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Market For Wheat

Market For Wheat image
Parent Issue
Day
15
Month
December
Year
1841
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Tho irge amount of wheat raised ihe past eeason in Michigan, ta low price, and the uncertainty of the demand for it in for eign markets, öliould induce those who are nterestcd in its cül'.ivaiion, to examine with care all the data that Can be known on these points. that they may be prepared to take jucli measures to advancu Jheir own interfsts as Uie facts of the case may rtquire. Wichijan coutaina 40,050,332 acres of land, of which one quarter has bcensold by thegüvernment, and is uow in the hands of iiiJiviiiuals. The oumher of inhabitantsetafccè nbout 4 and a half persons, or one fnmily, to eacti square müe of territory, or one nhabitant lo cach 48 acres dow sold. ■ The climato and soil are, perhaps, as well adopted to Ihe culiivation of -.vheat, as any port ion of the globe of equal extent. There is Uo IttUe barren or waste land, whilo the farms are usually cultivated by those who jwn thom. Add to ihis, that fróïn the na jture of tlio country, the great majority ofour population are} and for many yeais wül be, Éultivatora of the soil, and they must confcqaontly dopend orí the surplus products of their londs for ihe purchase of artic'e of uc , .cesfiity or comfort. Ahboiigh there ia reasou to believe that Htvoül wiH ultimately be a large item of expoitation from the State, yet therc is noth-N jo% in the nature of wool-growing esocnliaU 3y incompatible willi the raising of whcat, but, on tho contrary, the Iwo branches of businoss agree wtll with each other. If thenj otir population are und must be chieflyfarmers, and their principal surplus wheat, the pricb of tliat wheat will mako a great differencc in the amonnt of their annual in cornee; and in the comfort of their families. In 18S9,the quantity of wheat raieed in thia itate was 1,899,239 bushels beingd bushels to cach inhabitant, or 45 bushels to each family of five persons. In tho same year the amount of other groin averaged 28 l 2 bushels to each inhabitant. The price Öf wheat during" thefall of 1840 was quite low, nnd copsoq-ueatlj,' ihere was but little'mducemont to sow wkeat. Yet the surplus wheat f M+chigan for 184 1 is estimated at from (wototwo anda halfmillions of bushèls, nJ tt is evident that thut amonnt can be inifcfinkely increaeed in coming yeara,' if the farmers can oniy be assured of a steady raarket at a fair price. If we look in uponour immediaieneighbors, wo ahall 6nd tlicir capabilities for raising whent not inferior lo our ow n. The 6Ïx Northwestern States and Territonee, viz: Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wiskuntiiu and Iowa, conlaia 173 millions f acrca of land, btïng more than doublé tbe number of acres in England, Seotland, and li eland, and in 1630, with a population ' of on!y 12 1-2 oo each equare müe, tliey íaiscíl L5 million bushele of wheat, being mie third of the wliolo amount raised in lüc United S tales. Tliey also raised C7 mil ion buGliels of cain. bcsides 39 ïilüon bush els of other grain. What Ihn rnay not be pected, when these lands shall be corercd jyithadense ad thriving population? il is ohvious from these fact, tliala home tnnrkot for the cónsumption of all the wheat that the Northwest will raiee durinj com jn years, cannot rationally be expected.- And in looking abroad atnong foreign nalions lofind consumera, we naturally turn our atcntion to those countries wherc Ies9 gram is raieed than is waDtcd for iheir own conumption, and which, at the saine time, produce a surplus of urüclcs wtich may be ex.chïnged for grain. fiuch a country is England. The estimaied population of England, Scoiland, Wales ■end Ireland is twenty eight millions, being n average of 232 to each 6quaro mile.- About 60 per cent, of ihose isteiuls are cullivatüd, while about twenly per cont. of them are incapable of cultivation. Whenco in eeasrtna of scarcity, Britain is depettdant,to a graat extent n pon foreign imporlations fora iupply of breac' 6J.uffá for her staiving millions. ït is estimated that the nverago coneumption of wheat in England by each individual is 3 3-4 bushels per year. But a considerable part of tbe peoplo never use tolioal Viran AGsorge Thomfson recently 3tated at a public meeting in London, that six millions of Ihe British population did not taöte of vrbeaten bread from raouth to monlh, and year to year, and tbat great numbers of femates commenced a íife of prosútution simply to obtain a morselof bread. These millions are not, however, thus íc8titute because there no wheat roised in the wotld on which they might live, but beaueetbe corn Jaws of Britain are so framed that no foreign wheat can be imported, except when the pnco is very high, without paying such heavy duliea that ita price is augmenled beyond the ability of the poor to purchase. The duties riee in amount as the pnce of grain falls, and fall as the price oí" grain''rise8. The "general average," as it is ealled, is ohtained by ündiflg the avernge of Itll thegrain tö)d diog ibc preoeeding week,at 150 of the principal towns and markets; and then taking an average of thia wilt the ve laet preceding general averages; and th.s last 8 the average for that week, and is declarcd every Thursday at the Excheqs uer. If the general average is 73 shilhngs sterling, or upwards, the duty is is. or 22 cents per quarter of 8 bushels; ond vvhen the prico is 52. or under, the duty i9 34. 