826 



iiCIENCE 



[X. S. Vol. XXXII. No. 832 



increased confidence in its agriculture because 

 of improvements that are permeating the 

 whole country in consequence of a grand 

 movement sustained by the 2^ational Depart- 

 na.ent of Agriculture and the various state 

 agencies. 



Nothing short of omniscience can grasp 

 the value of the farm products of this year. 

 At no time in the world's history has a coun- 

 try produced farm products within one year 

 with a value reaching $8,926,000,000, which is 

 the value of the agricultural products of this 

 country for 1910. This amount is larger than 

 that of 1909 by $305,000,000, an amount of 

 increase over the preceding year- which is 

 small for the more recent years. 



The value of farm products from 1899 to 

 the present year has been progressive without 

 interruption. If the value of that census year 

 be regarded as 100, the value of the agricul- 

 tural products of 1900 was 106.4; that of 

 1901 was 112.7; that of 1902 was 119.1; that 

 of 1903 was 124.8; that of 1904 was 129.8; and 

 that of 1905 was 133. The year 1906 was an 

 extraordinary one for agriculture, both in 

 quantity and in value of production. The 

 value increased to 143.4, as compared with 100 

 representing 1899. In the nest year, 1907, the 

 value of agricultural products rose to 158.7; 

 in the next year, 1908, to 167.3; in 1909 to 

 182.8; and in 1910 to 189.2, or almost double 

 the value of the crops of the census year 

 eleven years preceding. During this period 

 of unexampled agricultural production, a 

 period of twelve years during which the farm- 

 ers of this country have steadily advanced in 

 prosperity, in wealth and in economic inde- 

 pendence, in intelligence and a knowledge of 

 agriculture, the total value of farm products 

 is $79,000,000,000. 



In the statement that follows concerning 

 the crop quantities and values for 1910, no 

 figures should be accepted as anticipating the 

 final estimates of this department to be made 

 later. Only approximations can be adopted, 

 such as could be made by any competent per- 

 son outside of this department. All values 

 are for products at the farm, unless otherwise 



stated, and in no item are values at the pro- 

 duce or commercial exchange. 



A national asset amounting to 3,000 million 

 bushels, worth 1,500 million dollars, is found 

 in the corn crop. Its production this year 

 was 3,121,381,000 bushels, a crop that exceeds 

 that of even the great agricultural year 1906. 

 It is greater than the average crop of the 

 preceding five years by 14 per cent. A no- 

 table feature of corn production this year is 

 the growing importance of the south. This 

 has been manifested in a small way in very 

 recent years, but now the increased magni- 

 tude of the crop in that section, both absolute 

 and relative to national production, forces 

 itself upon the attention. Let a comparison 

 be made with corn production in the south in 

 the census year 1889, or twenty-one years ago. 

 At that time the South Atlantic states pro- 

 duced only 6.2 per cent, of the national crop 

 of corn. This year they produced 9.1 per 

 cent., or an increase relatively of about one 

 half. The relative increase for the south cen- 

 tral states is even greater, being from 14.8 

 per' cent, of the national crop of 1889 to 23.4 

 per cent, in 1910. Then the south produced 

 hardly more than one fifth of the national 

 crop; now it produces one third. The power 

 that this increased corn production gives to 

 southern farmers with respect to independ- 

 ence, release from buying feeding stuffs, in 

 producing meat, and maintaining dairy and 

 other domestic animals is well understood. 



While the value of this com crop is below 

 that of 1909 and also of 1908, its amount be- 

 longs to stories of magic. It can hardly be 

 reckoned at less than $1,500,000,000, a sum 

 sufficient to cancel the interest-bearing debt 

 of the United States, buy aU of the gold and 

 silver mined in all of the countries of the 

 earth in 1909, and stUl leave to the farmers a 

 little pocket money. The corn crop is a na-. 

 tional asset in more than one sense. It is not 

 merely wealth in existence for the time being, 

 but it is an asset of perpetual recurrence. 

 Tear after year, throughout the ages, a stu- 

 pendous amount of corn, with incredible 

 value, can be produced. 



