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16 (998)
Survey c
COTTON WANTED.
According to the Wlall Street Journal
a well known cotton exporter estimate?
that the foreign market would this year
take all of 10,600,000 bales of our cotton
and that the United States would
secure for Itself not less than 6,600,000
bales?if It could get it. The indications
now are that 'both will ibe fully
satisfied. When asked how much cotton
the world's spindles would take for
the coming year under the present textile
outlook, he replied: "The spinning
demands of the world are expanding
steadily and are always calling for
larger and larger crops. Since 1901
the annual consumption of Great Britain
increased 13 1-2 per cent, the Continent
19.3 per cent, and the United
v States 25 per cent, and a little less than
22 3-10 per cent for India." The greatest
relative increase, as has been pointed
out by another cotton authority, is
that of the cotton States in America
of 48.9 per cent between 1901 and 1911.
Recent revision of opinions on the cotton
crop show that people familiar
with conditions are more open-minded
towards the possibility of a larger
American yield than any year prior to
1911. They are willing to talk of a
14,000,000 bale crop on condition of
frost as late as the third week in October
with favorable weather meanwhile,
but more probably 13,500,000
bales. The spinning world feels confident
under existing conditions of 1,750,000
bales from Egypt, because prospects
there are especiaflly asteuringj.
British India may not come up to the
3,082,000 bale yield of 1910, but should
do better than last season, when 2,514,000
bales were grown for milling consumption.
Russia will do well if it
grew 1,000,000 bales under restricted
acreage.
TT?rrr Qimci rrnuvow a
V-UJCI OAiU CJ r< A Q?i AVtyVUXI'la
"With nearly $100,000,000 in the caah
drawer of the Treaaurer, officials expressed
the belief that it will not he
necessary to Issue additional bonds for
the construction of the Panama Canal
for nearly a year. The purchase and
building of the water way to date has
cost the United Sbates, $276,487,000. Of
this amount, $137,886,000 has been paid
out of the general fund of the Treasury,
and the remainder from bond Issues.
Balancing lbs books for the fiscal
year Just closed, the Treasury Department
Issued a statement that the army
cost $150,182,000, against $160,130,000
the previous year; the navy, $135,666,000,
against $119,938,000, and pensions
$163,697,000, against $167,981,000. The
postal deficiency for the year, according
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while $22,616,000 -was paid out in interest
on 'the public debt
BACK-TO-THE-FARM BILL.
Before adjournment of Congress It is
likely that the House will pass the
Lever bill, providing for the establishment
of agricultural extension departments.
say political leaders, and if this
should be the case, the bill will be
brought up for passage in the Senate at
fViA onaalAn nov4 tpJ r tor T4 a nam a oar.
tain that within the next year or two
Confer ess is to take steps for the development
of agriculture, as a partial
-emedy for high prices and also with a
'ew to checking to some degree the
rush of country boys and young men
to the cities. The liever hill supplements
existing laws intended to encourage
agricultural colleges, and greatly
extends and enlarges the scope of those
laws, at the same time attaching to them
"ew "roviftifms. Ter thousand dollars a
year is to be given each state assenting
to the provisions of the proposed law,
THE PRESBYTERIj
>/ Curren
making an aggregate of $480,000 a year
if all the states come in. The additional
sum of $300,000 is appropriated for
the fiscal year 1914, which sum is to be
increased $300,000 a year for a period of
nine years, or until the total appropriation
comes up to $3,000,000. The United
States is one of the last of the great
nations to recognize the principle of
agricultural extension work. The principle
for years has been In operation fh
the British Empire, Austria, Bulgar.a,
Denmark, France, Hungary, Italy, Holland,
Germany, Russia and Belgium??n
fact in the whole of Europe. It has
worked wonders in Belgium. A quarter
o?f a century ago agriculture in that
country was languishing. The wise
men of the nation, seeking a remedy, established
a system of extension work in
agriculture, similar to that proposed in
the Lever bill, and the result has been
a revolution in agricultural methods in
that country, Belgium now being in the
front rank of nations where agriculture
is a success. Only to mention briefly
the results secured in Belgium in
venty-flve years, it may be said that
there has been an increase of 14 bushels
an acre in the yield of wheat, 13
bushels in the yield of rye, 32 bushels
in the yield of oats and 20 bushels in the
yield of winter barley. It is also significant,
as is pointed out by authorities
on agriculture, that the fanners of
Europe are producing two and a half
to three times as much per acre as
farmers in the United States, and this in
the face of the fact that the European
lands have been under cultivation for
many centuries and were perhaps originally
not so fertile as ours.
