain mar
kets, with the southwest situation as a
base of operation, and very confusing
and conflicting have, been the reports
One thing is certain, however,-the
| country is right upon the edge, of a
scare. Last night may be said to have
marked the turning point from appre-
hension* to alarm. The, weather bureau
said rain will come. If there is down
pour. sufficient to check the spread of
sensational reports it will be beneficial,
aside from it's greater benefit to the
land, but if no rain comes, or only show
ers fall, there is, every. likelihood that
the new week will open with regular
old-time Kansas drought scare, and a
bull wheat market in swing. - y =
There has been much. loose statement
about the situation. "A table appeared
yesterday giving comparisons of pre-
cipitation.s Normal rainfall for Kansas
City, for instance, for May, is 4.65
inches, and solfar this month there, has
been but 1876. AS the month is more
than half gone there is deficiency.
Other comparisons are even less, favor
able. For Wichita the normal for May
lis 4finches and the fall to, date .32, and
other important points line up as fol,
lows: Oklahoma City, 5.34 and Ito;
4 Springfield, Ill, 4.98 and 1.58; Spring.
1 field, Mo-, GOA and, 80; North Platte
Neb., 2.73 and SO; Omaha, 4S3 and .46;
while Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio
! both in winter wheat producing states
are also dry, with comparisons Of Ale
against 20, and 1926 against "a respec
lively" ~ =. =. -. .- =. ...-D-,
1 From these figures it is an easy mat
ter to make out a situation serious II
not alarming, yet there is some doubt
about the fairness; Of the comparisons
For several years past there has been
plenty Of rain, and in two seasons SUI
perabundance. One year here was ex
cess rainfall over all the country from
the Iowa line down. If five or six years
be taken and the average fall for that
period be considered as normal, then
I indeed, there is a deficiency, but com
parsons covering twenty-year period
would not make it so bad. Moreover
there is time yet for relief. Farmers
who see their crops going backward are
naturally prone to take the worst view
of it, and market manipulators who
move the price by exaggerated report
Of damage are numerous. .,E -,
: Thru all the recent reports of need OF
: rain, of wheat looking poor, of dust
storms and sand storms, the northwest
has refused to become alarmed, and un
til more direct evidence of serious CROP
" deterioration comes this will probably
be it's attitude. Chicago, st. Louis and
4 Kansas City, relatively, have all beer
stronger on the reports. Yet Mime
apolis is usually as quick to bull wheat
as any other market. If all markets
!, had been together higher prices would
, have been recorded, even tho unWar
ranted, but Minneapolis has been the
) sober market to date.
Some traders have argued that thl'
!, apathy on the part Of Minneapolis il
: due to lack of speculative sympathy
with the southwest, and number Of
! other reasons have. been advanced, al
: of them wrong.
i The fact is that Minneapolis is rattle,
: slow to bull wheat on drought reports
| because there was long, protractet
l dry spell in the northwest aofew year.
$ ago, on which wheat was bulled, but no
! with profit, for the market afterwar'
:, collapsed. The trade--here knows tina
: of all great influences that make or un
= make crops, of excess rain, flood, no
3 winds, rust, insect damage or othe
1 things, nothing is so uncertain a
E drought 1t isfnot only that providenc
e may. open the heavens at any time an
let down the rain, but it Is the wonder
full resistant and recuperatlve powe
of the wheat plant, which many observ
4 ers, even men experienced in agricul
-sEture, often, underestimate. Thus il
, 1900, when the spring wheat Of tn
northwest went along into June wit
scarcely any rain, when the earth wa
,s Lparched, when plants were blown GU
Of the dry soil by the roots and still g q
4 rain came, experienced men belleve'
! that, the northwest crop was gone, tina
! the country could not possibly prodnc
sO,OoO,0o0 or 9O,O0O,oo0 bushels: Ye
! after time rain came, and while tn
t crop was indeed ecut,,iby the drought
1 the final ,euttnrng was IL ,O0O,VtpO {
!. l40 600, GOO bushels, "a small crop, bu
Y by no means calamity. sssts
! So ST is with Kansas If the pre-