The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1935-09-19
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around Me a@N
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By Carter Field -
FAMOUS WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT

ashIngton.-Black rust in the
| Northwest, particularly In the Bakotas
and Minnesota, aud to q lesser extent
due to less raln-2In Montana, Is 60
| Ing to upset lot of AAA calculations
on wheat this year. For example. all
| government figures so far are very mis-
leading, In that they estimate bushels
| OF wheat, but take no account of the
TACT that due to the peculiar type of
ravaging black rust effects. the same
number Of bushels of wheat will pro-
duee less flour.
Conservative estimates In Minneapo-
| lis and st. Paul, fop/ example, are that
from 40 to so per)cent of the wheat
| crop expected In the whole Northwest
will be unmllable. That Is, It would
not, In the normal course of events, be
ground Into flour. This Is complicated
further by the processing taxes.
The processing tax Is based on the
bushel of wheat that goes into the
flour mill. Now bushel of wheat
which has been affected by black rust
will produce only a fraction of the
flour that a normal bushel Of wheat
would. In ordinary times, this would
be carefully calculated, and would be
reflected In much lower price paid
for that wheat by the miller. But the
| fact that the processing tax Is based
on the bushel Of wheat, not on the
barrel Of flour, upsets normal calcula-
tiens.
Black rust strIkes the wheat on one
side-always the southern side. If the
weather Is dry, 1t does not spread
around the kernel. II the weather Is
damp, 1t does. 1t makes a ring all
around, and as most OF the nourish-
ment comes up near the circumference
of the kernel, instead of through the
center, the food Of the kernel Is choked
off. This means that In a bushe of
rust-infected wheat. there Is an I'M
usually large percentage OF bran, and
an unusually small percentage which
can be ground into white flour.
Canada Also Hit
The duty on wheat from Canada IS
d. cents bushel. Canada also suf.
fered from black rust this year, but
Canada has a tremendous carrv-over-
considerably more than 100,000,0OO
bushels, which Is not affected by black
rust. Moreover. the government of
Canada has decided to lIquldate this
wheat which 1t has been holding In
much the same way that the United
States government held cotton, and as
the Brazilian government held coffee.
This hold-cver Canadian wheat, ex-
| perts say, can easily pay the a. cents
duty, and the processing tax. and still
be bargain for Minneapolis mIllers In
contrast with about one half of the
northwestern wheat This Is due to
the complication of the processing tax,
plus the fact that half or more Of the
northwestern wheat assays such
small proportion OF flour.
Predictions by experts are that at
least 50,0O0.OOO bushels of this hold
over Canadian wheat will be bought BY
United States mllers, and probably
nearer 100,OO0,0OO bushels.
The rust-infected wheat thus driven
out will have to be sold as cattle feed.
But there enters another complication.
There Is already In the Northwest a
great plenty of cattle feed. All forage
crops were good this year, due to the
very moisture which hurt the wheat.
Forage crops, due to their bulk as com
pared with their value, cannot be
hauled economically for long distances.
Which means that Ii they are to be
consumed at all, they must be con-
sHmed In the northwestern states.
From all Of which experts predict
that there will be tremendous buying
l@of young pigs for fattenng, and young
cattle, In the Dakotas Minnesota. and
Montana, this year, and that while the
production OF beef may not affect prices
before 1887. the price OF pork VIII be
forced down by next summer. no mat
ter what the AAA may do.
Atlantic-Culf Canal
Aside entirely from the question of