THE INSURANCE OCTOPUS.
Insurance companies in the United
States had assets at the close of 1911
amounting to $3,942,144,356. an increase
over 1910 of $248,896,028, it is announced
in the report of the New York state Insurance
department. Of the total increase
in the business in the United
States $115,933,292 was gained by New
York state companies. The liabilities,
excluding gross surplus and special
funds, amounted to $3,727,240,150, of
which $2,181,200,699 was ib New York
companies. The gross surplus and
special funds totaled $214,904,206, of
whflch $78,946,053 was in New York
state companies. The state Insurance
department reports the business in force
in the state and transacted in its boundaries
in 1911 by all life insurance firms
of New York and other states, including
industrial business, showed increases.
There were 6,111,581 policies in force,
representing $2,723,293,369 in Insurance.
Policies issued in the year numbered
938,486, insuring $392,342,650. The total
receipts for the department for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 1911,
were $604,585.22, and the expenditures
were 8301.673.49.
WAR IS MERE CHILDSPLAY.
The people of the United States produced
more whiskey and rum and smoked
more cigarettes during the fiscal
year of 1912 than ever before In the
history of the country, according to the
prellmlnaary annual report of Royal E.
Cabell, Comimlssloner of Internal Revenue,
submitted to Secretary MaoVeagh.
The consumption of whiskey was exceeded
only by the year 1907. but beer
nnnsing reu oir Dy a fnirostanuai percentage.
The unprecedented smoking
of 11,221,624,048 cigarettes, exceeding
the record of 1011 hy nearly 2,000,
000,0000, amazed treasury officials, who
were unable to account for the enormous
increase. Stored In warehouses
* N OF THE SOUTH
it Events
the country over are 2, 600, 786, 070
gallons of "whiskey and rum, the great*
est on record. In Kentucky alone are
stored 168,000,000 gallons, which exceeds
the amount of whiskey and rum
in the whole ITnl+eH fttntAa 11
ago. The record production # of these
intoxicants for 1912 was 188,000,000
gallons, or 13,000,000 gallons greater
than 1911. The consumption of whiskey
and rum for 1912 was 133,377,458
gallons, the nearest approach to the
record of 134,031,000 gallons in 1907.
The consumption of beer for 1912 was
only 62,108,733 barrels, a decrease of
over 1,108,000 barrel#, as compared
wtth 1911.
WHEN CHIEFS FALL OUT.
A coldness has arisen between tMr.
Roosevelt and Mr. Penrose of Pennsylvania,
one time close friends. Ajs a
result much light is being thrown on
the Republican corruption fund of 1904.
Last week Mr. Penrose delivered in
the United States Senate a speech in
which he asserted that $25,000, sent
to him by John D. Archbold of the
Standard Oil Company in 1904, was
part of a contribution of $125,000 made
by Mr. Archbold to the Republican National
campaign fund, $100,000 of which
amount, he said, went to the Republican
National Committee and |25,000 to
himself for use In the presidential compaign
in Pennsylvania,
Senator Penrose explained that he
was at the time the chairman of the
Republican state committee of Pennsylvania
and a member of the Republican
National Committeee, representing
that State, with headquarters at
Philadelphia.
Toward the end of the speech Senator
Penrose said that when discussion arose
in 1904 about filling the seat in the
Senate formerly held hy Senator Quay,
Mr. Flinn became a candidate for the
vacancy. He said that Mr. Flinn in
Philadelphia offered to Israel W. Durham.
a Republican leader in Pennsylvania,
$1,000,000, or even |2,000,000, to
favor his ambition, but the offer was
declined, and Mr. Flinn's candidacy was
not supported.
