Cedar Falls gazette. [volume] (Cedar Falls, Iowa) 1860-1895, 1871-06-23
Farmers Should Study Commerce.

| H"hciS SHOHlu StuuN commerce.
| We believe it is true that no class
OF producers devote so little attention
to the study of the laws of commerce
aud trade as farmers. As a rule.
| they are content, to devote all their
energies to the productions of crops.
leaving the transportation and sale
of them to railroads and commission
merchants. They are often pained
and chagrined to find out tha. they
raised just the crop that was not
wanted, or that they disposed of it at
just the wrong time to realize from
IL what they might; but il teaches
| no lesson except to plant different
crop next year or to put il on the
market ct d different time. MANY
good farmers have never seemed to
learn that there was as much de.
| pending on what to raise as how to
raise it; and that the marketing of
produce involved as much study and
diligent consideration as does the
management of o farm. 81 =
Successful manufacturers study
commerce. as much as merchants do.
they calculate what class of goods
Will be wanted in a particular locali.
", and devote themselves not alone
10 the manufacture of these goods
but to how they can be best trans
ported and how best sold. They as.
certain who and where their CUSTOM
ers will be before they put their ma
chinery In operation, The details of
manufacturing they are supposed to
be acquainted with, and so with an
occasional care to the latest improve.
ments in the art, they devote theni-
selves to the important matter of
looking out for desirable sales.
But with most farmers the case Is
far otherwise; holding ID to be an
axiom that crop must be raised be.
fore 1T can be marketed, they devote
little or no attention to the all inn.
portant subject of raising those
things which the market requires, -
II some one made a lucky hit last
year in raising a particular crop
enough rush into the produc,jou of
IL TO make IL n drug In the market. =
III certain product for which there
was onfy local demand was plenty
ana cheap one season, that Is cause
snfhcient to abandon its prmiuclion
the mex { seas0nl Y r. I'M
HAD The farmers of this county
studied the laws Of supply and do.
mand as they should have done. The
price OF hops would never have run
up 10 seventy five cents per pound or
ran down To three cents. it was as
easy to calculate the probable mum.
Der of bales of hops that would he
needed In a single year. as To approx.
innate the number OF axes that would
be wanted. But the planters of non
fields did not take time TO ascertaii,
that the number OF new hon wards
were increasing on. lle number of
breweries ih aten folslsfalid Frhe
decline OF the wotl tiufe erpstsT which
has been the ruin of "a snnpyS far,n.
ers, was largely due to the fact that
wooi growers paid little atteRcion to
matters outside tho sheep walk.
Ihe fact that the seasous greatly
vary, and that the crops Of any year
may lar exceed or be far less than
might reasonably be expected, mak>
ing the productofsa d given number of
acres far more uncertain than the
product OF certain number of looms
or lathcs, should be no reason for
farmers paying no attention TO mat
tersF of commerce or for regIeeting
The study Of the laws of demand and
supply. On the contrary, IL should
stimulate greater enquiry, and lead
10 sreater study and more enlarged
observation. sIliA lES.s.0 / III
THE fact that farmers are known to
be possessed of little information In
relation to. commercial matters.
causes them to be vietimized by
many who have dealings with them.
railroad officials take advantages OF
farmers that they would never think
TO take of merchants or manufs @.
turers. Commission merchants owe
much OF their prosperity to the fact
that they make "a study of. those
things that farmers ignore, and that
they take advantage of The farmers
want OF knowledge of commercial
affairs -PS'diyie ElrD,eg..