The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1875-08-27

ut seems she couldn't, for she sailed
about nine year ago and haint never been
heard on SINCE
WHY FARMING PAYS NO BETTER.
On this subject, which has been some
what ventilated in these latter davs, a
Mr.. 3. Shepard, Mount Vernon, Indiana,
gives an address to his brother farmers,
as follows:
"One Of the reasons why farming pays
no better with the majority is simply
this. We raise too few kinds of grain
and grass and not enough kinds of stock.
The farmer who raises nothing but corn
and hogs can never expect to make as
much money as the farmer that devotes
his time to the care of horses, cattle,
sheep, hogs, and poultry, and to the rails
| ing of wheat, corn, clover, potatoes. and
fruit. The aforementioned farmer has
| work for himself and teams every day in
the month and every month in the year.
He has always something that will bring
4 fair and remunerative price, for if some
Of his crops be low others will be high.
Last year corn was selling in southwest
ern Indiana for 20 cents, while wheat was
worth from $l.60 to $l.80 per bushel.
The farmer that held both was a lucky
man. If one did not more than pay the
cost Of production, the other did. Not
so with the hog and hominy farmers, who
had nothing to sell but corn, at thirty
cents a bushel, which would not more
than pay the cost of production. Let us
glance at the figures and see where the
most money is made-in mixed or corn
farming. Let us suppose that man is
going to plant eighty acres of corn. The
breaking-up Of the land planting, cult
waiting, gathering, and hauling to market
will cost, in round numbers, $500; and,
counting the interest on the money in
vested in the land, and the taxes, the
corn farmer will be behind in dollars and
cents. Not so with the farmer who
raises all kind of farm produce. He is
cultivating twenty acres Of wheat, twenty
acres of corn, twenty acres Of timothy
grass, five acres of root crops. such as
orchard, and five acres of other kinds of
farm crops, with all kinds Of live stock in
proportion. His wheat will yield fifteen
bushels per acre, in all 800 bushels,
which, at $3.50 FER bushel, makes $3.50
for wheat; corn, fifty bushels per acre,
1000 bushels, at thirty cents, making
$500; timothy, two tons per acre, forty
tons in all, at $l6 per ton, $640; the
root crops will yield an average of 200
bushels per acre, making one thousand
bushels, at twenty-five cents, equal to
1850; the orchard ought to bring in
| about $500 year, at least. The other
farm crops speak of will bring in prob
ably 500. Thus at the end of the year
he has the snug little sum of 5000,
againt 81, 200 Of the hog anil hominy far
mers. Besides his grain, etc, he will
have butter and eggs, and a fat hog to
sell during the summer months.
We should follow mixed farming
for reasons besides the money
making. We all know that
planting corn year after year on the
same ground is injurious. It wears the
land out and in few years it is unfit foc
cultivation. But if VIC look to our inter-
est and follow mixed husbandry, and
study out rotation Of crops that is best
suited for our land and keep it up, we
will have land in better condition to leave
to our children then it was left to US.
Another way to make farming pay bet
ter IS to drain more, dig bitches, to let
off all stagnant water, and in some cases
your crops will be about doubled. The
last reason will give is this: We, as
farmers, read too little, and consequently
We are behind the times. lido not mean
all farmers, but the majority Of them arc.
The majority farm the same way that
their fathers and grandfathers did, in old
times, when agriculture was not making
as much progress as now and was COM
paratively III its infancy. Farmers should
! study in the winter months and lay plans
for the spring md summer. Read papers
! Of sterling merit, and select such books
as Aliens "New American Farm B"ok,'
Todd's "Young Farmers Manual"
'sHarris on the Pig "Stonehenge on the
Horse" Aliens american Cattle" Ran.
dall's ssSheep Husbandry,' and Sanders
domestic POULTRY and then they will
have library in itself that they can read
rainy days and winter nights. This not
only profits them, but will afford many
hours of pleasure in learning more about
their profession, raising and clevating it.
This with the majority Of farmers is now
! ranking as the lowest.down calling that
| man has ever known. But it should not
be so. It should rank with that of any
| other profession.
Some people manage to keep their prop.
ertv out of the reach Of writ OF attach
mcnt by investing their surplus cash in
dogs, and feeding them on the bread tax.
EN- from their cbildrep's mouths: