The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1878-12-11
FARMING INTERESTS
Meeting Of the County Agricultural and
Horticultural Society.
An Able Address by DE-. Ryland T. Brown
The Hon. j. B. Conner Speaks on
"Corn and Pork"

ticuitural Society met Saturday afternoon
in the rooms of the state board of agriculture
with the president, Isaac H. Furnas, of
Bridgeport, Ind, in the chair. The chair
announced that the object of the meeting
was to listen to addresses by DR.. Ryland 7.
Brown and r B. Conner, on subjects per-
taing to agrlculture.
THE RELATION OF AGRICULTURE TO THE OTHER
INDUSTRIES.
The following is a brief extract from the
excellent address OF DIR. Browns:
Agriculture, in its broadest sense is the pro-
ductIOn of values by growth from the earth.
In this sense IL includes horticulture, horicul-
ture, aTboraculture and pomology, or frulteul-
ture, added to the direct prod action of gra n,
grass, textile and root crops. ana the indirect
production Of animals for food, whether as
flesh, or indirec city a dairy or poultry pro,
ducts, etc This is the widest and most varied
field of human Industry, and of right, occu-
pies the central position in the family OF In
dustrial pursuits. But while this is true, and
even more than this, while we admit that not
only The kings table, but ali tables are sup
piled from the field, and in civilized society,
agriculture produces the raw material of food
and clothing nearly i'm its entirety. yet IL is
very far from being Independent. Indeed, the
more important agriculture becomes, the
more extended and com pIcated are its rela-
tions, and the more dependent does
1t become on the Industries which pur
chase and work up It's raw materials.
To illustrate tins principle let US take the pres
ent wheat crop of the United States, which Is
said to b the largest crop of that cereal ever
produced by any nation on the globe. The
possibility of cultivating this crop depended
primarily on the improved farm implements
In use. Indeed, 1t il but fair to acknowledge
that the great i'm proveme nj In modern agricul-
ture is to be largely credited to the mechanical
improvements aud inventions by which the
farmer Is ab e TO make his labor more produce
tive, and to do his work better. speak from
personal knowledge when say that with our
present plows, pulverizers, harrows and seed
drills an acre of wheat can be put in, and the
work better done, with hal; the labor that was
required TO do the same work fifty years ago.
But the labor-saving at the other end of the
crop even greater than here. My memory
carries me back to the time when wheat, and
all small grain, was harvested with the sickle
"a single handful at a time-a period when
the reaping OF an acre of wheat "a day was an
achievement to be talked of in all the neigh
borhood. and remembered in after years. 1t
would have required half the men In the civ
ilized world TO save such wheat crop as this
ly in stack IL would have required the same
army of ab,eNOdied men all this winter TO
thrash 1t with the fail.
THAT may not be misunderstood in what
have SAID, a. well as what / am about to say,
you will allow me TO define explicitly what
mean by legitimate industrial pursuits. In
that term include all labor, whether of hand
or of brain, which adds to the common good
in any way. The man who adds 500 TO the
tax-paying property OF the state, or who trains
the mind and heart OF youth Tor higher useful
ness, or who alleviates the physical suffering
and assists in restoring TO health either your
self or fami V, or who trains your ht art and
conscience to higher apprecIat on of moral
duty and responsibility, or who assists V on In
obtaining your Just rights in court. or who for
Q fair profit furnishes you with the necessities
and conveni-nces af life from other nations
and remote lands in exchs nge for the surplus
products of your farm or workshop, or who
through the press supplies your center table
with reading matter which will make you
wiser bet, er and happier; or, in short VINO
ever does that which ministers to the public
good-who augments the sum total OF social,
domestic and individual happiness, Is
gagged in a legitimate indu try. and is an I'M
portant chord in the harmony of society.
But il Is my unpleasant task now to turn to
Won the other side OF this picture; for, alas! it
has another side. II society has its harmonies,
il has also its discords. II 1t has It's unity, 1t
to these with a sad heart. There are those who
seek to accumulate the money which has
been earned by the honest labor and faithful
toll of others, without contributing anything,
on their part, that will add o dime TO the
wealth OF the country, or conduce In any way
piness OF a sineIe individual, beyond. the cir
cumscribed circle of self. To this class belong
large section of society," ranging from the
stock jobber and respectable grain gambler,
through the ranks of liquor sellers, profess
sional gamblers and smaller confidence men,
rather than to 90 any useful la or. These
stand in direct antagOnism TO the legitimate
industries that raturn to society proper
themselves on the body social and often ac-
aulre fortunes ana attain to positions in the
aristOcracs of wealth for which they have
never given an honest days exertiOn for the
benefit of society. When he shall be greatest,
who serves society most faithfully, these Will
sink to their proper level. Till then, they
must be endured.
CORN AND PORK.
At the conclusion of DIR. Browns address
the Hon. J. b Conner spoke follows on
the subject of Corn and Pork"
When this subject was assigned me for dis
cussion the desire was that II should be con-
sidered from an economic and business stand
point. and this shall be done IN the brietest
HUNDREDS of IA liners have come almost to
believe that IL is no longer profitable TO grow
corn and hogs, hitherto two or our greatest
staples. Il is excee Iingly hard to become
reconcied to redu ed prices and wages. We
are all apt TO consider, without much tho 1ght
of course, that the reduction Is alone ID mat
falls especially upon u.s. But when we con
slider the facts about us we find really that re-
61e0ns %f PreeS hsSf goh and on in
commodities. We find that wooden and
cotton dOmestics of every KIND, as well as
Some insta ace lower than they were twenty
and thirty years ago The reports Of the COM
missioner OF statistics OF 1850 show thaI larm
labor was Just about what II is now.
1t will not do to take a single year To deter
mine prices of any commodity upon which TO
base judgment aS To whether IT. Il prontaDle or
not have, therefore selected two periods, of
ten years each, in which to present this mat.
ter 1t may be obs rived, also, that the two pc
RODS selected are fir average OF all the pre-
vious and subsequent years. The statistics
here quoted are made up from the actual mar
ket quotations of the daily and commercial
press during the period Of years named, and
are, therefore, accurate.
The prices given are the average prices in
New York City for January of eacnyear:
PRICE OF CORN FOR TEN YEARS.
Year. Corn per. bus;
lS4g ..... ........a......... 6i15
......'.''''.''''''' Oh
----.-------'---- pa