New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-09-22
THE FARMERS WAR.
ExTRAvAGANCE IN AGRICULTURAL MA
CHIMES.


KRIS CONFINED AGAINST THE fAkhhne ,u,.,--
psRoM THE SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT OF IN" 80 g
DUBUQUE Iowa. Sept. 12-lhe haru .i,'
which the farmers everywhere IN the "eSV n"'o
bee so universally complaining during the pas' '"o
or three wears cannot, with justice, DC whoily az
trbuted 10 railroad extOrions to over-prodheuon'o
one or all of the various causes that have been
paraded before the public by the farmers III Vnon
nnhbc meetings and conventions. The fault lies IN
.one measure at least, with the people, who suffer
and complain, but who, of course. like all Otner
,losses labor with much more zeal TO secure the re-
form of abuses of which other people are guiiS
than 70 correct their own mistakes. While convers
ING with Secretary Smith Of the Illinois state far
uers' Association several weeks ago. athouRh "0
denied that the farmers of his State were eA''''"
CANT in their family expenses, he admlt'eu mo-
the purchase Of farming implements tneS La" =.
ALWAYS acted with the best Judgment ihey n"u' -
many cases allowed themselves TO DO nos' ouV
,aoeously swindled by agents VINO nao SOU 'i,'ii,
xvortbless machinery while at other tunes lhey h"u
contracted debts for implements WHICH, thousn 'hoS
were as good Us they represented 10 De- were
purchased at high prices, or were not aosoiu'oS
needed on the farm.
These admissions made very little impression on
INV mind AT that time and l don't think that In my
letters from Kewanee even mentioned the subject
II never once occurred to me that farmers were
sometimes "broken up and obliged to sell their
farms and begin anew in life because they had run
in debit for a moving machine, reaper, sulKy
corn-plow or any of the labor-saying Inventions Vi
late years But since l have come INTO TINS state
and mingled with the farmers here have fouhu
that il is not only common occurrence, but that
thousands of farmers who still struggling 10 keep
their heads above water and are obliged to economic
in every conceivable way and deny themselves and
families many comforts, first began to run Deilhu
hand when they purchased reaper OF mower OF
some other piece of farming machinery which they
could not pay for and which they could have done
without farmer living near DesMoines related
to me the history of a man who had once been his
neghbor and from what learned from other sources
lam convinced that he told me the truth when he
said that examples might be multiplied indefinitely
A FARMERS EXPERIENCE WITH REAPER AGENT.
- few years ago." he said a farmer who lived
near me, and who, being out of debt was on the
high road to prosperity, had in the early Summer,
the promise OF magnificent crop of wheat. Some
weeks before it was time TO cut it, an agent came
along one day, selling improved reapers. "A beaui-
full crop of wheat you've got there" he remarked
to the farmer.
The latter reckoned 'twould turn out pretty vol.
4" Now You ought to have good reaper to cut 1t
with said the agent.
Cant afford it haven't got the money" replied
the farmer,
Ppm selnga irst-class machine-better than any
that have been used about here-and can give you
one at a bargain and wait until it has paid for
itself. don't want any money now" continued
the agent temptingy, and with pencil and paper he
showed first how much the farmer would have to
pay for cutting his crop that year, how much grain
he could cut for other people, and, in short that
before he would have to pay for the machine he
would have saved and earned enough with it to
pay for it, and still have the machine not half
out. To make a long story short, the farmer was
persuaded 10 purchase the reaper and gave an
"iron-clad' note for it-that is, note accompanied
with a statement of property, which in this State is
equivalent TO a mortgage"
A Farm RUINED BY A REAPER.
"The machine arrived in due time it worked well
and my neighbor was able TO cut his crop himself
instead of hiring reaper. Then he did some work
with for other people, but several Others in the
neigbborhood had also purchased machines he did
not ego out" with it as much as he expected. AT
length his note matured but he had no money with
which to pay. He had had sickness in his family
and had not got as much for his crop as he had ex
pected. The agent was sorry and, after good
deal of hesitation supposed" that if the
farmer could not pay, the time would
have to be extended but in that he should have
20 charge 20 per cent interest! He would much
rather have the money than that even So the note
was renewed on those terms. The farmer paid the
interest once or twice, but finally, the quarterly
day came around, he saw that he was not likely to
have money to pay even that. There was nothing
then left for him TO do but to mortgage his place.
borrow the money and pay the note And still he
ran behind hand so that instead of reducing the
mortgage he obliged to increase ii from time TO
time until in the end ne had to sell out. take new
land and begin again. Now, do you suppose that
that man thinks to-day that ne was ruined by a
reaperi No. Sir; he lays it to sickness in his family
bad crops, small prices, railroad extortiOns, the
tariff But his first debt was for the reaper"
ExTRAvAGANCE IN BUYING MACHINES AND GOODS.
The farmers have paid too high prices for the ma
chinery and implements they have bought. The
immense profits Of general agents and sub-agents
have been added TO the manufacturers prices then
when cash has not been paid, the prices have been
still further increased TO interest at 20 per cent
Finally, as Mr.. Mccormick testified in Washington
that from One-fourh to One-third of his sales
bad debts an average of 80 per cent must be added
TO cover those The grand result is that the farmers
pay from 80 to 100 per cent for their machinery
than they ought. The farmers are also overcharged
for the grocss and dry-goOds that they buy at the
village store. / don't mean to say that the
TRADERS make too much money it is the system
that Is at fault rather than men, aud those of tine
farmers who think most are beginning to see that
they are in great measure responsible for the sys-
TEN. The majority of the farmers of this State buy
their goods of the local traders on credit paying
when they sell their crops. These traders have.
therefore, in fixing their prices to make allowance
for bad debts and for interest. But as they don't
receive cash. they of course cannot buy for cash,
and the New-Iork and Philadelphia merchants who
carry the local traders have to be paid for their