River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1909-04-22
WILSON DENIES
WHEAT SHORTAGE
Secretary of Agriculture RapS
Patten for Price.
SAYS CORNER is TO BLAME
Declares Men Behind the Present
Movement Get Money from the
Consumers and Farmers Are
Not Benefited.

Not Benefited.
Washington. Apr. 19-"There is suf.
ficient wheat i'll the country at normal
prices to make bread for the Amer
lean up to the time when the new
crop comes in," declared Secretary of
Agriculture Wilson Saturday, anent
the Chicago wheat corner, land those
who aCtempt t. keep prices up at pres
ent rates expect to get their money
out of the common people-the con-
Sumers"
Replies to Criticisms.
Secretary Wilson's statement was
made in reply to criticisms of ]. A.
Patten of Chicago of the crop reports
of the department. of agriculture. Mr..
Patten not only discredited the depart
ment's estimate of the wheat crop, but
said that the supply of wheat was
scarcer than the governments esti-
mates show.
"The reporters of the department
of agriculture are farmers living on
farms and know, if anybody knows,
and have knowledge, if anybody has
knowledge, of the facts" declared the
secretary.
1--WE cannot whistle these men down
the wind. If we seek an honest class
of community and hesitate to take the
words of the American farmers, we
will not establish truth by going to the
gamblers.
1.-THE large majority of wheat has
left the hands of the farmers" con-
tinued the secretary. "A fictitious
price has been created. The farmers
are not beneficiaries of such condi-
tons. They will naturally plant more
wheat and next years crop is likely to
be abnormally large, when the gam
blers will not be in the market and
mischief will be done by disturbance
of the crop system. In the corner of
1898, when the price of wheat was
run up to $1.S5 the price was de-
pressed the following year below 80
cents, the result, undoubtedly, of the
upsetting of the equilibrium of normal
supply and demand"
Secretary Gives Reasons.
To show that scarcity of wheat
in this country is not the cause Of the
present abnormal increase in the
prices, Secretary Wilson points out
that the amount of wheat produced in
the calendar year 1908 was 665, 000,-
900 bushels, as compared with 634 ,000,-
900 bushels for the crop year 1907, ma
king 100000 bushels more for the
last crop year than was found the
year previous. After calling attention
to the departments report which in
Dictated that the amount of wheat on
farms on March 1 last was about 49,
100000 bushels, in round numbers, the
secretary states that an analysis of
the wheat movement after March
in past years indicates that the yearly
estimates of the percentage of the
crop on farms at that time has been
about five per cent. below the actual
percentage. He says that when wheat
becomes dear, as it is now as the re-
suit of the Chicago corner, people use
more corn than they do when wheat
is cheaper and declares that the peo-
pie who are responsible for the cor
ner will have to consider that less
wheat will be used while it remains at
an abnormally high price.
Ohio Bread Prices Raised.
Cincinnati, Apr 19.-At the close of
stormy meeting of the master bak-
ers of Cincinnati yesterday it was an
nounced that, as result of the rise in
the price of wheat, it had been decided
to dispense with the three and four
cent loaves of bread which have been
supplied from some bakeries, and that
from now on nothing but the standard
five-cent loaf will be supplied to the
trade.
H Urquhart of Springfield, presi-
dent of the Ohio State Master Bakers
association, urged the Cincinnati bak-
ers to take positive and decisive ac-
ton. Only five and ten-cent loaves
of bread will be on sale in Springfield
to-day, he said. James Harrington
Boyd of Toledo, in letter to the local
association, recited the duties under
the proposed new tariff on wheat and
flour, and asked the Cincinnati bakers
ito go after President Taft" on the
subject.
Resolutions which will be sent to
the Ohio senators and congressman
were adopted, alleging that recent
gambling in food products has raised
the price of -four to the master bakers;
has lowered the wages of journeymen
bakers and has raised the price of
bread to consumers.
Bakers associations and consumers
of bread are asked to send protests to
their congressman and request that
they assist in passing legislation which
will stop speculation in foodstuffs dur
ing short crop and all other years.
Chicago Bread to Cost More.
Chicago, Apr. 19.-Bread is certain
to advance to six cents loaf in Chi
cago this week, and it may even go
to seven cents. All that bakers are
waiting for is the decision Of the SUI
preme court on the city bread ordi-
ance, which they have succeeded in
defeating in the lower courts.
AdIai Stephenson's Brother Dies.