The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-12-08
AMERICAN FARMER
 IS PROSPEROUS.
Value Of Crops This Year Is
 Nearly Nine Billions
CORN CROP THE BIGGEST
Cotton, Hay and Wheat Take Next Rank In yalue-Corn Is Becoming n Very Important Product
 In tIie South

of the farm products of this year, is the statement of the Secretary of Agriculture in his annual report for 1910, published today At no time in the worlds his- tory has country produced farm prod ucts within one year with value reach ing S,926 0O0.000, which is the value of the agricultural products of this country for 191O The value of farm products from 1899 to the present year has been pro- gressive without interruption. If the value of the products of 1899 is placed at 100, the value for this year is 1S9 or almost double the value for the census year Il years ago. During this period of un- exampled agricultural production, period of 12 years, during which the farm DTS of this country have steadily ad- vanced in prosperity and wealth and in economic independence, in intelligence, and a knowledge of agriculture, the total value of farm products is $79, 900. .O0o'
 The corn crop of 3,121, ,3S1 ,000 bushels exceeds that of the record year 1906 and
 is greater than the average crop of the preceding five years by 14 per cent. While the value of this corn crop is below that of 1909 and also of 1908, it's amount be- longs to stories of magic. It can hardly be reckoned as less than $1,500,000,0OO, a sum sufficient to cancel the interest bearing debt of the United States, buy all of the gold and silver mined in all of the countries of the earth in 1909, and still leave to the farmers little pocket money
 The corn crop is a national asset in more than one sense. It is not merely wealth in existence for the time being, put 1t is an asset of perpetual recurrence. Year after year, throughout the ages, stupendous amount of corn with incred- ible value can be produced" All of the cereals except corn are to- gether worth only three-fourths as much as that crop The great allied iron and steel industries had, in the last cen sus year for which results have been published, 1904 a production worth only 60 per cent of the value of this years corn crop.
 The growing importance of the south in corn production is becoming conspicu- ous. In 1889 1t produced hardly more than one-ifth of the national crop; now 1t produces one-third.
 The cotton crop of this year may be NOi LII III llill anu SttQ dIOuIlQ 900 at the farm, or more than the corn crop was worth in any year prior to 19Ol. This value is 13 per cent above the | lifye-year average.
 The value of the hay crop is about S72O,- | 000,000, an amount which has been exceed ed but once, and that in 19O7 it is 13 per cent above the average of the preceding | five years
 Fortunately the wheat crop is divided | into lItlI md rir tboi l the two crops are subject to different cli-
 iRatic accidents, was the case this year. The production of spring and win ter wheat Is 691, 767,000 bushels, or sub | stantially the average of the preceding five years, whereas the value is about l S625, LOGO, or 7.6 per cent above the five year average.
 Easily the fifth crop in point of value | is oats, the value of which this year is | S3S0, ,000,000, or F per cent above the aver age for the five preceding years. In quan- tity the oats crop this year is magnifi- cent For the second time in the history of this country the crop exceeds 1000, ,00O,- GOO bushels, the precise standing at 1,096,- 3960OO bushels, or 22 per cent greater than the average of the five preceding years. Next iDlorder of value is the potato crop, which Hls been exceeded only in two or three former years. With the exception of the crop of 1909, which was in @ degree an overproduction the crop this year is the largest ever grown in this country; the preliminary estimate of the depart ment is BPS, 7S7, 900 bushels, or 8 per cent above the average of the preceding five years.
 Beet sugar production in 1910 will about equal that of 1909, say 512,000 short tons. It's factory value is reck- oned at BLOOD, 900, and the factory value of can sugar at about BPS 900, 900, loD a which has haan aypaadQ6 n four years.
 If prospects are realized, the entire sugar crop of factory production. beet and cane combinedxNfll be S59,000 short tons, or productfoff that has been ex- ceeded only one year, 1909. In factory value the two sugar crops will equal about $79,000,0 ,00o; and if to this be add ed the value of molasses, syrup, beet pulp, and sorghum and maple products the combined value is about S97,- 000 000
 The tobacco crop has slightly ex- ceeded the production of the record year, 1909. and its 967,15O,O0O pounds are 26 per cent above the average pro- duction of the five previous years. It's value will be about S95.000,o0o. or about the same as that of the crop of 1909, and fully s20,000 900 more than any tobacco crop antedating that year.
 Barley has hardly maintained the average production of the preceding five years, the crop of this year being 158, 3S,000 bushels, but its value, s97,- 100000, is 16 per cent above the five year average.
 Flaxseed production is far below that of recent years on account of a se- we're drouth, the preliminary estimate being 15,050,000- bushels, but the price of fiaxseed scared to $2.2s by Novem- Der l, so that the value of the entire crop is about $33,000, 900. an amount which was exceeded only In 1909.
 Rye is one of the steady crops, both in quantity and in value; the production of 32,08S,00 bushels this year being worth at the farm about $23 GOO.
 Rice production in 1910 remained sub stantially at the figure of 1909, or a lit- tie over GOO pounds of rough rice No year previous to 1909 produced as large a crop; it exceeds the average of the previous five year by 25 per cent The price of rice, however has declined so that the crop of this year is worth hardly $16,0O00 000, or per cent below the five-year average.
 The hop crop Is regarded as 13 per cent below the average of the previous five years and the smallest crop in dozen years or more but the farm price has improved over the average of the previous five years, so that the total value of the crop is per cent above that average. xa
 In no previous year has the produc- tion of the cereal crops equaled the grand total of 5,14os96,O00 bushels of the cereals of 1910. This is 13 per cent above the fve-year average. In value, however, the cereals of this year fall below that of 1908 and 1909, principally on account of the decline in the farm price of corn. This years value is $2, 7lo,O0o,0oo, or about