the actual prices of beef to the grower concealed a declining purchasing power 

 of the beef dollar brought about by the fact that beef prices did not really in- 

 crease as fast as the general inflation of other commodity prices. In fact, when 

 the break in prices came in 1920 the purchasing power of the beef dollar had 

 ■dropped to a point below that of any year since 1880, although beef was bring- 

 ing about eight cents at Chicago, in December, 1929, against less than four cents 

 in 1880. 



The years 1917, 1918 and 1919 were dry years; grazing conditions were poor 

 ^nd hay prices high. High prices were encouraging the contraction of consid- 

 ■erable debt to buy land, more livestock, and in some cases, feed. The year 1919 

 climaxed the dry period with cattle coming off ranges thin and in generally too 

 poor a condition to ship, at favorable prices. Hay was scarce and high priced 

 with the certainty of still higher prices even with normal winter weather. 



Some cattle were sold for what they brought that fall; some were shipped 

 out of the state to winter; the rest were kept for wintering in the state. The 

 total railroad movement out of the state for 1919 was the largest in the state's 

 history and in some cases car shortage alone prevented further shipments. How- 

 ever, those who retained their cattle were encouraged by the local values. It was 

 possible to borrow up to $20 per head on basis of stock that was priced from 

 $55 to $70. 



THE POST-WAR YEARS 



Then came the winter of 1919-20. Hay that was high priced at $30 per ton 

 during the preceding fall in extreme cases reached $60 per ton by late winter. 

 Horses that were not needed as work stock were turned loose on the range to 

 save scant feed supplies for cattle and sheep. Where the average loan on cattle 

 was $20 per head in the fall, the average amount loaned as a result of winter- 

 ing charges by spring had reached about $35 per head, according to estimates 

 of the Agricultural College. In 1920 the decline in cattle prices brought the 

 value of cattle itself to from $30 to $35 per head. Forced sales in 1920 in many 

 instances not only failed to realize the amount of indebtedness on cattle but ir 

 some cases of poor stock barely more than paid expenses to market of cattle and 

 attendants. 



"* Needless to say, by 1920 the cattle business as a whole was in critical shape. 

 For the next seven years prices were destined to range about a very low level. 

 It \vas that part of the cattle cycle when cattlemen were marketing everything 

 marketable to satisfy creditors. 



One apparent benefit of the experience of 1919-20 was to encourage a prac- 

 tice of holding larger hay reserves, accumulated during good seasons for the oc- 

 casional bad season or hard winter. 



During the period 1920 to 1925 some conditions affecting the cattle business 

 improved but prices continued relatively low and the cattleman was forced to 

 expedients that would beat the game of high production costs and low market 

 prices. The favorable factors, let it first be stated, were more favorable grazing 

 seasons and hay crops and a slight downward trend of taxes. 



LOW BUYING POWER 



The effect of low prices can best be shown by the following table of prices 

 of beef converted into indexes of what the dollar received for cattle and calves 

 would buy in terms of other commodities, first taking the average cattle prices 

 for the period 1909-1913 as 100 per cent: 



PURCHASING POWER OF BEEF COMPARED WITH OTHER MEAT ANIMALS 



Year Cattle Calves Sheep Lambs Hosrs 



1918 97 94 128 126 117 



1919 94 95 106 111 113 



1920 68 73 77 84 75 



1921 63 70 60 73 65 



1922 62 68 78 98 69 



1923 63 69 85 104 58 



1924 67 74 92 112 64 



1925 73 80 103 127 93 



1926 77 88 101 122 101 



1927 (October) 97 110 111 127 94 



1928 (October) 122 124 109 130 87 



From the foregoing table it will be seen that 1921, 1922 and 1923 were 

 critical years for cattlemen, but that a definite improvement was evidenced dur- 



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