SOME PATENT FACTS.
It is quite likely that Congress, prior
to the ftdionrnTnAn-f' r?f nroaonl ooo
si on. will pass a Joint resolution, now
pending In the House, providing for the
thorough investigation of affairs in the
patent office, with a view of putting the
office In first class condition. The Investigation
is cordially invited by Secretary
Fisher of the interior department.
and by the commissioner of patents
and is to be made solely with a
view to making the office moderately
efficient. All the official reports show
that the present organization of the
patent office is inadequate to handle increasing
business properly, and that the
office is in need of a large building for
the safe housing of the valuable records
that have been accumulated in connection
with the more than 1,000,000 patents
which have been Issued since the
foundation of the government. For a
great many years the patent office has
been conducted without the charge of
a single cent against the federal treasury,
all its expenses being met by the
fees which come in from time to time.
The total fee for a patent is $?5, and It
is believed by the House Committee,
which has been giving the matter careful
attention, that a slight Increase in
that fee would pay for all the improve
ments that * committee of Investigation
would recommend, and perhaps also
pay for a new building to be used exclusively
for patent office purposes.
[ August 28, 1912
NOW FOB A HORSB LAV6H.
Commenting on the great grain yield
of the year the Wall Street Journal
says: Among all the crops of the season
oats Is certainly the moBt remarkable
in point of productivity. The unprecedented
yield of 1,207,000,000 bushels
Is 285,000,000 bushels larger than
that of last year, and 21,000,000 bigger
than the last previous record of 1910.
One of the good effects resulting from
it will be the restoration of faith of
farmers in their abilfty to produce a
first-class orop. The country has had
three of the kind within five years.
In the half decade closing with this
year oats crops averaged 1,021,000,000
bushels. Part of this is due to expan
slon in acreage, but the season In which
rain comes at the right time is more
than anything else at the bottom of
the bumper oats crop.
BRITISH EDUCATIONAL DEADLOCK.
The VIce-ChanoeHor of the University
of Leeds and well known authority on
educational matters, has made an Interesting
speech with regard to the
vexed question of religious instruction
In the iBritiih schools.
At first sight, he said, secular
education seemed the only way out
of the deadlock, but It was far more
likely that a scheme would eventimllv
"brought forward which, while apparently
giving equality of opportunity
to all kinds of religious teaching, .
would, by not only putting all religious
teaching outside school houses "but by
relieving the teachers of the regularstaff
from responsibility for giving It, virtualy
secularize the schools. Meanwhile,
he thought there were signs of renewed
interest In Bible study. Methods of religious
teaching being adjusted to the
needs of pupils of all ages and to the
difficulties which presented themselves to
thoughtful minds. Signs were not
wanting he said, of the growth of what
might be called the interdenominational
mind, and of a disposition toward unity
without any sacrifice of denominational
loyalty. This changed outlook would
in the end affect the tone of poitlical
discussion regarding the question of
religious teaching In elementary and
secondary schools, and there was reason
to hope that a way out of the difficulty
would be found without the necessity of
a tn flARiilar toachlnsr.
GERMANY WANTS PEACE.
For some years Great Britain has
been alarming herself and keeping her
people nervous with the scarecrow of
war with Germany. On the other hand
German authorities have declared that
their government harbored no belligerent
designs against Great Britain, but
was compelled to be prepared for defense
in case of attack by her great
commercial rival or from any other
source. A renewed assurance of good
will and desire for peace was lately
given out by Dr. Herman Paasche,
Vice-President of the German Reichstag,
while on an official visit to
Canada, fin discussing the relations between
his country and Great Britain be
said: "Germany wants only peace. We
seek to live at peace with Great Britain
and with the world. Out policy Is one
of 'defense' not 'defiance.' Germany will
never oe an a^reeoor. wr*"0"
menace to Rngland is only a myth. Belief
in Its existence has been encouraged
by Prance. The Increase of -the German
navy in recent years !b a natural evolution,
in harmony with the development
and expansion of the German empire.
We feel justified in protecting our a?a"
ports, lines of communication, and eon
borne commerce. War sometimes cornea
unheralded and we believe in being
prepared."