ADDRESS. 



35 



in consequence of the Russian decline in unit consumption of 13-o per cent. 

 These reserves have been gradually drawn upon, but enough still re- 

 mained to obscure the fact that the 1895-6 harvest was 75,000,000 bushels, 

 and the 1896-7 harvest was 138,000,000 bushels below current needs. 



The following table' has been compiled from statistics carefully collected 

 by Mr. Davis and other observers. The prophetic figures are on the 

 assumption that population, unit consumption, and steady development 

 will increase during the next forty-three years as they have increased 

 since 1871 :— 



To supply these bread- eaters, the world inhabited by bread-eating 

 populations grew the following quantities of wheat in each of the desig- 

 nated five-year periods : — 



' I have taken the unit consumption including seed at 45 bushels and the yield 

 per acre at 12-7 bushels per annum, this being the average of the whole world. The 

 exact yield varies with the country in which wheat is grown, as shown Ijv the 

 following table :— 



Average Yield of Wheat 2>er Acre in — 



Poland . 



Canada . 



Argentina 



Italy 



United States (mean) 



India 



Russia in Europe . 



Algeria . 



South Australia 



Australasia . 



Bushels 



16-2 



15-5 



Kid 



121 



120 



'.1-2 



s-(; 



I '•> 



70 



0-8 



- The seed quota is kept constant at 0-6 bushel per unit per annum, but the unit 

 food requirements are found to increase in each five-yearly period. There has Leen a 

 steady increase of unit wheat requirements by reason of the decrease of unit con- 

 sumption of rye, maslin, spelt, and buckwheat. 



11 2 



