536 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



DIVISION OF STATISTICAL AND HISTORICAL RESEARCH. 



The major part of the work of this division was under the direc- 

 tion of Frank Andrews until April 4. 1922, when the division was 

 reorfjanized and Dr. O. C. Stine was placed actively in charrre. 



Following the consolidation of the Bureau of Markets with the 

 Bureau of Crop Estimates, and in anticipation of the further con- 

 solidation of this bureau with the Office of Farm Management and 

 Farm Economics, careful consideration was given to the organization 

 of a division which would include the statistical and historical re- 

 search work of the entire bureau. 



This division as reorganized maintains files of all matter of per- 

 manent statistical value collected by the various divisions of the 

 bureau. These records include such data as statistics of the acre- 

 age, yield, and production of crops, number of live stock on farms, 

 farm prices of j^roducts, etc., formerly handled by the Division of 

 Crop Records in the Bureau of Crop Estimates ; statistics and other 

 historical data relative to the development of agriculture and the 

 economics of farming secured by the Office of Farm Management and 

 Farm Economics ; records of receipts, supplies, movements, and mar- 

 ket prices of farm products, including reports of cold-storage hold- 

 ings and similar data collected by the various divisions of the former 

 Bureau of Markets. 



An enormous mass of information relating to agricultural produc- 

 tion and distribution is collected and made public through the vari- 

 ous services of this bureau. These data are of current value and 

 have served chiefly as a guide to orderly marketing. Tlie files of 

 this material, however, now cover long periods of years, and these 

 figures, when tabulated and summarized, furnish bases for economic 

 studies covering shifts in agricultural enterprises, trends of produc- 

 tion and prices, and analyses of the fundamental factors affecting 

 agricultural conditions. 



FOREIGN COMPETITION AND DEMAND. 



This division maintains representatives in foreign countries who 

 collect information rein ting to foreign competition and demand, 

 maintain contacts with agricultural agencies in foreign countries, and 

 arrange for the securing of data relating to agricultural production 

 and conditions in these countries. 



Particular attention is being given to the utilization of material 

 now at hand, and to making arrangements to secure other informa- 

 tion which will make it possible to compile and publish complete 

 summaries covering the world supply of, and the demand for, agri- 

 cultural products. Such summaries will furnish an accurate guide 

 to American agricultural production. 



During the past year the division has maintained representatives 

 in Argentina, London, England, and in the Balkan countries who 

 have collected information relative to the agricultural competition 

 of foreign countries with the United States, and the demand for 

 American agricultural products in foreign countries. 



During a part of the year, a man has been stationed in England 

 to study the market for our pork and pork products. Recently he 

 has gone to Germany to collect information relative to the demand 



