166 



COMMERCE, INTERNATIONAL. 



The following table gives the average an- 

 nual exports of wheat, wheat-flour, and maize 

 from the United States, in English cwts. : 



The exports from the close of the civil war 

 have been for the different years as follows : 



Converting the flour into its equivalent in 

 wheat, we find that while the export in the 

 years 1851-'55 averaged 7,515,000 cwt., in the 

 period 1811-15 it had risen to 31,341,000 cwt. 

 In the course of twenty-five years it had quad- 

 rupled. Far the largest proportion of the ex- 

 ports go to England, and they suffice nearly to 

 supply her demand for foreign wheat. As the 

 European demand at present governs the prices 

 of grain in America, so the supply of American 

 wheat since the extension of railroad commu- 

 nications in the western part of the United 

 States has a controlling influence on the prices 

 in Europe, where the crops are never so abun- 

 dant as to check the constant stream of Amer- 

 ican exports, as they may the fitful supplies 

 from Australia, India, and Egypt, and where 

 the farmers everywhere are complaining of the 

 ruinously low prices of American grain with 

 which they must compete. Thirty years ago, 

 from 1846 to 1850, nearly 32 per cent, of the 

 English imports came from Germany, and 

 nearly 20 per cent, from Russia, France fur- 

 nishing over 9 per cent., and the United States 

 only 6'2 per cent. In the next five years, 

 1851-'55, the imports from America had risen 

 to 11-6 per cent, of the whole supply, Ger- 

 many's share being 29 per cent., and Russia's 

 16 per cent. In the period from 1856 to 1860 

 America's proportion was 18 4 8 per cent., Ger- 

 many's 23^- per cent., and Russia's 19-8 per 

 cent. In the succeeding period, 1861-'65, the 

 imports from the United States advanced to 

 32-1 per cent., while those from Germany re- 

 mained at 23 per cent., and those from Russia 

 at 20 per cent. Under the unusual stimulus 

 to exportations furnished by the war, the 

 United States had then driven all the minor 



competitors out of the English market, in 

 which they have not been able since to effec- 

 tually assert themselves. In the following 

 period, 1866-'70, the causes of this abnormally 

 active exportation had ceased to operate, and 

 only 22*8 per cent, of the British imports were 

 derived from America, Russia sending 33 per 

 cent, and Germany 18 per cent. In the next 

 period, 1871-'75, the vast lengths of railroad 

 were completed, which link the pioneer of the 

 prairie more closely to the operative in an Eng- 

 lish factory than the groaning tenant farmer of 

 the northern shires, and which enabled America 

 to drive Germany out of the field, and even to 

 crowd upon the position of the wretchedly 

 housed and fed and lately enslaved peasantry 

 of Russia. In this last period the imports from 

 the United States into Great Britain were 40'9 

 per cent, of the whole, those from Russia 27'1 

 per cent., those from Germany 8*2 per cent. ; 

 while Canada furnished 7'5 per cent., and 

 small supplies first began to arrive from British 

 India and Australia. In 1876 the American 

 imports were 43 '5 per cent, of the total, the 

 Russian 19'7 per cent., the Indian 7'4 per cent., 

 and the Australian 6 per cent. In 1877 39'3 

 per cent, came from the United States, 20 per* 

 cent, from Russia, 11*3 per cent, from India. 

 All the maize exported from the United Statea 

 goes to England, where it has almost entirely 

 supplanted the products of Turkey and Moldo- 

 Wallachia, which between 1860 and 1870 sup- 

 plied 40 to 50 per cent, of the requirements of 

 Great Britain. This grain is not used in Great 

 Britain as human food except to a very limited 

 extent, but is fed to cattle and consumed in 

 the distillation of spirits. 



Germany and France, which could formerly 

 supply England from their surplus products of 

 wheat, have become grain-importing countries, 

 France on account of recent bad harvests, and 

 Germany perhaps permanently. Germany, 

 where rye is used principally for bread, has 

 not imported to any amount directly from the 

 United States, although she has received con- 

 siderable quantities of late from Holland and 

 Belgium, who have to import largely from 

 America to supply their own wants. France 

 with an average crop is able to supply her 

 own necessities. Her importations are very 

 variable, and are partly dependent on an ex- 

 tensive manufacturing and export trade in 

 flour. The values of the total imports and ex- 

 ports of wheat and flour for the last seven 

 years, given in millions of francs, were as fol- 

 lows: 1872, imports 147, exports 247; 1873, 

 imports 229, exports 175 ; 1874, imports 330, 

 exports 139; 1875, imports 138, exports 202; 

 1876, imports 239, exports 146 ; 1877, imports 

 206, exports 190 ; 1878, imports 577, exports 

 68. The failure of the crop in the South of 

 France in 1878 obliged the French dealers to 

 seek abroad for supplies to fill up the large 

 deficiency, estimated at 20 million hectolitres. 

 In the first part of the year Russia shipped 

 large quantities, but later the American wheat 



