Catholic Colonization in Minnesota: Revised EditionCatholic Colonization Bureau
History
Catholic Colonization in Minnesota: Revised Edition
Catholic Colonization Bureau
Agriculture -- Minnesota; Catholics -- Minnesota
The important position which Minnesota is destined, in the near future,
to assume as a great contributor to the supply of the most important
article of food used by the human family, is well put forward by Mr.
Pusey in the paper we have already quoted from. He says:
"But a more practical as well as serious aspect of the subject
pertains to those social problems connected with supplies of bread.
The grave significance of the question involved is not susceptible
of concealment, when the fact is considered, that while the
consumption of wheat, as the choice food of the human race, is
rapidly extending, the capacity of wheat-growing regions for its
production is rapidly diminishing."
We will now give some extracts from the report of the late J. B.
Philips, Commissioner of Statistics. We select from his report with
great satisfaction, because he has been very careful to make his
calculations rather under than over the truth.
We find the following under the head of
WHEAT, 1875.
The number of bushels of wheat gathered and threshed, according to the
returns reported to the Commissioner for the year 1875, was 28,769,736;
but there were 77,032 acres unreported, which at 17-1/2 bushels per
acre, (the general average,) would make a total of 30,079,300 bushels.
The number of acres reported as cultivated in wheat for 1875 was
1,764,109.
Illinois, with her large cultivated area, has until recently been the
largest wheat-raising State. In 1860 she produced 23,837,023 bushels,
and in 1870 30,128,405 bushels.
"In 1871," says one of her statisticians, "the United States produced
235,884,700 bushels of wheat, of which 27,115,000 are assigned to
Illinois, or about 700,000 bushels more than any other State."
In 1871 the product of the United States was 230,722,400 bushels, of
which Illinois had 25,216,000, being followed by Pennsylvania, Ohio,
Wisconsin and Iowa.
In 1870 Illinois produced 30,128,405. "But," says the same authority,
"we now (1870) find Iowa close alongside of us, her product being
29,435,692 bushels of wheat."
It is to be remarked that neither Minnesota nor California were deemed
worthy of notice in this rivalry of these older States. But in three
years from that date Minnesota, as well as Iowa, was "close alongside"
of Illinois, raising from 15 millions in 1870 to 22 millions in 1872,
and 26,402,485 in 1873. In 1874 the wheat product of Minnesota was
within a fraction of 24 millions. I give her yields in this table:
WHEAT YIELD FOR FOUR YEARS IN SUCCESSION.
Bushels. Average per acre.
1872 22,069,375 17.40
1873 26,402,485 17.04
1874 23,988,172 14.23
1875 30,059,300 17.05
I am not aware that any State ever did, or can, show a better record
than this for four successive years. I give below a few of the
MAXIMUM WHEAT PRODUCTS OF STATES.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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