The Wahpeton times. [volume] (Wahpeton, Richland County, Dakota [N.D.]) 1879-1919, 1907-10-17
State News Of Interest
TO SHOW VALUE OF puRvm.

TO SHOW VALUE OF DURUM.
agricultural Department to Make In.
vestigation.
The department Of agriculture an
mounces in letter to the secretary Of
the Grand Forks Commercial club that
at present It is the intention Of the
special investigation shall be made in
the next few weeks in the price and
consumption of durum wheat, with
special reference to the incoming
crop.
In the letter, which was signed by
Wilbur L. Moore, acting secretary in
the absence of Secretary Wilson, he
admits that durum wheat. is being
given the worst of it in the markets
and furnishes some interesting state
ments which go to show that durum
wheat Is being milled and blended
with hard wheat flour and sold. end
in no case yet has there been any
case reported where the quality Of
the flour has been impaired.
The letter is in reply to one sent
out by the secretary of the Grand
Forks Commercial club, M. G. Bachel-
Ter, in which it was requested that
some action be taken in regard to the
discrimination against durum wheat
in the terminal markets.
The subject had been agitated by
the North Dakota Bankers associa-
ton, and there has been a bitter con-
troversy between Secretary McFadden
and the millers over the claim of Mr..
McFadden that durum wheat was
bought at low price, mixed with No.
1 hard and the product sold as No. l
hard -four.
The letter of Acting Secretary
Moore to Secretary Bachelor is as
follows:
II have the honor to acknowledge
the receipt Of your letter of Sept. 8,
concerning the consumption, price,
etc., OF durum wheat. will say first
that there is no doubt that compared
with other wheats, durum does not
receive the price that it should in
proportion to its value. either for
bread or other purposes. There are
of course, no accurate statistics yet
of duran wheat, but from such ad-
vices as We have we can learn that
there has been nearly twenty million
bushels consumed during the past
year, aside from that which has been
used for seed. This, of course, has all
been used in our own flour mills, ex-
cept the comparatively very small
amount used TO rstock food.
There is evidence coming to us
constantly Of the use of durum wheat
for bread -four, but which is in a ma
tority of instances blended with other
flours. An interesting thing about
this matter also is that in no case yet
reported has the durum flour constitu-
ent impaired the general quality of
the blend. It has been stated, how
ever, in certain cases that after the
failure Of the party to supply durunl
constituent the demand for his flour
has at once fallen very considerable,
and he has been obliged to take Il low
er price.
I'm connection with the present dis
cussion in price, it must be renem.
bered that new wheat always has
difficulty in establishing itself. and
cannot follow the ups and downs in
prices Of other wheat. Northern and
fife wheats at Minneapolis have be-
come SO popular after long use in
large mills that they often sell at an
inflated price; that is. price consid-
erably above the normal of what they
would bring on an expert basis. It is
sometimes true, therefore. that the
difference in price is because of an
abnormal price of Northern or fife in.
stead of the durum selling below nor.
NAL. Even now the price of No. 1
Northern would probably be more
nearly 81 on an export basis than the
present price of Sill to $1.lS, as du.
rum is selling at 80 cents at that
point. The actual difference in value
after all would be strictly but 8 cents,
about what 1t has been O nan average
for the past two or three years.
There is a similar discrimination
against hard winter wheat, though not
TO the same degree.
Il would say in closing that at pros.
ent it is the intention that a special
Investigation shall be made during the
next four weeks of the price and con.
sumption of durum wheat with rar:i.
cu'ar reference to the incoming CROP -
SENDING MONEY WEST.