AGRICULTURAL SURVEY OF IMT.OPK: GERMANY 19 
on feedstuffs to those applying to meat. The farmer obtained his 
foreign-grown feeding barley under a low-tariff schedule, while at 
the same time he was able to protect home-grown brewing barley 
by a higher schedule. This was possible because German barley, 
being a brewing type, was heavier; and it was possible, consequently, 
to differentiate on the basis of weight per measured bushel between 
feeding and brewing barley. 
SOME OF THE PRACTICAL EFFECTS OF SOIL, CLIMATE, AND TOPOGRAPHY UPON 
AGRICULTURE 
The southern regions of Germany which might have gained some 
agricultural advantage because of a more southern location lose this 
advantage of latitude because of the high altitude and mountainous 
character of the country. The northern and eastern sections oi 
Germany are for the most part sandy plains. In the summer the 
sky is commonly cloudy and the temperature cool. Thus, in general 
throughout Germany, physical conditions do not favor a highly 
productive agriculture, but a highly productive agriculture lias 
been developed in spite of inclement natural conditions by the 
application of intensive cultural methods and the extensive use of 
fertilizers. 
The sandy soil of Prussia is better adapted to rye than to wheat. 
Farmers aim to select their best fields for wheat, and still they have 
not been able to increase profitable wheat production in any way 
proportional to the increasing demand for white bread. The main 
reason for extensive rye production is not primarily a preference for 
rye bread but the better adaptation of soil and climate to this crop. 
The increasing industrial population before the war demanded wheat 
bread almost exclusively. Even in such mid-eastern cities as Berlin 
the wheat ration constituted 70 per cent of bread grains consumed. 
Although in the districts southwest of Prussia physical conditions 
are somewhat more favorable to wheat production, still the moun- 
tainous districts of the south are more adaptable to rye production. 
As a result Germany before the war produced considerably more 
rye than the population consumed, while wheat had to be imported 
in increasing quantities. 
On account of the humid climate, German bread grains do not 
produce a high-grade flour; for that reason it has been necessary 
that they be mixed with grain grown in drier countries. German 
cereals are so humid that the American system of elevators is unsuit- 
able. Even in large warehouses grain must be spread out rather 
thinly on floors to avoid deterioration. Largely on account of the 
humid climate, German barley is of a type suitable for beer making. 
Consequently, during pre-war days, the larger part of the home- 
produced barley was used for beer, and the drier Russian barley, high 
m protein, was imported for animal feeds. 
The climate of Germany is not warm enough for corn to ripen; on 
the other hand, the northern and eastern plains are excellently suited 
for potato production. The local uses of the potato crop in Germany 
in a way are similar to the uses to which the corn crop is put in the 
United States, for potatoes form the basis of pork production. When 
corn is very cheap it comes into competition with German potatoes. 
especially in the starch industry, in the production of ethyl alcohol, 
and feed for livestock. 