8d. per quarter, or five dollara and five cents on each barrel of flour. The lowest duty on a barrel of flour is 14 conts; the highest 5 dollars and 5 cents. The present price of ivlieat in England, is 63. perquaner, and 39s. per barrel of flour, equal to 9 duJIars, 42 cen:e. The duty on ètch barrel at the present price ia 3 dollars 45 inis, beinjf more than one half ofits va!uo in Nw Vork.fehuüid theEngüsh duties be taken off we see what au immense market would be openediorour Western flour. Let nol any be discouraged by tho consideration of the ex. pense of transportaron across the occan. A writer-in the Detroit Free Press infunns us that flour is transponed (coca New York to Liverpool.a distance of three thousand miles, for L2 cenls per barrel, 'wliile it coste to transport the same flour on the Central Raij Road from Ypsilanti to Det roit, & distanco of 30 miles, iwenty one cenls. A portion of the Western wheat is exported through Canada to the West Indies; but by the operation of the trcaiy of 1830, it is sent in Briiish buttoms, and every bushei of it pays a heavy tribute to the subjectsof her majesty. Mr. Gipdings, member of Congress from Olíio, has brought tha subject dislinctly before líí's constituents. He tells them that acr cording to the best daU that can be had, "the farmers of Oliio have paid to the sub jects of the Dritish Government during the past ycar, more than (gj-sx hundred thousand dollars, while colton, the produce of southern slave labor, commanded in the .Brilifih purts, a premium of at least seven per cent, by way pf exchange."LJ) " Mr. Giddinos saya furlher : "Tüus it becomes lite policy of the southern planter to depress the value of provisions and of Libor as far it can bo done. The lower he can purchase provisioua tó feed his alavés, whilu raising his cotton, the greater is the profit that lie inaUes upon his erop. In proportion as labor and provisione are rendered cheap, in ju&t such proportion are his profits increased. Here, then, is the dividnig point betweenthe North and ihe South. The interest of one is to encourage free labor, and of the other to depress it." He recommends thal measures be taken to send to Enrope one or more agents toresenl our and concert rucasures ! to promote Ihe admission to their poris of tho produce, ofour country. This should be done at the national expense, in the same manner that ogents have heretofore boen sent to Ihat country t -r tho promotion of Sotithern jnterests. VVliy should not tho suggestion bo carried out? Tlie cottuu and tobáceo interests have been looked ai'ier lor a long series of years; and the most persevtring efforts have been made by eeveral euccessive administratione i to secure a favorable marketin foreign j tne3 for those articles. What has ever been done for procuring an adequate n:ar!iet fur the wheat of the Northwest, whichis capable ofsupplyingthe dumand of any kiogdom on earth? What will bedone while we liave a slavvliolder at the helm of goverr.ment, surrounded by a cabinel depeiitíeut for their places on a band j of slaveholders whoseinteresta are dianietri caüy opposed Jo ours - unlcss we bestir our selves and present otir claims? Is it too much to eay that the slnveholdera would Iet the grain of the Michigan farmer rot in his barn, before they ould take any governmental measurea to secure hún a foreign market? Tiie present seema to be a favorable time to move on the subject, wlion the most tlis tinguished plnlanihropisis of England are ur ging on their government the neeessity of abolishing the corn laws in order to preserve the peopie from starvation, It is known to our readers that Mr. James Curtís, of Ohio is tecturing in England on the uapacity and willingness of this country to supply England with wheat, and every where he fínds a ready p.udience. His efforts should be seconded by those of au agent of the national govern ment, sent out for that express purpose. Wu would suggest to the editors of papers in this State, without distmetion of party, the propriety of seasonably bringing up the subject before the minda of our industnous farmers, that they may seo what their ínter ests really require, and be prepared to act upon tlieiü as circamstauce ai;iy reader ad visable.CtJThe whig papers gonerally are pullishing Gen. Scoti's letter announcing himeelf as a candidate for the Presidency. He goes into a discuaeion of mattere at length, and takea nearly the same ground with Mr. Clay. Sonie uf ihe leaders among the Whigs seem to be deliberating whetlur he will not be the more available as a candidate that Mr. Clay Perhaps thcy think it might not be ery popular with tlieir own party to put anoiher slavk ckeedeb. into the Presidential chair. _______________ Q?=All the colored voters of Boston are returned on the check lists as Colonels What bas induced ihe city autbontiea to pay HO much respect to thia despised class? According to the luts there are 160 of these colonels ia the city. . . - . . íjyTlie editor ofoneofthe leadingpolitïcal pre&aea in Illinois has become so far civilized, that he lias .concluded to advertise no more runaway negroeifor tho slaveholdrs.