276 THE BOOK OF WHEAT 



The Large Typical Mill of the Winter Wheat Belt. 1 A mill- 

 ing plant of five buildings and six grain storage tanks or silos, 

 having a storage capacity of 300,000 bushels and a daily mill- 

 ing capacity of 1,500 barrels, involves a capital investment of 

 about $200,000. The buildings include: The mill, 88 by 42 

 feet, and five stories high; the warehouse, 98 by 42 feet, and 

 three stories high; the power house, 68 by 72 feet, and 25 feet 

 high, with a tile smoke stack 125 feet high; and the grain ele- 

 vator, 48 by 42 feet, and 118 feet high. The steel tanks or 

 silos for storing the grain are each 30 by 60 feet. All of these 

 tanks are connected at the top with a gallery for delivering 

 the grain, and at the bottom with a conveyor belt for discharg- 

 ing the grain. Four thousand bushels of grain can be received 

 and discharged per hour. It is moved from car to elevator and 

 conveyors by means of steam shovels. The number of men re- 

 quired when the mill is running day and night consists of 3 of- 

 ficials, 5 office employees, and 35 other employees. 



When the grain is received in the mill, it is given one cleaning 

 over ordinary separators, and then stored. Before grinding, it 

 is given such additional separations as may be required. It 

 takes about one hour to complete the milling. The finished 

 product is either loaded into cars or stored in the warehouse, 

 and it is disposed of to the local and foreign trade. The aver- 

 age amount of wheat carried is about 200,000 bushels, and the 

 probable average amount of flour on hand is about 10,000 

 barrels. Mills located at interior country points depend largely 

 for their supply of wheat upon the deliveries of farmers and of 

 country grain merchants in contiguous territory. About 5 per 

 cent of the capital invested is devoted to products other than 

 those of wheat. About $25,000 of cash must be ready for im- 

 mediate requirements. Five to 10 per cent of the business is 

 done on credit. The average expenditure for salaries and 

 wages amounts to about $45,000 per year. Approximately 5 

 per cent of the original cost is annually charged to the de- 

 preciation of plant and equipment. 



One of the largest mills in the world is the "A" mill 

 of the Pillsbury-Washburn company of Minneapolis. The ordi- 

 nary capacity of this mill is 15,000 barrels of flour per day, but 



1 These data are furnished by the Kansas Milling Company, 

 Wichita, Kansas. 



