The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-07-20
GRAIN HARVEST OF SOUTH WILL REACH COLOSSAL FIGURES Will Probably Overmatch Any Other Section in Amount and Variety BILLION AND A HALF
 OF GRAIN IN SIGHT Edmonds' Figures Show Grain Will Have Value of Hundreds of
 Millions More Than
 Ever Before
By HOLLAND

ANfN lOlh, JtiJ iJ.-iCDttldi.j-
 H Edmonds, editor of the Manufacturers | Record of Baltimore, has obtained some authoritative statistics which after study and analysis reveal the extraordinary change in agriculture which Is now char acteristic of the southern states. If the increase in the diversity of crops which these figures show to have been secured within the past year as compared with earlier years is maintained 1t is not im- i probable that the southern states may match and perhaps overmateh any other section of the union in amount and va riety of food products.
 1 It has been known in the financial dis 1 trict in this city that considerable change in southern agriculture has been in pro- gress for the past year. When the re- cent report from the government statlsti- clans at Washington of it's estimate of the aggregate of the Indian corn harvest this year was published attention was immedi- ately called by those in the financial dis trict who observe these matters to the fact that the presumed falling off In the corn harvest in some of the corn belts of the country was to be more than made good by the increase of the harvest of Indiarn corn in the southern states For some years Louisiana has gained atten- ton by the revelation her farmers have made of their ability to produce great crops of Indian corn, which is also of very high quality.
 Advice was given last winter to the southern farmers by men of high author nf VEh M l nf federal reserve board al Washington is a type which if followed would result in less cotton, more corn and more food products of other kinds. Some of the bankers who were only too glad to partic- ipate when the so-caied cotton pool which was to be $lS5,0o0 GOO in all. was un- der organizat tion did not hesitate to say that they were persuaded thai the farmers in the south would be better. for the pres ent at last. if they so cultivated their soil that food products in greater amount were secured. even though that were at the expense of the cotton harNests For Uha tever may be the effect upon the cot ton markets of the European war there can be no demoralizing effect in the mar kets of the world so far as American food products are concerned
 MT. Edmonds' investigation justifies
 
 south, which will be harvested in the year 1915, will exceed in money value. by some hundreds of millions of dollars, the money value of the best cotton crops ever pro- duced in the south. That seems 10 he an extraordinary statement. But of its ac- curacy there can be no doubt. It points to extraordinary and highly beneficial changes so far as the relation of the ag- riculture of the entire United States to , general prosperity is concerned. Unless the harvest weather proves unfavorable there will be garnered in the southern states 1500, 00o,O00 bushels of grain. If this estimate is justified hy the actual harvest, then there will be a gain of nearly 300 0000, 900 bushels as compared with the grain harvested in the southern states last year. This estimate however, does not include the harvest of rice. which is likely to exceed last years harvest by as much as 6,000,o 900 bushels.
 The Rice Industry
 One of the most important of the va rous factors associated with the growth of ] the United States Is to be discovered in {, the fact that whereas not many years ago we were compelled to rely upon foreign markets for our supplies of sulphur and of rice, now the southern states. through their production of these commodities give the United States pre-eminence in these industries.
 1 MT. Edmonds' figures are based upon ] the total yield, as now estimated. of the agricultural land of the country for the year 1915, the estimate being 5,o000O0, 40 bushels If the estimate proves to be & correct one then the increase in bushels | ever the harvest of last year will be about | 500c00,00O. Of this total increase substan- | tially three-fiftns represents the increase | in grain production in the south. MT. ] Edmonds estimates that the farmers of