REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 11 



While the value of this corn crop is below that of 1909 and also of 

 1908, its amount belongs to stories of magic. It can hardly be 

 reckoned at less than $1,500,000,000, a sum sufficient to cancel the 

 interest-bearing debt of the United States, buy all of the gold and 

 silver mined in all of the countries of the earth in 1909, and still 

 leave to the farmers a little pocket money. 



The corn crop is a National asset in more than one sense. It is not 

 merely wealth in existence for the time being, but it is an asset of 

 perpetual recurrence. Year after year, throughout the ages, a stu- 

 pendous amount of corn, with incredible value, can be produced. 



The cotton crop, including seed, is worth this year only three-fifths 

 of the value of the corn crop; the wheat crop only two-fifths; the 

 hay crop, less than one-half. All of the cereals, except corn, are 

 together worth only three-fourths as much. The great allied iron 

 and steel industries had in the latest census year for wliich results 

 have been published, 1904, a production worth only 60 per cent of 

 the value of this year's corn crop. 



COTTON. 



For many years the cotton crop was fourth in value among the 

 crops, being exceeded usually by corn, wheat, and hay. But in those 

 days the price of cotton was very low. The crop of this year may be 

 worth in lint and seed a round $900,000,000 at the farm, or more 

 than the corn crop was worth in any year prior to 1901, or more 

 than the wheat or hay crop was ever worth. 



Apparently the cotton crop of this year, including seed, is worth 

 $129,000,000 more than the crop of last year, and that crop was far 

 above any previous one in value. During the last five years the 

 cotton crop had an average value of $685,000,000, so that the value 

 for this year is 13 per cent above the five-year average. 



The number of bales in this year's cotton crop w\\\ be determined 

 by the Bureau of Statistics of this Department in December, and at 

 the present writing no forecast of that estimate can be suggested. 

 From commercial sources, however, it is evident that the cotton 

 production of tliis year will be considerably short of being a record 

 breaker, although possibly it may be the fourth in order of magnitude 

 that this country has produced. 



The average cotton crop of the preceding five years had a weight 

 which perhaps is not far from most of the commercial estimates for 

 the crop of this year. 



HAY. 



Wheat has often contended with hay as to precedence in value 

 and the place in 1910 goes to hay, notwithstanding its short crop. 

 The value of the hay crop is about $720,000,000, an amount which 

 has been exceeded but once, and that in 1907, when the crop was 



