The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1925-01-20
NORTH DAKOTA FARM SYSTEM
MUST BE RE0RGANIZED TO
SAVE WHEAT, SAYS COULTER

with all, number of sources of in
come.
I'm 1923, due to large acreages,
our wheat had to be sold at world
prices and world prices were feed
prices rather than food prices. Our
United States wheat surplus went
on the world market. In other words,
wheat was competing with corn and
oats and barley as Il feed crop for
livestock. -
"If we in the Spring Wheat Belt
could have secured Is bushels per
acre instead Of 10 bushels during the
years 1920 192l-l922 and 1923 we
could still have maintained a pros
porous condition even with world
prices on the basis Of feed prices.
but with our yields of 1913 bushels
in the Spring Wheat Belt we could
not hope to exist on the world mar
ket.
I'VE pied for mercy, but there
was no mercy shown. We pied for
political relief, but found that con-
sumers of bread want cheap bread
and consumers are in the majority
and they were unwilling to remedy
a faulty, farm program by more
faulty economic or political program.
We pied for justice and we we're told
that we were getting justice, that
the fault was in our bad farming
system.
Surplus of 1923
"But in 1924, because of the ire
Il 4
companying feed prices for wheat
the farmers Of the world, but es-
pecially those of the United States,
cut their acreage in 1924 by about
million acres. North Dakota helped
in this.
"The reduction in acreage alone
reduced the total world crop about
III million bushels compared to
1923. Furthermore, in 1924 the yield
was about 6 bushels per acre under
a long period average, whereas in
1923 the yield was 6 bushel over a
long period average; this reduction
in yield Of 1.2 bushels comparing
1924 with 1923 causing further re-
duction of 254 million bushels. Then
there was the poor rye crop in Eur
ope and the poor corn crop in the
United States and the poor potato
crop in much Of Europe; all of these
calling for more wheat for human
food.
"Of course the result was the in
crease in price which we all so much
appreciate. For North Dakota we
were doubly grateful, because not
only were we in position to take ad-
vantage of the improved price but
fortunately 1924 was one of our
good crop years with so percent
above the average crop over Is
year period
"Shall North Dakota benefit from
this world experience of 1923 and
1924 or shall we in the Spring Wheat
Area go into the new year 1925
praying for low yield for the world
at large combined with high yield
for North Dakota? Surely any
thinking men will realize that this
lis too much to be hoped for more
than one year out of many. There
can be but one conclusion--that is
to change our farming system as
rapidly as possible.
Can Save Wheat
81 am not arguing for the farmers
Of North Dakota to abandon the pro-
duction of wheat. Wheat can be
saved, in fact it must be saved as
one of our greatest and most prof.
liable crops-if not the greatest in
our whole farming system.
"But in order to save wheat
number of things must be done. Not
only must we reorganize our farm
ing system. SO that wheat and other
small grain crops shall fit in with
cultivated crops, with hay land and
pastures, but also must improve our
wheat farming seed, better
varieties, better methods must be
used, and finally We must continue
to work out better system of mar
keting our wheat and other prod
ucts."