The Minnesota pioneer. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. Territory) 1849-1855, 1852-05-13
Agriculture in MINES sofa.

wa,er-powers anl yoke rivers, in the service of
man, but can create boundess wealth. Labor is
wealth; and without labor, capital is nothing.
Capital is only VI lulble for the parchase Of labor
Even gold, if we could Dc it mp Ike potatoes,
would neither feed nor c.othe us, unless could
find those no willing TO barter industry for
il, or the fruits Of industry. Production enrches;
Speculation enhances the nominal but not the in
trinsc value Of things. Possibly NAV enrich
himself by speculation, by im7overishing another;
Just as one gambler Was tne money Of another.
There Will be no more none, between them at
the end of The game thar at the beginning; ana
there will be less, by the amount expended by
them for board and refreshments while playing
Production Is the thing. lie y 10 raises 4 bushel
of potatoes, i 4 benelactor. he adds something
10 our product. IL creates something lie who
raises lot Of taruips, is producer; but he who
raises the price Of a town lot, IS no producer.
There IS ploniy Of capital here 10 stimulate III
dusi.y Labor is very dear and vel paid IN Min
ncsotd. The only scarcity, is the scarcity of men,
who viii actuaNg t,he h9l( Of icort ia good
euracst AMI be content with liberal wages There
IS waste industry aal unemployed muscle enough,
at THIS moment, in st. Paul and ST. Anthony, if
wisely and energctically cxeFtcd in agriculture
here, 10 produce surplus Of provisions for the
Territory and leave The bl lance Of trade abroad,
IN our favor. There Is land cnoagh, as good land
as The Almighty ever finished up, Wing uacal;i-
waited, between s.. Pau! and 81 Anthony.
to proIitibiy employ every man and boy, Ca
pablo Of manual labor, in tits Territory. With
i conscript Of iaburers, such IS could b. beaeG-
cialiy drafted from the two towns, and employ ed
SIX hours each day, IN cutivatins the waste lands
of The Reserve, that whole reg ION might be like
garden, waving with iuxuriance aud yroaning
with plenty. There IS something wrong--some
screw loose II society, "hcn young men cannot
be tempted away from the towns, To labor upon
these rich lands that every where surround us
there by a few months Of patient toni aud self
denial, TO make themselves cou'oriahe homes,
independent fice-hoidcrs. " hen We We're BOYS.
4, was not 50. Young men were neither too proud
Tor too shi,.ess, 10 60 into III. woods or upon the
praITes, aud there live il shanies or log houses.
ana open farms and cultivate them Thea these
things we're done; and THAI toe, in country
where ten cents was ihe common prce of cora;
fifteen cents the p,icc Of oats; thee cents the
price Of pork; and when yard Of shifting worth
here now cents yard, sold At 20 cents. The
men who has ana then opened farms, mp n land
40 more productive ,hla this, not onl, lived, but
got rich hy it. Now we have question TO pat,
to The young men, if any Of them are still suryiy-
ing. who cultivate the rocky hill tops aud cold,
heavy soils Of New Engl where every ear OF
corn has TO be sGu.mored with a shovel fall OF
manure; would You believe, that in a climate as
healtliul as yonr own, within an hours walk Of
large toxin and Of this great river, alive with
steamboats, that ran without interruption 20 and
from the Gulf Of Mexico woal. you believe tha,
here, where al! thai YOU have 10 purchase Is as
cheap as N New Ensiani, anu where crops can
he raised Ia absolute profusion, without manure
and without The use of hoe, and where potatoes
sell promptly at one dollar per busheI, IN CON,
thai here, where such land can be bought a, from
!: % 70 50 90 per acre, woulI YOU believe that
able bodied men, could be restrained or prevent
ed, from engaging here immediately in agricul-
turc' Would you not suppose tina, every ncre
would be cultivated aud every hour occupied in
the health,ul pursuits Of agriculture Why, i,
is absolutely certain, that Minnesota may have
forever. the absolute monopoly Of the potato
trade, ior The whole valley cf the river, employ
ing an immense amount Of steamboat tonnage.
They cannot raise IRISH potatoes south of US;
while we can raise them IN abundance and Of the
ofths article, above the demands Of our lila ccs,
'ImdeFmen, forts and Indians. that surplus can
always be sod on the bank Of III. river; and the
fsraler viii neve- realize less Than half dollar
bashei Tor good potatoes, ready 10 ship.
We instance the crop Of potatoes because in
this crop So can beat the world. BIZ, there is no
crop OF the !icl or the garden, IN which Mime
sofa can be eIcelled. There is no part of the
world combining in su,h perfection all the rcqu-
sites for successful and profitable farming: we
'''~"" -''A i'uic water, uCditfilLi climate
and high cash market at home As we have
nstanced the crop Of potatoes lie, US see what the
management Of one man will accomplish, In cul
iivatln5 that crop here. We suppose the crop 10
be Tree from rot, Us it usually is here. He hires
five acres Of ground, say Of Gov Ramsey. less
than two miles from town. He paws for the use
oft, three dollars an acre. He pays for plowiag
1t ms'I, two d1ilars an acre. lie pays for seed
SIX bushels per acre, thirty dollars lie paws for
cross-turrowing TO plant it, SO 80; for man and
horse TO cultivate betwe en- the rows. twice each
way, one week, al2, 80; for the same labor re-
peaied with plow s 100; for digging So 90 per
hundred bushels; for furnishing bushel sacks.
and for hauling 10 the river $40, 90 per hundred
bushes. The crop, at the loves, estimate is $50
bushels; which at half dollar bushcl will
yield S62J,o0. Now let US de luct the cost. and
see whei The profit will be.