The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1908-07-10
HIGH PRICE FOR CORN.

Elevator corn brought SO cents a
busbel in the local dealings at the Cham
7,ar of Commerce Monday. Corn on the
Track that is stock direct from the
farms brought here by rail, was worth
50 cents bushel.
These are the highest prices for corn
in the Baltimore market siuce le9l.
That wear was an abnormal one because
a corner had been created in corn III
Chicago and the price was run up on
the "shorts, -" those who had sold stock
they could not deliver and who were
compelled to pay those who owned the
actual stuff whatever price was demand
ed in order to fill their contracts.
With this exception corn has not
touched its present price since 1874,
which was drouth year with an unusu-
ally poor yield.
That the high prices are general was
indicated by the fact that Chicago Mon
day was we'll above II cents bushel for
good No. 2 corn. When the freight
charge of cents bushel, between the
western city and Baltimore, is added 1t
will be seen that the two trading cen
tiers are about On parity as regards
price.
The advance is due primarily to the
short crop of last season. 1t is explain
ed that the crop was planted late on
account of continuous wet weather and
that it kept growing we'll up into octo-
her, some of it into November. Then
the frost came before it could be gather
ed and prevented the grain from matur-
ng properly by checking the milk and
starck from hardening in the husk'
For this reason much of the early corn
sent here had to go through the drlers
at the Locust Point and Canton eleva-
tors to condition it for shipment. Even
this artificial means did not produce a
satisfactory product. The scarcity,
however, kept prices well above 90 cents
bushel during the crop year.
ANOTHER explanation for the high
price is the limited quantity of corn In
sight; that is, stock stored at interior
and at coast port elevators. This now
amounts to but 100000 bushels as
against nearly 5000, 900 bushels at the
same time last year.
This does not take into consideration
the corn still held by farmers. This
amount is thought to be quite large
The reason the existing high prices
have not tempted this stock on the mar
ket is because the farmers are too busy
with other crops to take the time to
haul it to transportation points. 1t was
said that if the producer had hundred
| bushels of corn in his barn, which, at
90 cents a bushel advance in price would
Weld him $500 in profit, he would still
be unwilling to spare his team and time
for hauling it.
Recent weather conditions have en-
abled the farmers to take care OF the
wheat and hay crops satisfactorily. Ii
couple of days were taken to market
few hundred bushels of corn, he might
lose double the amount in damage tc
other crops by inattention and prob,
able change in the weather.
1t is thought that the prevailing high
prices will have tendency to make the
farmers give more attention to the corn
crop now growing. Local dealers, W It'll
years of experience, believe that the
E.canning crop will bring big returns tc
the farmers. They do not, of course
anticipate continuance of the extreme
figures now prevailing, but they do LOOK
for IS cents and 20 cents a bushel fol
corn next year.
The reason given for this is that the
new crop will not be available for mar
ket until November at the earliest-that
| is five months off Meantime the de-
mand will readily absorb the small sup
ply in sight so that the country will be
practically bare of corn when the mex
| crop begins to move. The export Of
the cereal is constantly Increasing anC
| the demand ahead is thought to bt
equal to the absorption of any crol
which might be produced.