for the last ten years. In New York and Pennsylvania, the 

 two principal buckwheat-producing States, the conditions 

 are 98 and 97, respectively. 



Tobacco has declined 3.2 points during the month, and is 

 now 6 points below the condition Sept. 1, 1896, and 4 

 points below the average condition for the last ten years. 



The average condition of potatoes has continued to fall, 

 and is now only 66.7, or 11.2 points lower than last month, 

 16.5 points lower than on Sept. 1, 1896, and 11.7 points 

 below the average for the last ten years. 



The average condition of cotton is 78.3, as compared 

 with 86.9 on August 1, a decrease of 8.6 points. This, 

 however, is higher by 14.1 points than the condition on 

 Sept. 1, 1896, and onl}' 0.9 point below the September 

 condition for the last ten years. 



As regards the apple crop, all the New England States, 

 with New York, Michigan, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri and 

 West Virginia, show a very marked decline. Kentucky 

 and Ohio show a slight decline, Virginia a marked improve- 

 ment, and North Carolina and Iowa a slight improvement. 



The grape reports are somewhat less favorable than a 

 month ago. Among eastern States, New Jersey reports its 

 crop as below the average, while Delaware and Maryland 

 report crops which are, respectively, 87 and 70 per cent of 

 the normal. In California the crop has been somewhat in- 

 jured by hot weather, and large quantities of table grapes 

 are being dried. 



In South Corolina the rice crop is now being harvested, 

 and in the main, reports are favorable, while in Louisiana a 

 fine crop is confidently expected in the irrigated portions of 

 the State. 



All the States in which clover seed is an important prod- 

 uct report an increased acreage. 



Reports as to the number of stock hogs for fattening show 

 a decrease of 9.2 per cent from that of last year. Nebraska 

 is the only State with 1,000,000 hogs or upward from which 

 an increase is reported, the gain for that State being 5 per 

 cent. The condition is shown to be almost uniformly good. 



In a review of the wheat situation the Statistician comes 

 to the conclusion that " although there has been some de- 



