1904.] Agricultural Imports of Cereal Year. 401 



spreading finger-and-toe by means of stored turnips. Roots 

 with any suspicion of the taint of this disease should not be 

 consumed on tillage land, but should be carted on to permanent 

 pasture. Further information on this subject is contained in 

 Leaflet 77. 



AGRICULTURAL IMPORTS OF CEREAL YEAR. 



A comparison of the imports during the period known as 

 the cereal year (1st September to 31st August) has a special 

 significance only in the case of the grain crops which are 

 brought in to supplement the British harvest, but it may be 

 convenient to show, as in the table on the next page, the receipts 

 of other agricultural products during the same period. 



The steady growth in the purchases of wheat from abroad 

 has now been a marked characteristic of our Trade Returns for 

 some years, and the past season saw another material advance 

 on the quantities previously imported ; the total amounted to 

 93,102,000 cwt. as compared with 85,123,000 cwt. in 1902-% 

 and 74,703,000 cwt. in 190 1 -2, so that in the course of two 

 years there has been a growth of some i8| million cwt. The 

 countries contributing to the supply vary in importance ac- 

 cording to their harvest conditions, but up to the past season 

 the United States had for many years occupied the premier 

 position as a wheat grower for the British markets. In 1903-^ 

 however, the receipts from this American source fell to 12,897,000 

 cwt. compared with 32,035,000 cwt. in 1902-3, and 41,584,000 

 cwt. in 190 1-2, and represented only 14 per cent, of the total 

 supply, as against 56 per cent, in 190 1-2, and an even larger 

 proportion in some earlier years. The figures for the past. three- 

 seasons have been as follows : — 





In Thousands of Cwt. 





1903-4. 



1902-3. 



1 901—2. 



India ... ... 



23^44 



11,908 



7,428 



Russia 



19,331 



13,721 



3,061 



Argentina ... ... ..- ... 



17^90 



11,856 



4,973 



United Spates ... 



12,897 



32,035 



41,584 



Canada ... 



8,355 



11,471 



8,302 



K K 



