The Daily Missoulian., 1914-12-11

an additional emergency appropriation
of several million dollars on account
of the recent outbreak of the foot and
mouth disease among cattle. He said
that if the interval between the last
and the present session of congress
had been longer. the department would
have been without sufficient funds to
meet the situation.
''The department" he said, has pur-
sued its former policy Of purchasing
diseased and exposed cattle at an ap-
praised value and of slaughtering them
and burying them. 1t has established
a very strict quarantine. The expense
of this task will be very great and it
will be necessary to ask congress for
an emergency appropria ton of several
millions of dollars. The interests at
stake are vast and Justify any reason
able expenditure
Standard Grain Grades.
The report sets forth the activities
standard grain grades, and in the ni-
tia1 administration of the new cotton
futures law which the secretary calls
the first definite systematic, legal APP
proach to the solution OF difficult
problems in this field of distribution"
Inc secretary recommends considera-
ton of legislation to establish a per-
missive warehousing system for grain
and cotton. He pointed out that the
warehouse facilities for cotton in the
south are not centraI.zco
If the warehouses now in exist
ence,' said the report were remodelcd
so as to comply with the underwriters
requirements, and We're bonded. and if
adequate business methods were
adopted, the financing of the cotton
crop would be materially improved.
Such a system would furnish relief in
times of emergency and would form a
useful part of the normal distributive
system. 1t is probable that a federal
law for a permissive warehousing sys-
tenn would stimulate this desirable de-
velopment'
While the production of grain gem
orally showed a great increase in the
crop of 1914. the report pointed out,
the production of corn showed no ad-
vance, and the meat production showed
a distinct decline In this connection
the secretary points out "lamentable
neglect of livestock production in the
SOUTH
The secretary's report includes a ta-
bic giving the census figures for 1899
and 1909, showing that in all products
except corn and meat animals there
has been a marked increase in pro-
duction during the 1O-year period.
Continuing, the report says:
I'VE know that the wheat crop of
1914 of approximately $4,000, 900
bushels is the greatest ever produced
in our history, and that the crops of
oats, barley, rye, potatoes, tobacco and
hay are unusually large. The cotton
crop. forecast in October at 15,S4O,O0O
bales, is the second largest. The apple
crop. estimated at 259,0OO,OO0 bushels
is the greatest ever harvested.
THE total production of six leading
cereals is estimated to have been
nearly 5000, 1000, 900 bushels, or about
42S.oO0.000 bushels in excess Of the
crop Of 1913 For the country as a
whole the crop yields per acre were
2S per cent better than the average
Tor the past 10 years. The average
yieid per acre of all the staple crops
was VA per cent greater than 1918, and.
except Tor corn, oats, and flaxseed,
greater than the 10-year average.
A General Decrease.
But after all our efforts, while there
is an increased diversification of apri-
culture and both a relative and abso-
lutte increase in important products,