The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-02-24

question. possibly justifying embargo upon the export of American wheat.
 Through the department of agriculture at Washington a reply has been made which<while spoken of here as very grati- flying from one point of view. neverthe- less does not fully answer the implied in auiry made by Mayor Mitchell. In his communication to the President the mayor referred only to the danger there might be of a great shortage in the sup ply of wheat neded by the American people The reason this was done lies in the fact that the Americans are the great est consumers of wheat for food of any people in the world. They are so aecus- toned to the use of wheat flour food that they look upon it as necessary of life. It would be a hardship if the Amer ican people were compelled partially to give up the use of wheat or flour and to substitute for it some other grain. The mayor is understood to believe. as his food supply commission does, that if the United States were in dire extremity due to Che prevalence of a great war here, then the public would gladly make use of other
 
 we are not in such extremity. We have an ample supply of wheat sufficient to last until the harvest of next winter, provided it is carefully conserved
 In the late fall of last year. when it was possible to prepare statement set ting forth the volume and the money value of American agricultural products, the estimate was that in volume the sg- gregate exceeded any which has hereto fore been harvested in the United States, in quality 1t averaged as good as the best and its money value would be ap- proximately sl0.0oo,0oo. That estimate, of course, included the cotton crop. With cotton and other flores left out of con sideration, there still remains a volume of agricultural products chiefly available for food unsurpassed by any other record ever made. These products were large enough to feed the people of the United States and to provide considerable sur plus for export. The high price obtained for wheat recently will serve to increase the money value of the harvest, although this might be somewhat upset by the low price which cotton commanded for some weeks.
 However, not until the situation so far as our food supplies are concerned was revealed by the reply made a day or two ago by the agricultural department to Mayor Mitchel's letter did there begin to be thorough appreciation not only of the magnitude of our harvest. but of the fact that no matter what the demand upon us may be from foreign nations for food we have ample supply for our selves.
 The department of agriculture does not seem to be in accord with Mayor Mitch els food supply committee. and there are req sons for inferring that the mayor himself was gratified to learn from the department that there is less danger of shortage of wheat for the American people than he feared was the case when he wrote his letter to the President. The mayors food supply committee is of the opinior that=we cannot continue for many days to export wheat we have been exporting it in the past three or four months without creating a shortage in the American supply. The department of agriculture, however, is satisfied that we can continue to export average Of 100000 bushels of wheat day from March 1 until July 1 without endangering our own supply. Apparently the depart ment at Washington is persuaded that if weather conditions are favorable the wheat harvest next summer will be even greate: than was the phenomenal harvest of last year The farmers are sure to cultivate to the limit of their capacity all the wheat belts of the United States in the confidence that the European situa- tion for the next year will cause a s heavy dems nds to be made for American wheat as have been those of recent months. In fact, American farmers, whatever crops