The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1925-09-17

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the domestic needs Of this country.
The only surplus wheat for export is
that raised in the Pacific Northwest.
The Minnesota mills will import nil
lions of bushels of Canadian wheat
this year and pay the duty on all of
it that goes into flour for domestic
use, altho the duty will be rebated
on that which goes into flour which
is exported; and the Cuban, Mexican
and Central American markets will
depend upon the Tilted States for
their flour supply.
We imported S373,361, 05S worth Of
sugar. Yet the greater number of
countries of continental Europe sup
ply their domestic needs for sugar
by raising beets, as this country does
in a small but increasing way. In
stead of decreasing production gem
orally, why not urge that greater
area of land by devoted to the pro-
duction of crops consumed at home
Just at present, considerable area
in Shagit county is now being taken
out of grain and put into beets.
We import nearly Sc, 10000 worth
of .walnuts and flberts, yet the fin
est filberts in the world are grown
right here in the state of Washing
ton in Clarke county, my own home,
and there are thousands of acres OF
land on which more could be grown
profitably. We even import over 81
100000 worth of peanuts, altho pea
nuts are an ordinary and profitable
crop on lands all over the South.
The importation Of $50, 425,812 worth
of flax seed does not mean that this
country could not readily supply It's
needs, if more farmers raised lax.
In fact they do furnish the larger
share of the needs of the oil mills,
but our consumption of linseed oil
has grown far beyond the supply Of
raw material which our flax seed
growers are producing.
We even import $43,761 ,O34 worth
of raw cotton, taking long and short
fiber stuff together. Southern Cali
fornia and Arizona could produce all
of the long fiber cotton now imported
from Egypt and would do so if pro-
tected by duty which, however, the
textile mills have successfully OPP
posed thus far.
We import over $14,O0O,OOO worth
of vegetable seeds from Europe; yet
the state of Washington is SO sit
uated, both with soil and climatic
conditions, that it could produce
about 80 per cent of all of the cab
bage seed grown in the United States
and, during the war, when importa-
ton from Europe was at standstlll,
it produced over 80 per cent Of all
of the turnip seed It is thru the
importation of these foreign seed,
also, that countless new weeds and
plant diseases have found Judgment
in this country.
This latter is also true of the nurs-
cry and greenhouse stock Of which
we import about 100000 worth
annually. Fortunately, this kind of
importation is being checked and one
menace to our fruit growing indus
try is at an end temporarily. We are
for the moment keeping out some
more insect pests, the importation
of which in the past has placed an
annual burden of millions of dollars
upon the farmers and fruit growers
of the United States.
As one Of the larger final items,
we import wool to the value of ST.
728, 622. Save in isolated cases, sheep
raising has ceased to be a farm in
dustry in the United States, yet it
is large, settled and valuable in
dustry in the United Kingdom as
well as in most countries of CONT
mental Europe. Sheep must of ne
cessity come back to the farms in