New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-11-04


My wheat, to yield me a good profit, should fetch
81 10 bushel; if anybody wants it for that he
take il but il isn't for sale at q less prceP OF
course il would do no good for one farmer to adopt
this course; but suppose majority of the farmers of
Wisconsin and Minnesota to do it, and the price
set was n fair one, don't You suppose we would get
it Talk about the price of wheat in Liverpool reg
ulating the price here in Wisconsin II may fix the
price in the Eastern States and if it was inhexble
there and we held out too, why the
transportation companies would have TO
move our crops for the difference. The
fact is the price wOuld either 60 up New-York or
freights would come down. Don't You suppose If
raise 200 bushels of wheat that would rather get
200 for 1000 bushels of it, and keep the other 200
bushels over than to sell the whole for $a0 This
is lesson we hope to teach the farmers in the
Grange. | and my brothers raise vegetables and
small fruits for the market here in Oshkosh, and do
profitable business, but we don't go to market in
the morning and ask people how much they viii
give MS for what we have to sell; if we did we
should have failed long ago We fix our price, and
we don't sell for less than that price,
SUCCESSFUL COOPERATIVE PURCHASING.
The system of cooperative purchases has also been
adopted by the Grange IN this State though it has
not been perfected as in Iowa. When there were
rangemeuts were made with leading merchants in
Oshkosh to sell to the Changers at 10 per cent adj
vance on the cost of the goods at the place where
they were bought. This gives the merchant about
five per cent profit and the advantage of a large
cash trade. The arrangement has been most salts
factory. On groceries and heavy attic es on which
there has always been but little profit of the
saving has been small; but on hats, caps boots and
shoes. cloths, clothing, dry goods OF every KIND,
ribbons and other millinery articles books and
stationery and all kinds of fancy articles the saving
has been from 10 TO 60 per cent. As new Oranges
have been formed, the trade of those who made the
Arrangement with the Patrons has increased, and
the majority Of the Changers who have always been
in the habit of having accounts at the stores in this
city now pay cash for everything they buy. In the
purchase of farm implements, machinery, sewing
machines, and musical instruments a considerable
saving has been made by Mr.. OsbOrDs dealing
directly with the manufacturers; but, as he
was not able to offer as great induce
ments as the Iowa Grange, his terms have
not always been rs favorable. I think il is
contemplated to have the Grange of this State unite
in purchasing with that Of Iowa-that that shall
he so arranged that the Oranges of both States and
perhaps Of Minnesota shall contract with the same
manufacturers and thus, by increasing the size of
their aggregate orders, get lower prices than either
could alone. good many farmers as yet hesitate
about sending their money to the State agent when
they wish omake purchase. but they are gradual
ly gaining confidence and think thatnext year the
orders Of the Grange of this state directly from the
manufacturers will he quite large.
MODEL FARM.
have already mentioned the farm Of M St.llson,
which visited the other day, Besides other land
which he owns and cultivates. he has in one piece
adjoining the city $50 acres of as beautiful prairie
land as l ever saw. 1t slopes gradually toward Lake
Winnebaqo, which is visible from all parts Of it,
and now that he has blind-ditched the portions
where there are depreSsioDs, there is not on the
whole farm ten square yards of waste land. Mr.
StiIlson drove me out into field of 100 acres just
half mile square, opposite his house, part OF
which bore crop Of hay this year, while
tho remainder of it had been in wheat.
1t was the finest field l ever saw, If
except some | visited on the Brown stock farm,
near Springfield. III. Mr.. Stillson raises about 40
acres of wheat year and has sent to market in the
last % or "a years more than 10000 bushels of that
grain alone think he said his average crop in %
wears had been more than % bushels to the acre BE
keeps between 200 and SO0 head OF sheep, and hes
now in his barn ZOO pounds of fine wool Of this
years clip 1t is not for sale until the price is better
than il is now. He has about $50 head of cattle and
horses and these, with his sheep and pigs, consume
all the hay and coarse grain that the farm produces
His herd of short horned stock is a very promising
one although now only year or two cid. Ills
barns are, | think, the largest and best in the
entire West and contain ample room to house
about all the grain and hay that he raises so
that very little of it is stacked out. am told
that when Mir. Stillson came here he was not rich
and that his lands, to use a Western phrase,
OF
CAGES. He has raised himself to his present position
as one Of the first if not the very first farmer in
Wisconsin by an intelligent attention to his business
by high cultivation Of his land and by not raising
two years in succession any crop which did not pay
n profit lie is not member of the Grange. but
looks with favor upon the Farmers Movement. and
remarked TO me than those who were in il were just
beginning TO do what he had tried TO do for
look after their own interests
INDIFFERENCE TO THE TARIFF QUESTION.
Ibave made some inquiries in this State as to the
sentiment of the people Oh the Tariff question. /
find that nearly all the leaders of the Farmers
Movement are what are known as Revenue Tariff"
men. The majority of the farmers know and care
very little about the Tariff. They would not oppose
think any man simply because he was Free
Trader nor would they vote for a man simply be-
cause he was a PrOtectiOnIst. If the leaders intro
duce Free Trade resolutions in their meetings and
conventions they will not be much opposed; if they
omit to do it the bulk of the farmers won't care.
Now and then meet farmer who is well informed
on this question of political economy, and who is
strong Protechonist. Mr.. Shllson, though Dem
ocrat is one of them and he allowed me TO copy
from his account books few figures showing how
the prices Of farm products had been reduced" and
those of manufactured articles increased" by the
Tarf l will say that he enters in his books the
act amount received for everything Sold and that is
paid for all articles bought, and, at the end of the
year finds the average III cents and mills. OF the