ANNUAL REPORT—AGRICULTURE. 
15 
less it be Minnesota, whose proportion is 40.13 bushels per in¬ 
habitant, by the returns of 1870. 
If, on the other hand, it be borne in mind that since the 
year 1860 the number of acres annually sown to wheat has 
been very much greater than at that date, it will be apparent 
that the yield per acre has been proportionally less. 
The crop in 1870 not only suffered somewhat in many local¬ 
ities from the drouth in the early part of the season, but also 
from the rainy weather during the period of harvest, and per¬ 
haps still more from the protracted and damaging rains while 
in the shock and stack. This last-named source of loss is one 
from which too many of our farmers suffer almost yearly. 
There is certainly no necessity in most cases for having grain 
exposed for weeks in the shock after it is sufficiently cured to 
put it into the stack or mow; nor can there be any good ex¬ 
cuse for that slovenly manner of stacking which affords less 
than the most complete protection against the severest storms 
of rain that occur in this climate. As a general thing, how¬ 
ever, the crop of last year was saved in pretty good order, as 
will appear from the report by the Chamber of Commerce : 
Grades of receipts of Wheat from the last six crops. 
Crop of— 
No. 1, 
Per Cent 
No- 2. 
Per Cent 
No. 3- 
Per Cent 
Rejec'd 
Per C’t 
1865 .. 
77. 
15.6 
7.4 
1866 . 
10.8 
50.7 
28.8 
9.7 
1867 . 
60.2 
34.3 
4.8 
0.7 
1868 . 
37.3 
57.7 
3.9 
1.1 
I860 . 
34. 
56. 
9.3 
0.7 
1870 . 
42.7 
49.4 
7.8 
0.1 
We regret that we are without the figures to show the pro¬ 
portion of spring wheat to winter wheat. The change has 
been made from spring to winter in some localities within the 
past few years, and it is believed that, with early and proper 
seeding in the fall, so as to give time for a sufficient growth of 
the plant to protect itself during winter, winter wheat might 
be safely grown much more widely than at present. 
