Fabulous

For the overwhelming majority of U.S. farmers the outlook was fabulously bright. The Agriculture Department reported mounting damage by drought to crops in the East Central states, but for most of the U.S. the weather had been near-perfect and yields were high. In Montana--as in Canada--last week a roaring wind-&-hail storm streaked for 100 miles through the southeastern counties, ripped barns to kindling, and flattened fields of wheat just as the dumfounded farmers were ready to thresh. Estimated loss: 2 1/2 million bushels of wheat.

But last week's official forecast was for the biggest wheat crop ever harvested, near-record yields of corn, oats, small grains, rice, peas, beans, vegetables, tobacco. Fruit crops were guesstimated from 10 to 15% greater than in 1943. For the third consecutive year the weather in the principal food-producing area for the United Nations had been miraculously favorable.

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