Evening star., 1961-07-17
Drought Spurs
Grain Prices,
HitsLiVestock

MINNEAPOLIS, July II
(AP).-Ranchers and farmers
in the Northern Great Plains
are watching the market pages
almost as closely as the weather
forecast while a drought, re-
lieved spottily, burns on.
The grain exchange and cat
tie markets will decide, for
many, just how bad a drought
this is.
1t centers in North Dakota,
where all SO counties have been
declared drought disaster areas,
radiating across Eastern Mon
tana, Northeastern Wyoming,
western and Northeastern
South Dakota, Northern Min
nesota and, weakly, into North
western Wisconsin.
A total of 145 counties in
these six States are getting
drought aid. In addition, two
counties in Idaho and nine in
Nevada are Drowned over and
large parts Of California are
suffering rain and water-table
problems.
The United States Weather
Bureau says heat and drynesS
extremes have not been as great
as in the duStbowl days of the
30s. and probably won't be.
Agricultural economists COM
mented that the relative small
ness of the area, compared with
the 30s, plus the Nations gen.
eral prosperity, have reduced
its impact.
But grasshoppers, in some
parts of Western North Da-
kota and Eastern Montana, are
nearly as bad as they were then
and the fire danger in Mime
sofas famed north woods may
even be worse.
Grain Price ZOoms
Drought reduced grains
bounced across the Minneapolis
Grain Exchange board fran
tically last week. Durum, the
priced hard wheat used in spa
ghetti and macaroni, jumped
up 10, then up 20 more and
finished the week 25 to 80 cents
a bushel higher than a week
before It is grown almost ex-
clusively in the drought area.
Flax and barley, also grown
chiefly in the drought area, re-
acted upward.
Farmers who can bring in
part crops of these three stand
to recoup much Of their other
losses If market rises continue.
Livestock growers watching
the cattle market have little
hope Of rises: their fear is a
sharp drop resulting from the
heavy marketing to pare down
herds to fit short feed supplies.
If prices remain firm. as they
generally have, growers can af-
ford to market in an orderly
manner. A big drop could force
the painful gamble: Race cat
tie to declining market or keep
them and hope rain will re-
pleniSh pastures to stretch out
expensive feed from outside.
An entomologist at North
Dakota State University said
the grasshopper threat is seri-
Gus and that the pests could
move out Of western concentra-
tionS across the State.
Pests Stir Worry
IF conditions are right, there
will be a lot of egg laying. II
am really worried about next
year." he said.
A Montana official estimated |
that one to two million acres
OF his State are infested with |
nome grown grasshoppers.
Northern Minnesota forests
are dry. Recent spotty rains
soon drained away in the sandy
soil. Ground vegetation is dead
or dying. said Don Wilson.
chief of the States forest fire
control.
There haven't been serious
fires but there could be. And
we're heading into a period
when we don't normally expect
much moisture" he said.
Earl H. Hansen of the Chip
pewa National Forest fire staff
said another two weeks of this
dry weather and we will have
to take extreme measures" He
said it is possible the forests
will have to be closed, as has
been done across the horder