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THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



REVIEW OE THE CORN TRADE 



DURING THE PAST MONTH. 



October has come and gone without the comple- 

 tion of harvest. Some white corn yet stands 

 out, and never will be ripened, and many beans 

 have yet to be gathered, and though this crop is 

 best reported as to abundance, very little will be 

 fit for market before next spring. Yet when the 

 coldness and wetness of the summer are considered, 

 we have reason to be very thankful that matters 

 are no worse. As time* advances, opinions more 

 and more unfavourable of the wheat crop gather 

 strength, and many farmers who doubted a defi- 

 ciency have now experienced the results upon the 

 corn's being thrashed and sent to market. First- 

 class millers find very little to suit their purpose, 

 and those who by the low prices were tempted to 

 make a trial have found their mistake in the diffi- 

 culty of selling their flour. All this has occasioned 

 a very extraordinary demand for old foreign for 

 mixing in large proportions, without which, this 

 season, good bread would have been scarce. The 

 price of fine wheat has, therefore, risen generally 

 about 3s. per qr., the rise taking jilace at the com- 

 mencement of the month, and since then being 

 fully sustained, notwithstanding very constant 

 liberal supplies from abroad. Indeed, if we look at 

 the weekly sales for a month we shall find the 

 quantity of English wheat sold in four weeks 

 270,396 qrs., against 514,962 qrs. for the same 

 time last year ; so that little more than half the 

 English has been used, and a proportionate in- 

 crease of foreign has, of course, been required. 

 Now, taking the towns returned to represent about 

 one-third of the entire consumption of England 

 and Wales, we should at the present rate make 

 the monthly decrease in English and increase in 

 foreign no less than 750,000 qrs. ; and as our average 

 consumption of foreign is fully 400,000 qrs. per 

 month, we have been probably going on at the rate 

 of one million of foreign per month in consequence 

 of the damp harvest. This cannot last, however, 

 through the winter, nor do we mean to suggest 

 that such a rate of supply will be required. Our 

 own wheat carefully managed will greatly improve, 

 but not much before March winds have passed 

 through the stacks ; so we may yet run short by 

 that time, as the London demand has lately about 

 doubled the supplies, though these have been large. 

 When the wants of Ireland are considered, in con- 

 sequence of the failure of the potato crop, it is 

 fair to calculate that she will require an import 

 of 3 1 milHon qrs. of maize or other corn, and 

 perhaps half as much more will be wanted on this 

 score for England. Beyond, however, what will 

 be wanted for potatoes, an unusual import will be 

 required to make good the deficiency of the new 

 crop of wheat, and the exhaustion of the stocks 

 of old, which up to the last season were good. 

 The partial failure of 1859 was at first not felt ; but 

 as there is now nothing to fall back upon, it seems 

 very probable that, to make good the deficiency 

 both in potatoes and wheat, fully ten million qrs. 



will be required, even though an allowance be made 

 of one month for the lateness of this harvest. 

 Seed wheat in such a season has of course been 

 scarce ; and as the land has become foul and wet, 

 sowing must necessarily be late, and the result 

 more uncertain. All old spring corn has been ad- 

 vancing ; very little new having yet appeared at 

 market, and that in such bad condition as to be of 

 little service. Much of the grain harvested in 

 Northern Europe has turned out inferior, and so 

 damp in some parts of Germany as to require the 

 kiln before shipping ; but Southern Russia, Egypt, 

 Italy, Spain, and the South of France have secured 

 their crops in fair condition, while America has 

 been highly favoured both in quantity and quality, 

 and our principal dependence must be on that 

 country and Russia. We still hope a sufficiency 

 will be forthcoming, though prices have every- 

 where somewhat advanced, notwithstanding the 

 efforts of the Times, &c., to pooh-pooh the striking 

 facts of the season. 



The following account shows the latest wheat 

 prices abroad : Fine quality at Paris was quoted 

 58s. per qr. ; at Nantes, red, 6l]bs. per bushel 

 to 53s. per qr. ; at Bordeaux, 54s. 6d. per qr.; Bel- 

 gian top jJquotations were 72s. 6d. per qr. at 

 Antwerp, new 63lbs. per bushel at Louvain, 

 67s. The best white at Rotterdam was 77s. 

 9d., red 74s. 6d. per qr. Quotations at Hambro' 

 for the best red new 63s., old to 68s. per qr. ; old 

 red at Groningen was the same price ; the 

 price of the best new at Cologne was 59s. 6d. per 

 qr. ; fine wheat at Danzig 64s. to 68s. per qr. ; 

 Russian wheat at Riga brought 56s. 6d. per qr. ; 

 rates at Odessa ranged from 40s. to 48s. per 

 qr. ; in the Danube from 35s. to 41s.; at San- 

 tander from 543. to 60s. per qr. The last New 

 York advices were buoyant, Chicago spring wheat 

 bringing 41s. per qr., and winter red 45s. ; white 

 Michigan 48s. 4d. to 51s. 8d. — all per qr. of 

 480lbs. 



The first Monday opened on a moderate supply 

 of English wheat, and a very liberal one from 

 abroad, half of which was from Russia. The near 

 counties in the course of the morning presented 

 but a scanty show, which was principally new, in a 

 damp state. Rain having prevailed during the 

 previous week, the few samples of old and dry new 

 obtained an advance of 3s. per qr., but parcels out 

 of condition were difficult to place at any advance. 

 There were many country buyers of foreign, who 

 took white qualities at 2s. per qr. more money, and 

 a still larger quantity of red at 3s. per qr. improve- 

 ment. Floating cargoes only brought Is. per qr. 

 advance. Though the supplies in the country were 

 small in consequence of harvest work, buyers in 

 most markets were not very eager purchasers, and 

 but few places equalled the London advance, in 

 consequence of the weather taking up fine after 

 Monday. Hull and Newcastle were scarcely dearer. 

 Stockton-on-Tees, Boston, Spalding, and Wolver- 



