The High Cost of Food. 315 



The domestic agricultural exports ending the fiscal year 

 June 30, 1915 (the first year of the European War), were 

 $1,470,000,000, an increase of 32 percent over those of the pre- 

 ceding year, or nearly 42 percent over the average of the five 

 years 1910-1914. The exports during the first year of the 

 European war, as regards food products, increased over the 

 preceding year on such products as meats and dairy products 

 from $146,000,000 to $220,000,000, wheat and wheat flour from 

 $142,000,000 to $428,000,000, corn and corn meal from $7,000,- 

 000 to $39,000,000. oats from $1,000,000 to $57,000,000 and 

 barley from $4,000,000 to $18,000,000. 



The exports of wheat and wheat flour represented about 37 

 percent of the crop of 1914, the usual exportation being less 

 than 20 percent. Farmers received an average of 79 cents a 

 bushel for 1913 crop and $1.01 for that of 1914 — an increase 

 of 22 cents a bushel, or an aggregate gain of approximately 

 $196,000,000. 



There is said by some investigators of the high cost of food 

 that there was a shortage of crops in this country during 1916, 

 and that this is in part due to the high cost of food for that 

 year. However that may be, government statistics given out 

 recently show that the farmers of this country evidently 

 boosted the prices. The value of corn raised in the United 

 States in 1915 was $1,722,000,000; in 1916 it was $2,295,000,- 

 000. The value of 1915 wheat crop w^as $942,000,000 ; in 1916 

 it was $1,025,000,000. The 1915 oat crop was 559 millions ; in 

 1916 it was $1,025,000,000. The 1915 barley crop was worth 

 118 millions of dollars; 1916 crop equalled 159 millions. The 

 1915 rye crop valued 45 millions ; 1916 crop, 57 millions. The 

 rice crop, 26 millions in 1915; in 1916, 37 millions. The 1915 

 potato crop was valued at 221 millions of dollars; 1916 crop, 

 417 millions. Sweet potatoes, 1915 crop, 46 millions; 1916 

 crop, 60 milions of dollars. Beans, valued at 26 millions in 

 1915, increased to 44 millions of dollars in 1916. 



Let us take a review of the ten years from 1890 to 1899, in- 

 clusive. In these years we are not hampered by excessive do- 

 mestic exports to war-ridden countries, nor do we have biased 

 prices due to so-called investigators. The deductions are 

 taken from the government statistics made before people clam- 

 ored for an investigation. The average crop production for 

 these ten years from 1890 to 1899 was in the case of wheat, for 



