The Grange advance., 1873-10-15
ARE FARWERS IMPROTI
DENT2

DENT?
To the cry Of distress coming up
from our Western farmers, the railroad
companies reply, g Farmers are wanting
in intelligent economy They do not
prosper because they do not prudently
husband their means We cannot be
asked to make their labor profitable
while they are unthrifty. Nobody is
saved in this world from the natural con-
sequences Of fimprudence Ifa manufac-
turer makes cloth at cost Of two dol
lars, which his neighbor makes at
cost Of one dollar, the first must be
bankrupted for his folly"
The retort upon such reasoning is
swift and merciless Railroads are pro-
tected by society at large for all their
extravagances and imprudences. No
matter how heavy cost has been accum-
ulated upon a road, even though by
fraud, the stockholder is held to be en-
titled to good dividend wherever the
dividend can be made by high fares
and freights. These corporations are
the petted children of the public which
takes upon itself all the consequences
of their folly.
But the retort, however sharp and
telling, does not close the controversy.
The charge remains, and has an appear
ance Of truth. Many farmers are thrift
less and their unthrift damages their
class.
The credit system is pestilent evil
to farmers. 1t is in fact to everybody ;
but it probably works most evil on the
farm. Before they are aware Of it, our
farmers have fallen into habit of liv-
ing year ahead of their work, buying
to pay after the next harvest, and buy
ing with a certain recklessness because
their credit is only too good. No other
class pays so much for credit. Ma
chimes, for example, are sold to them at
ruinous advances above cash prices.
Collection is in such cases expensive be-
cause the purchasers are scattered
widely, and sellers put up prices of
things sold on credit enough to cover
all possible risks. A credit-using farm
er employing two farm hands, actual
ly employs also, without knowing it,
another man, whose wages equal the
wages Of both his hands, to collect from
him his notes and bills. We hope the
Changers will cure this terrible malady
Of credit-using. They have already '
greatly diminished the evil.
Many farmers fail to use their lands
to the best advantage by force Of habit.
Born on wheat lands, they keep on pro.
ducing small crops Of wheat on soils
made on purpose for corn or they per-
sist in selling their corn instead Of con.
verting it into meat in regions where
the last course is indicated by circum-
stances and markets. This class of
farmers is not plant enough and quick
enough of wit to change when change
is necessity Of profitable tillage.
Turn to another side. A great moral
and religious truth is concerned with
one in political economy in this ques-
tion of improvidence. It must be
wrong, it must be sinful, to enforce
against farmers cost-law which does
not allow them any chance of equality in
intelligence and comfortableness with
their fellow-citizen.
If by unthrift is meant that the
Western farmer buys books, subscribes
for newspapers and magazines, sends
his boys and girls to college, keeps a
clean and tidy house with neat furni-
ture and bits Of art treasure, why then
We say boldly the rest of US ought to be-
glad to pay for such unthrift as that
and we must pay for it. We cannot
expect this work to be done for US by
men who support themselves at the old
cost Of slave labor, or at the necessary
cost OF the labor of unskilled workmen.
If we have reckoned that farmers wives
must wear poor clothing, and farmers
sons remain in ignorance, we, have
reckoned without our host. ~
d. ". " c. Il. ~
| WHAT requires more philosophy than
taking things as they come I? Parting
with things as they 20. x@t55F'sr, e.. 81