New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-12-07
TEN BILLIONS YIELDED
BY AMERICAN FARMERS
'VaIediCtory of Secretary wilson
Amazing Exposition of Agrl-
cultural Prosperity.
CABINET RECORD TRACED
After Sixteen Years of Service
Veteran Cabinet Head Says
Ruralist Is No Longer
a Joke.

tOhCs
Washington. Dec. 6.-After sixteen
years of service. a record in the Cabinet
Secretary Wilson submitted to-day 10
President Taft the last annual report he
win make as head of the Department. OF
Agriculture. The report contains sum-
mary Of the advance Of the country IN
agriculture during the Secretary's term OF
office. It says:
The record of sixteen years has been
written 1t begins with yearly Iaiih
production of $4,000. 100000 and ends VIII
1882. 600. 900. Sixteen years ago me laI-
mer was a joke of the caricatuIist, nov
he il like the stone that was reJectea Dy
the builder and has become the heao
stone of the corner. The tllIeis OF llo
soil were burdened with debts, put pros
perity followed and. grew with u mex
smpied speed Beginnings have been
made in a production per acre increasing
faster than the natural increase OF popI-
lation. There has been an upiiit VI Aei
couture and Of country He
Gain of 141 Per Cent.
During the last sixteen years the farmer
has steadily increased the wealth produc-.
lton year by year. with the exceptIon Vi
hers wealth production Increased l4l per
Most productive Of all agricultural years
i'm the country has been ISlI hs 80, "a, "a
has produced It's greatest annual dlVioeno.
THE sun and the rain and the IerlItS
,of the soil needed not the human cohtro-
iversies, but kept on WORKING IN co-op gIa
ltion with the farmers enorts 10 u, dare
Them. The prices at the farm are gen
ierally profitable and will continue the
prosperity that farmers have enjoyed IN IN
recent years. The total proouctloh "a
farm wealth is the highest yet rsacn .oi
by half billion dollars The gra5n1dn to S0a
flor 1912 is estimated to be $,oS2VV'Vv'
This is more than twice the value OF the
farm wealth in 1879
More than SlO5, 900, 900 is the grand
total OF farm wealth production the re-
port says. during the last sixteen years
IAN amount equal TO about three-quarters
iof the present national wealth.
The most effective move toward reduced
cost of living is the production OF greater
crops. says the Secretary, and this move
he declares. is due to the work OF the
Department Of Agriculture, the agricult-
iurol COLLEGES and experiment stations ana
10 the help Of the press in publishing
every movement to help the farmers The
nation. he adds, forgot its farmers IN the
general scheme of education OF past years.
and few philanthropists thought OF them
when giving for education, but they are
waking up and thinking for themselves
and Congress has been good 10 them.
The report goes on:
Crops of Experts Developed.
The great and growing movement car
rted on by the department for a8rlcult-
ural betterment has not been SUBSTANCES
solely by one man or by Few men; -
choice corps Of scholarly experts In tnelr
al linz If have
ing in membership, in breadth OF view,
and in the practical application OF their
efforts .,,.
The department is prepared to continue
and increase its public service. During
sixteen wears il has progressed from the
kindergarten through the primary, mlddie
and upper grades of development uhGI
now il has thousand tongues thdt SPS"n
with authority 90, ,,o,.ou
From a department with 2.4H employees
in 1897 and an Appropriation or VIEW
il has Increased to 1883 employees al t,e
beginning OF the present fiscal year, win
an appropriation this year OF almost
s25. 100000 Whereas, there are now oz,VOV
requests every week for department pun
ucations there were but 800 In 1897, ana
during this period 225. 600 900 copies have
been distributed. In soil investigation an
area of $4,000 square miles, equal TO that
of Germany, France, Great Brltslh' ire
land and Italy, has been covered
over a billion dollars is for the fourth
time the value OF the exports of farm
products. with cotton leading. They are
sufficient to pay the expenses OF the ma
tIonal government The billion-dollar
marx was first reached in 1907, when the
value of the agricultural exports amount
ed TO 8, o64, 10000. That amount has not
since been equalled, but the exports OF
1908 and 1911 exceeded a billion dollars In
value. and in 1912 the amount fell short
OF the record exports by only 100000.
The dairy cow is one OF the principal
PRODUCERS OF wealth on the farm, and the
/ value OF her products in 1912 is estimated
at about sS39,0Oo0OO, an amount which ex-
ceeds the value Of the cotton lint and is
nearly equal 70 the combined value Of lint
and seed. The wheat crop is worth only
three-fourths as much as the dairy prod
ucts.
Eggs Brought SS00,o0o,oo0.
The magnitude Of the poultry industry
Is set forth. An egg may be worth only
a cent and three-quarters, and yet l7oo,-
10000 dozen eggs are worth s35O,0oo,0D.
and these are the estimates for 1912. III
TO the value mentioned is added the value
Of the fowls raised, the products Of the
poultry industry on farms amount to
about s57o.0oO,ooO. This is nearly equal to
the value of the wheat crop and is more
than three-fourths Of the value OF the
cotton lint produced this year.
The animals sold from the farm and
the animals slaughtered on It together
number about III 10000 and the farm
value OF these animals Is estimated at
$3.50. 10000.
The total value OF the animal products
OF the farm in 1912 is estimated TO be
about 81, ss5. 10000. This 10 q larger value