1891. The cause of the low condition is the continued 

 drought during the spring and early summer. 



The returns for barley show a slight falling off in con- 

 dition since last month, the general average being 83.8, 

 against 84.6 in August and 87.4 last year. 



The September average for buckwheat stands at 77.5, 

 against 88.8 last month and 89 last year. The present con- 

 dition is the lowest since 1881, when it stood at 72. 



The average condition of potatoes is 71.8, against 86 for 

 August, a decline of over 14 points. The September con- 

 dition has been lower in the last decade in but two instances, 

 1887 and 1890, while a loss of such magnitude in a single 

 month is clearly the result of very general adverse conditions. 

 Foremost of these is the drought which has prevailed gen- 

 erally over the country during the month. The beetle has 

 also been more destructive than usual, owing to the weakened 

 vitality of the plants, and excessive heat has caused consider- 

 able rust. The crop is undoubtedly cut short. The average 

 condition is lower now than any October condition in the last 

 dozen years, except 1887, 1890 and 1892. 



There h is been a decline of nearly 10 points in the con- 

 dition of tobacco, making the September condition 72.3, 

 which is lower than for several years past. The range is 

 from 54 in Ohio to 100 in Florida. The general cause of 

 the low condition is the long-continued drought which has 

 prevailed over an unusually large tract of country. Some 

 localities report damage from the tobacco worm. 



The almost unprecedented storm of August 28 and 29 

 spread disaster through those localities where good or abun- 

 dant crops of apples and peaches were promised, and the 

 percentages are much reduced in all sections. Much damage 

 was done to orchards by the uprooting and splitting of trees. 

 The product so far has been below the standard in quality, 

 owing to the excessive dry weather. Grapes continue to 

 promise well, the conditions are generally high in the dis- 

 tricts of commercial production, and but little damage from 

 rot is reported. 



The condition for cotton is reported as 73.4, a loss of 7 

 points. This is the lowest September condition since 1881, 

 when it stood at 70. In addition to unfavorable weather 



