Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1861-02-14
THE HERALD.
Corn in the Ear W. Corn III


ED1ToRs FARaER:-Is It not strange
that the farmers Of Illinois pay 80 tittle at
tention to wool-gro9ings | mean IS .
general thing,--for [ am well aware tnat
we have some Of the largest iadieiduat
wool-growers ii the country.
But look 1t it. All suppose are aware
that on account Of oar distance from the
seaboard markets, The raising Of stock Of
some sort IS in general more profitable than
the raising Of grain-or the selling Of q le
the raaO stcte-for the stock raiser Of this
state is necessarily grim raiser.
1t is costing at present rates Of freight,
suppose for / have not The rates at hand,
about the first cost Of corn III Chicago, to
set it down in New York. That is 100
per cent. to market corn, as corn; perhaps
so per cent or nearly 50, to market Wheat
I'll don't assert the correctness Of my fig-
nres; only approximately and something
like S1.25 70 marketa barrel Of -four worth
1928 III Chicago; for about twenty per
cent. of its cost. And It is to be borne in
mind that these are the relative costs d
marketing tie products mentioned, from
Chicago, -while TO us living In the inter-
or Of the State, they are by 50 much tbs
greater as our distance from that city.
At my present eand place Of writing,
it costs fifteen cents per bHshel toship corr
to Chicago
Now the percentage for marketing faf
cattle and hogs, is less tLan that Of grain
but how much | cannot say.
Now let us look at the cost marketing
wool. haze set down and sold wool il
New York, from Central Illinois, expenses
all told, for Zee cents erpound. And i
looking back for period Of ten years
find that wool, (merino wool has averag-
ed about forty cents per pound here. A
that price, then, the cost of marketing i
twelve and half per cent. Of first cost.
But practically il is cpca {ess,-for foui
years out Of five, buyers pay Us 1ere with
in three cents a pound what the same WOO
would bring in New York.
But to take nearer view of the differ
ence Of marketing corn as corn, or in the
shape Of wool, | look at the manner ii
which my neighbors and myself market
corn. They are hauling corn six and eight
miles to the Railroad, and getting fifteen
cents bushel for it in the ear,--making as
general thing but one trip day, and
hauling from twenty five to thirty five bush
els at a load. | am feeding tho same fif
teen cent corn out of The shock at home, Al
the rate Of from three to three and one hall
bushels to the sheep, and have always 50
far, taken it from their backs in June, at
from $3.50 to 500 per sheep. | speak
Of the acreage price per head Of my flock
in different years, according to the price Of
wool, not Of the different worth Of indiyi(l-
ual Sleeps fleeces in any one gear. Now
! will at present leave ii to any, and all to
draw their own conclusions as to which
,rnay be the better way Of marketing corn,
/ win only remark as to the hauling Of the
corn, that | pull team no harder when
going to the Railroad with $1,000 worth
Of my corn, than does my neighbor with
SIR or seuen dollars worth Of his.
But do not aim to draw strict and
accurate comparison between the profits Of
wool growing and grain raising, Tor selling
rather,) in this communication. | only
throw out this one hint Of comparative
cost Of marketing, for your readers, present
attention. | may, at some other time at
tempt a comparison between the profits Of
IL, and other branches Of farming in Hi
nois, for it is my "speciaLty.p-Pr
Farmer. Wool Grower.