OCR Text |
Show WHEAT AND THE ALLIANCE. Ill tho national convention of the Farmers' Far-mers' alliance now in session, a committee com-mittee secretly appointed two months ago to visit all the western wheat territory, ter-ritory, reported that tho prospective wheat crop is 10,000,000 bushels less than reported by the government and that the growing crop is in a very unpromising un-promising condition. This information, informa-tion, it is said, created much surprise in speculative circles. , , We do not know whether the surprise sur-prise in speculative circles is genuine or feigned, as in either case it is calculated calcu-lated to influence values, but wo do not attach too much importance to the report re-port of the alliance committee. Bo-cause Bo-cause a man is a farmer it does not necessarily follow that he is at tho same time a correct statistician. Neither is it probable that his judgment, intended for effect in a political body, is less prejudiced than that of the government authorities. Dodge and 1'orter. who have no interest except that of their own reputations as expert statisticians at stake. It is a very difficult matter to get at the true state of things as regards prospective pros-pective crops, because tho estimates arc largely based upon information from interested sources. Thus tho wheat crop for was reported as being 4110,000,0(10 bushels, when in reality it never exceeded 470,000,000, while on the other hand the crop of 1800 was nearer 420,000,000 bushels than 100,000,-000 100,000,-000 as stated. Thus it will be seen that even after the harvest is in, the figures regarding it are not always infallible; but we opine that the government with its vast resources lo collect information, can come nearer to the truth fhan a casual committee swinging round the circle for a month or two. Therefore, while not prepared to gainsay the report re-port to the alliance convention, we see no cause for surprise in "speculative circles" except of tho marketable kind. |