The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1910-02-08

Place.
RY THOMAS j. PENCE.
Washington. d. c.. Feb. I.-lhe
last half century a been a great IN
crease in the exports OF lafHh pio
ancts from the United States. From
an average OF $loo, 900, 900 a year IN
the fi.e-year perlou, 1ool-lo'o. LAS
agricu,tu1a exports rDat - an ~
erage of So75,tvo,000 a Year IN l'ol-
1865, and in two SUBSEQUENT lhui'io,
nal wears (1907 ana 19Vo) surpdSSeu
a billion GolIarS.
Not only nave such exports IN,
creased, but they have increased
much faster than the population. IN
1871 1866, the average value per
capita of the agricultural exports O.
the United States was $3.50. IN i9ol-
1865 it was S10.SS, and since 1900 II
has been still greater.
A report on the annual exports OF
farm products from the United States
from 1851 to 1908, inclusive. is about
to be published as Bulletin rs Of the
Bureau of Statistics, United States
Department of Agriculture. Aver
ages are given by five-vear PERIODS
so that It is possible to perceive the
general drift Of the trade.
The chief agricultural products ex-
ported in the past half century have
been O. cotton, ca grain and grain
products, and CD packing house pro-
ducts.
In 1S51-1S55, cotton made nearly
two-thirds of the value Of all aSri-
cultural export, but in 1911 1905,
between one-thrd and one-half only,
although the average n OK
ported increased from 1,0Z6,OOO
pounds in 1851 1855 to $4,000
pounds in 1871 1903, while in 1907,
$ha htuhaU rnnr A = I = ono nn,tndS
We're sent out. In the period 1o"1-
1876 the quantity Of cotton eXports
vas only about 5 per cent of that for
1so6-1ooo. Increases occurred at
terward. however, until in 1>z6-l3o0
the average quantity exported was
somen hat greater than in the period
just prior to the civil war. In guam
THY exported per capita, the five-year
period, 1o5o-1oo0, was highest; tnurt
were th-n exported AS pounds of
cotton Per capita. The nearest APP
proach to this was 44.5 pounds per
CAPITA in 1901 1905. Cotton seed
products, such as cotton seeu o., "a.
cahe, ana Oil cake meal nave assumed
c~ona4utraDle importance III the Export
trade OF the United States in recent
years, that is, beginning about 1870.
he value OF cotton seed prod acts ex-
eral years from s25,OO0.Co to s2O,-
COCOON a year, the highest being in
19u7. about $4,000 900.
Grain and it's products come sec
ond in order of value They in
creased from a yearly average OF
$4,000 900 in 1o,1 1855, to <194,-
100000 dollars in Ill 1905. and in
1918 were SIS, 0Go, coo. The chief
items are wheat Gncluding wheat
tiour}. corn and Oats. Exports of
these cereals curing 1854 ] 55 were
equivalent to about 20, bush
els OF grain annually, and fifty years
later to about $50, 900, 900 bushels
The period of largest grain exports
was 1S96-190o since which time there
mas been a decline. The per
capita exports of wheat and
flo = We're largest in t~S61-1SS5,
they were e~quivalen, u z.o
bushels Per capita; in 1SC1 1905 the
bushels, AMI since 1905 have been less
than 2 bushels. In corn the maxi
mum limit was reached in 1396-19OO.
when an average of "a bushels per
capita was exported. Then came a
tendency, the exports in the
next tlVe-year period being only / /
bushel per capita, and in su~cceedino
years falling below bushel. Com
pared with corn and wheat. exports
OF oats have been small. tie largesi
Average for any five-year period be-
ing 3S million bushels a year dlrino
1Ss6-19OO, or something more thar
one-h1th the corresponding exnorts Of
corn or of wheat, including flour.
exports of packing-house products
a thrd leading group have increased
much rapidly in the last half con
tnrS than cotton or cereals. The aver
age value of pa"king-house products
eSpor.ed In 1S51-1S55 was ten mil
- n uo',ars a year, and in 19O1-19O5
" was 1873 million dollars. while IN