OCEAN TRANSPORTATION. G7 



five hundred to ten thousand tons each. Once in the warehouse, 

 the farmer who is out of debt can afford to bide his time, and 

 the advance in prices. If he is in debt, warehouse expenses 

 only sink him deeper. One large commission house, that of 

 Isaac Friedlander, was at this time buying three fourths of the 

 grain exported, having agents scattered throughout the State, 

 making estimates of the crop and the supply of tonnage re 

 quired to move it, the rates at which it could be bought, etc., 

 etc. All the wheat sent to England is purchased prior to ar 

 rival. Houses dealing in wheat here make known to the grain 

 brokers in Liverpool all these facts, who, on behalf of the 

 grain merchant there, contract with our merchants for the pur 

 chase and delivery of grain in that city; which, from the year 

 1869 to 1872, had taken twenty-four million centals. During 

 this period, the Eastern States had taken of us about two mill 

 ion five hundred thousand centals. Australia, two thirds as 

 much; China, about seven hundred thousand; Peru, two hun 

 dred thousand ; the balance went to various points of the south 

 ern coast and islands. The flour export was also considerable; 

 taken together, up to July, 1872, it had been thirty-seven million 

 five hundred and fifty-nine thousand six hundred and twenty- 

 seven centals, of a value of upwards of seventy-one million 

 dollars. How much of this went to the former? 



Few were prepared to answer this question. Many could say, 

 that, practicing all reasonable economy, they could not make 

 days wages by raising wheat on their own lands, while the 

 parties handling the wheat were becoming rich. Knowing 

 these facts, they began to look into the reasons. The first 

 thing they learned was, that the whole business of marketing- 

 had been taken out of their hands; that they were ignorant of 

 a great many questions that affect legitimate trade; while to 

 cope with speculative trade, they were utterly incompetent. 

 The agents of production, commerce, and transportation, had 

 got the upper hand, and were likely to hold it, unless they 

 could free themselves by cooperation. 



Finding that England was likely to be their principal market 

 for many years, the wheat growers set themselves to learn 

 something about ocean transportation. They found that in 

 1866, one hundred and twelve vessels carried off the crop; 

 fifty -two were bound for Liverpool; twenty -four for Australia; 

 twenty for eastern ports, and sixteen for China. The next year 



