Evening star., 1925-01-15
COMPETITION HITS
U.S.FARMERS HARD
Canada and Australia Now
/: Lead in Wheat Exports.
; Corn Retains Prestige.
BY j. C. RoYLE.

Special Dispatch TO The Star.
= NEW YORK, January 15.-Foreign
competitors OF the American farmer
ehaVe become too apt pupils of Ameri
ssan methods for the peace of mind OF
sfhe agriculturists OF the United
States. This country, which led the
s@orld in wheat exports for so years
6as dropped to third place. Canada
and Australia led the United States In
TaGS-24, and did it through adoption
OF American machinery and methods
canada, Australia, Argentina and
South Africa all have great open
spaces where men are men" but
those countries now have cheaper
snen, equally good machinery and
snore efficient methods.
Faces New Situation,
"One cannot view the world food
production situation" sdia Arnold O.
Rerkes, member of the American So
riety of Agricultural Engineers, and
aormerly with the Department of
agriculture, today. without reach
ang the conclusion that the American
FARMER is facing new situation that
Syill force him to reshape his opera
Sions on more modern production
Zines or be left behind because OF
greater per man production in sec
tions of the world on four widely
separated continents" Mr.. Yerkes
bases his conclusion on reports of
Geld representatives of machinery
houses.
Production in those sections" he
Continued, lis cheaper because of
lower land prices, cheaper labor and
She use of larger and more econom-
Zeal farm machinery. Australia S
wheat crop is produced more efficient
j. than ours. Practically all of 1t is
harvested by the combined harvester
fhresher, or the stripper, at cost of
s cents a bushel, as compared with
j. to is cents here, where it is ham
Gled three or four times.
More Land Available.
About half the Argentine wheat
crop is harvested by this method and
sales OF such machinery in that coun-
try are several times as great as
total sales in the United States. West
ern Canada farmers are exceptional
~ efficient and are producing small
grains much cheaper than we. Cana
da will continue to turn over increas-
ing areas of virgin sod on her west
Srn prairies under stimulus of high
priced wheat in world markets. The
Same holds good for Argentina, since
both countries have been hard hit In
their cattle industries and are turn
dng to farming"
Exports Of American farm machfn-
cry have increased enormously since
the middle of 1928. In the last year
ihe value of exports of TRACTORS,
rvester-threshers, grain drills and
multi bottom ploys has advanced
pver 40 per cent according to gov
ernment figures. Machinery men pre-
dict that this trend will continue.
Less Competition in Corn.
. Australia and Canada are not likely
20 become serious competitors of this
country in growing corn, but that
grain already has become an impor-
tant crop in Argentina, where it is
raised almost entirely for export. The
Argentine farmers have cut labor re-
uuirements on this crop below those
Of the American corn belt. Mr.. Yerkes
declares that in that country the
two-plow cultivator is extensively
used and the South American grover
usually cultiyates three rows at
dime.
3 Most corn belt farmers would be
kurprised to learn" he added. that
one of the largest, if not the largest
born grower is a resident of South