454 Missouri Agricultural Eeport. 



990,000, while the Secretary of the Missouri State Board of Agriculture 

 reports its value at $29,608,414. The value of the Missouri oat crop is 

 placed by the National Government at $8,011,000, and by the State at 

 $7,500,794. The State's corn crop is figured by the National Govern- 

 ment to be worth $126,166,000, while the Missouri report places it at 

 $114,844,044. Deduct from the government figures corn's proportion- 

 ate part (about 90 per cent.) of the $14,000,000 flood loss, which the 

 State sustained during last spring and summer, and practically the 

 same figures result. The State and Government reports are also a])- 

 proximately the same as to the value of farm products. For instance, 

 the government, in giving the value of farm products in Missouri on 

 December 1, last, places corn at 59 cents per bushel, wheat at $1.05. 

 oats at 43 cents, barley at 68 cents, rye at 82 cents and potatoes at 67 

 cents, tobacco at 13 cents per pound, and hay at $8.30 per ton. The 

 Missouri State Board of Agriculture figures com at 58.1 cents per 

 bushel, wheat at $1.07, oats at 41 cents, barley at 65 cents, rye at 84 

 cents and potatoes at 64 cents, tobacco at 13 cents per pound and 

 timothy hay at $8.25 per ton. Comparisons, or rather parallels, like 

 these, tend to give increased confidence in both the Board's and the 

 Bureau's estimates. 



The word "estimates," in referring to the crop reports, is used 

 advisedly, for neither the State nor National agricultural departments 

 make any pretense of giving exact figures. Both departments do con- 

 tend, however, that the figures are more than guesses — that they repre- 

 sent the best, and finally the combined, judgment of himdreds of men 

 best qualified to know. For instance, when the Secretary'' of the Mis- 

 souri State Board of Agriculture places the acreage seeded to wheat 

 last fall at 1,923,887, it is not to be understood that the correspondents 

 in each county ascertained the actual number of acres sown on eacli 

 farm. 



Every ten years the National Government reports, following the 

 taking of the census, on the acreage of all crops. This report serves as 

 a valuable ''check" for the State Boards, and the percentage of in- 

 crease or decrease may easily be carried forward from year to yeai-. 

 In Missouri the acreage seeded to wheat in tlio fall of 1908 was esti- 

 mated at 1,878,139. Two months ago, when the blanks Avere sent out 

 for data from which to make up the crop report for December, 1909. 

 one question asked was, "What was the wheat acreage sown compared 

 with that sown last year?" The answers were given in terms of per 

 celnt. The replies from each county were averaged so as to get the es- 

 timated acreage for the county. Then the county replies from each 

 section were averaged for the sectional average. Finally the sum of 



