Devils Lake weekly world. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1911-1914, 1911-07-21
KILLING THE WHEAT.

the crop "experts'' who have beer
trampling down the spring wheat, were
sustained in part by their predictions
of serious crop damage.
In the last two years the "experts
have hit the mark in part at least
because the crops have been greatly
damaged, but in ordinary years the SO
called ''experts'' are usually wrong. In
these years the crop 'cxperts' look
only for the poor yields and if they are
in the minority, the reporters are COM
pletelv discredited.
\ few weeks ago North Dakota was
going to raise 150.000.000 bushels. Now
there "won't be enough for seed.'
The crop reporter is particularly
pestiferous. He can kill more wheat
in one day with bugs than all the in
sects on the continent could eat in a
season. If YOU want to locate a new
bug or get next to a hitherto unheard
of branch of biology, one should find
a crop "expert'' and trail him to his
lair. When YOU find him you will see
that he is figuring on a big sheet of
paper. On the paper are many columns
of figures called by him statistics. They
show the head of the grain house how
handsomely he has earned his salary
and that his estimates were nearer
right than those of any other "expert"
or of the government.
Of course the government may be
approximately right but usually it is
radically wrong. Each expert, where
ever you find him, is always right.
There is nothing in a seasons wheat
crop that the expert cannot say he did
not predict, analyze and correctly
"dope OUT More wheat may have
been consumed than he permitted to be
grown, or there may have been less
wheat i'll the North American continent
than he allowed for home consumption,
but these discrepancies do not daunt
him. He can show he was right as
always.
There are crops-and crops. The
crop expert, however, is always wheat
man. Nowadays cotton is coming to
the fore as speculative commodity,
but wheat is still the great speculative
food stuff. There are two crops OF
wheat, the winter and the spring. This
Corn can be put in the ground, killed
and revived in three short months, but
the wheat crop can be slaughtered, re-
suscitated and murdered three or four
times. The crop expert is distinctly a
wheat man. He glances at corn, oats,
rye and barley in passing, but his game
is wheat.
Meyer yet did crop reporter 60 to
the country TO see how good wheat is.
He always wants tt see how bad it is.
It is not sensational for wheat to be
making good stand. People are anx-
ious only when wheat is deteriorating
So before the crop "eXpert' leaves
Chicago in early spring he knows
where the weak spots are. He knows
where the winter wheat was subjected
to alternate thawng and freezing. He
knows there was deficiency in moist
ure When the grain spectators have
begun to gamble on the possible con.
dition of winter wheat the crop ex.
pert packs his bag and hikes for the
southwest. From his Pullman window
he sees the Illinois and Missouri fields
He knows the train conductors well. He
sends out his first report. AS it is sent
over the wire to his Chicago employer
it reads:
"Our Mr.. S., well known crop expert
is the first in the field. He wires us
from Kansas City as follows: CAN mes
sages are in the present tense, never il
the last. One must be up to the min
ute" After seeing two states an
convinced that wheat has suffered from
cold weather. From car wind;,w
should say not enough snow has fallel
to protect it. Will enter Kansas, where
chief damage is, tomorrow. Saw part,
who was at Abilene last week. Says on,
field won't 60 five bushels to an acre
Conductor has been on this run TWEEN
ty-fve years. Says wheat never look
ed so poor.''
This "expert" finds the damage h
is after. From towns not on the Ran,
& McNally he sends sensational dam
age reports. From places where only
small amount of wheat is grown h
kills the crop Of seven counties. Fror
towns, the names of which are usual
mis-spelled, he spins out his tale Q
desoiation. Occasionally he finds som
wheat that can be saved-saved only b
miracle.
When the winter wheat has turne
cut fairly good yield and the Gro
experts doleful predictions are TO
gotten except by the people who trio
to bull wheat on his forecasts, the e:
pert hits the rail for the northwes
The eastern financial circles are begi
ming to wonder how the spring whe;
is coming along. They have heal