, 1873-01-23
THE TROUBLES or THE FARMER.

10 the Editor n Ths Chteago 7'rtbuns:
SIN: Tile wall which ID continually coming
from tho farming community indicates aorlous
trouble, a1,l suggests Rorious questions. Our
groat.gtandfatharg, could they havo forosoon
tho groat improvements which havo been made,
and which no enjoy tito full benoflt Of would
probably havo considered 1t q at1,pondous joke
TINT mon Of tho present day should complain Of
hard times. III tho carly part OF tho century,
w1,ou thoy "wont Wost, young mens" after
travelling sovoral weeks with their ox-toame,
thoy settled In Tue lvnsu foregtB among tho hills
OF Now York or Ponnnylvania, and dug out lv-
Ing With their baro haudH. They gonorally
and increased their property alowly. They Ind
froights. Now, young man and young woman
may DO considered fortunate II thoy can SEQ thoir
way c1oar to marry, aud children nro q luxury
Which comparatively few can afford.
In the good old times, q couple Of floooes Of
wool, ten square rods. perhaps, Of fax. md
nR EoM At hono weua 70 s0he 4oga
paper, tho farmer 1n1a oneh child wearing ton
neTos of corn, nnd poorly clad at that. Although
tho land is as FREQ and as productive, moro ac-
everything is dono BY machinery. yet It seens to
tato moro days work to o1othe tho faznaer's fam
ily than 1t did then. One would think our I'M
proyemontg worc running ua.
A man in Nebraska haB 1000 buafolH Of corn,
which he tries to soil at s cents q bushol, but
cannot. Ho finds that 1t will cost moro to sond
It to tho nearest market than tho corn will bring
when ho gotta it there. Flo cannot food 1t 70
hogB, as lie has no uonoy to build q fence with
"Dont go Woat, young man, don'ti
Horace Greeley used to cntimato that thore
wore at no timo 80 faw Us 10000 mon III New
York City 1ootinE for work. AZ able-bodiod
a H4eo N On t1s New val Hosf II e. Gs { Il
sight of tho spires Of e2o, ,ooo, 600 worth Of
ch1lrchos, nm IN prison for stenling o loaf Of
broad for q starving child" Peoplo In tho Wost
are ,sayng o. a Of 9svg much
for want Of corn. Although tho Creator has
made such abundant provision for all our wants,
yot NO will starvo to death almost with the food
Some think shat oheap fro1ghts, some TINT froe
trade, and aomo that protection, would put nn
ond to MI theso troubles, Protection has had q
fair trial, aud should do something for the peo.
th6 duties woro taken OFF from iron, hc., it
would choapen freightB, and it probably would
very little, as tho Chicago Relief bill had ton-
dency to chcnpon rentH in the city,-so slightly
freighta would help Tic people both East and
Wost, but would not solve tho prob1om after oil.
Tho man out Weat sonts tan ncreB Of corn to tho
Eastern market and IT returns IN clothes, and
Enss go sseas oogS to eeho e1 It eas Il hum
dscd childron to buy the ten acres OF corn ns
Ing manufacturers, tho builders, and tho naachin-
iats from going West aud trading moro directly
with tho far1nors, consuming hin grain on tho
ground, and supplying him and each other with
their respective products; thus saving tho
ntoNt 9rTf 7f f1tn NJ 7l1of1
which now goes into tho pockets Of the Railroad
Companies, tho Bpocuators and tradors2 : On
gororal principles, is it not easicr to carry tho
people themselves from beyond the Hudson to
ioiiia Of their lives That distance ouo way, aud
thoir products the otlor
the doctrine that tho farming b,1sf-
is I'' 50 indepondent tint he can always
find a marriott for Ills prodnce, mud is such
q benofactor Of hiH raco. &c. Such q theory is
as absurd aa that Of the spaniartls when they
we're gathering gold from peru, and made . law
thinking That Tint would mako thom rich. After
a while, they woro gluttod with gold, tho abund-
anco of which only oqualled their general pow
eF5y' Y tnoro in mora grain raised in tio country
than there nre cousumors for, there ia no way to
dispose OF tho surplus with profit, and it is as
easy to conceive Of double tho amount necessary
for consumption being raised as tho amount
grain, md limitod rairoad capactty. what is to
capital to buldipg railroads, and loss to raising
grain, and then making froight-tarins to suit
domal,d, md tito demand Tor iron oxoeeaB tho
supply, what Is there to hinder some Of the men
and capital now engaged In farming, from on
gaging in tho production OF iron, and reaplng
tho benefit Of the high tasiff On that
pittsburgh in the iron trade rs slio has Gincin-
natl In the pork trado7 Why cannot Illinois
bo flllod with factories and maoline-Bhops rs
we'll rs Massachusetts or Connecticut, md bo
virtually independent OF Eastern, railroads7
II capitalists would engage in business which
pays best, without regard to their old-timo pro-
1udicca or sentimental notions, md always bo
ready to hire work dono which They have to do,
and pay whatoycr it is worth, they might bo bot
tor OF. II working mon, instead q hanging
around tho place where their grandfathors lived,
whiting for something to turn up, and Keeping
up wsgos, would 50 whero tho work ia, nnd do t
for an equivalent, bo 1t moro Or loss, thoy would
certainly DO bettor Off; 90 Wost, young mani
go West! Yours truly, Z. u. BARTON.
CHICAGO, Jan, 10. 1873,