UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
I BULLETIN No. 999 J 
' * Contribution from the Bureau of Markets and Crop Estimates *' 
H. C. TAYLOR, Chief 
Washington, D. C. © August 26, 1921 
PRICES OF FARM PRODUCTS IN THE UNITED 
STATES. 
By G. F. Warren. 
CONTENTS. 
Page. ! Page. 
Rise and fall in prices during three war periods. 1 \ Comparison of farm prices with prices of some 
Monev and prices 5 I other basic commodities and with freight 
i rates 16 
Relation of weather to production 6 
Periods of over and under production 7 
Relation of wages and farm prices 10 
Wholesale prices of farm products during the 
Civil War and World War periods 12 
Prices paid to farmers 14 
Comparison of farm and wholesale prices 17 
Purchasing power of farm products 19 
Purchasing power per acre 20 
Effects on industry 22 
What can be done 22 
Summary 25 
Tables 27 
No price is high or low except by comparison. If the price of a 
product has been cut in half it does not mean that the product is 
necessarily cheap. One must know the general price level in order 
to make comparisons. 
The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor 
publishes an index number of wholesale prices each month. Prices 
of 328 commodities are obtained and by comparison with previous 
prices an index number showing the general price level is prepared. 
Index numbers of wholesale prices since 1791 are shown in Table I. 
(See also fig. 1.) 
By comparing prices with the general price level one can judge them 
fairly accurately. Compared with the five-year average before the 
war, wholesale prices in 1918 had doubled, or were represented by 200. 
Many commodities were higher and many lower than this figure would 
indicate. Any product that had not doubled in price was then rela- 
tively cheap. Any product that had more than doubled was rela- 
tively high priced. 
RISE AND FALL IN PRICES DURING THREE WAR PERIODS. 
A very great similarity in the rise and fall of prices is shown for 
War of 1812, Civil War, and World War periods. In each case the 
59143°— 21— Bull. 999 1 
