774 



Agricultural Ixdkx Number. 



[Dec, 



Arrangements for paying the claims under the Corn Produc- 

 tion Acts in respect of wheat and oats of this year's crop are 

 Payment of now We ^ a( ^ vance( ^- With the exception 

 Corn Glaims °^ a sma ^ number of cases requiring 

 " special investigation, the majority of 

 growers whose claims; were received not later than the 18th July 

 have now been notified of the amount payable to them on 

 the 1st January, 1922, and the actual payable Orders will be 

 issued at the end of December. 



Claims made after the 18th July were accepted as an act of 

 grace, and on the understanding that payment on the 1st 

 January next could not be guaranteed, but every endeavour will 

 be made to make the payments as soon as possible. 



The Monthly 

 Agricultural 

 Index Number. 



The agricultural index number of the prices of agricultural 

 produce which is calculated each month by the Ministry of 

 Agriculture, shows that the prices at which 

 farm produce was marketed during October 

 in England and Wales were on the average 

 87 per cent, higher than the average prices 

 for the years 1911-13. This represents a fall of 15 points, as 

 compared with the level of prices ruling in the previous month. 

 In October last year the average level of these prices was no 

 less than 190 per cent, above the average of the three years 

 1911-13. The following table shows the figures for each month 

 since the beginning of 1919 : — 



Month 



Increase per cent, on the average of the 

 vears 1911-13. 



January ... 

 February ... 

 March 

 April 

 May 

 June 

 July 

 August 

 September 

 October 

 November... 

 December ... 



Wheat, barley, and oats all declined, and the average price 

 of oats was only 34 per cent, higher than in pre-war days. Live 

 stock, both fat and store, also fell in value, the decline being 

 least marked in the case of dairy cows, which were only slightly 

 lower in price in October than in September, while the average 

 market value of dairy cows in October was fully twice as high 



1919. 



1920. 



1921 



148 



213 



186 



150 



205 



172 



150 



199 



158 



153 



199 



141 



132 



169 



112 



128 



164 



102 



141 



174 



100 



138 



177 



116 



148 



181 



105 



166 



191 



87 



182 



197 





207 



194 





