The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-12-09


| The yield of corn in two Of the principal Western
States where the cultivation of that cereal is male
speciality in 1S77:-
Bushels. Ac,vs. vaiue.
Illinois ........ 260,0o0.0o0 s965.3l1 s75.400.ooO
Iowa ........... l56000,000 100000 39,000.00O
This year the production of corn in these States
will be fully per cent in of these figures,
and the price at present is from one-quarter to
| third less than it was at this season in 1877.
As has been remarked above the movement OF crops
through Chicago is undoubtedly greater this year
than it was last the two preceding years. and the
following figures if nothing else at hand. would
prove the truth OF the statement. Take the month
of November. for example. In 1875 there
ceved in this city 1916 loads OF wheat of all
grades; in 1876 there received 5000 loads;
in 1877 there received 542S loads this year
during that month there 3locar loads received.
nearly double the amount of the month in either
1876 1877, and nearly onethird than in 1875.
When come to look out the great West and
Northwest we find the people who make up the farm
Ing communities complaining, many Of them. that
times hard and that they cannot 'Inake both ends
meet" 1T is not to be wondered Of that ignoring
diversified crops, the salvation, financially, OF any
farming community. they have given their time to
special cropping--wheat corn, the may be-
and have individually aided to swell tho produc
proved highly remuneratve Then there other fac
tors in the comparative failure of farming Sec
tons which it will be worth while to consider.
THE CURSE LARGE FARMS.
There have of late years been good many failures
in the magnificent farming enterprises undertaken in
the West and which should teach lesson to the gen
era cultivator Of the SOIL The tendency and in
sections. is to-day, despite the warnings which
have been given, to add acre to acre. mile to mile
until at last the possessions of this or that individual
should reach to and beyond the horizon in all direc-
tons Great stretches of country must be held in the
ambition to be considered tie farmer king, the cattle
KING the sheep king or the monarch OF this or
that particular branch of industry to which
the attention might be given. 1t has been an
outgrowth of the peculiar progressive ana ambitions
spirit of the average American, who has undertaken
the herculean task OF opening and cutivating this
great West ana 1t IS not to De wondered that many Of
the weather. foreigners who have in to possess
the land have become mbned with the same ideas
and undertaken the same task do not refer cspeci-
ally to those who have taken up section after
section until their possessions have risen to the
OF thousands of and been able to pay cash for
the same, but particularly to that more 4
humble class who, without the ready to
develop a mammoth enterprise have assumed
control of farms which in the more conservative East
would be considered sufficient for royal demesne.
70 do this they have been obliged to assume respon-
sbes i'll TIE shape OF mortgages and constituencies
percentages of interest, which have swallowed in
their capacious the last vestigcs of prosperous
recompense for untirng labor and seepiess industry
Look wherever may in the West we may the
wrecks of this class of investment In Illinois, Iowa,
all the States of the West there warning examples
OF this ambitious spirit of enterprise, which
corners and old settlers should heed. One trouble
has been that the people in their greed have I'M
dertaken to cultivate too much land, individually.
smaller farms, better worked and more diversified.
would produce better incomes and that is the grand
crop which every hnsbandman tls the soil for.
CLUTCH OF sHyLoCK.
The mad rush of farmers for land and their thought
lessness in exchanging cuthroat mortgages for the
labor of years has the effect to throw great pro-
portion OF the land hoders-I cannot say land own
lin al MI
be able to extricate themselves, but must 90
under in the inevitable course Of events and lose
whatever they may have acquired. hear these
complaints coming up all about MS. 1t does not
matter particularly that year brings forth good
crop. that this year last year or the year before
gave the Western farmer surplus of revenue above
the Of production; it is invariably consumed in
the memorable demands of the Eastern creditor who
up regularly with his cry of give give give"
and pockets the profits with the GOODNESS and salts
faction OF slylock carving his slice OF human meat
This is to great degree the situation Of the West to-
day. The majority Of farmers in debt, and being
in debt are somewhat Respondent whenever prices
rule low aud interest money runs high Can they be
blamed? They to be blamed for the darling desire
their hearta-to hold more land than they can pay
for They do not take into consideration the fact
that. because Minnesota land king with ample
means to buy whatever he holds and no risk Of
ndebtedness produces millions Of bushels Of wheat
and operates with army of men and phalanx Of
machines, and makes money, they are throwing
they undertake the thing. 1t is pretty gener-
ally conceded that few OF the large number of farmers
in the Northwest who in debt-even in the most
prosperous and lands better paying than
any others, low dairy products and have been
OF laeare scarcely able to live and pay interest,
laborars and taxes Nearly every farmer is .land
poor" whether he be OF 5000 or 900 and
often of less extent of possessions. They have
been crippled at every step, not having had
means enough to make the required initial
payments, and provide themselves with implements,
seed stock, &c. A farmer having yielded to that
common deusion, mania for large farm and vol
unfairly signed his financial death warrant in the
form or annhating mortgage, ii il often impCs-
heavily mortgaged farm, ever to iquidate lift the
crushing load especially with unpreccdentedly low
prices agricultural products ana the numerous
casualties that attend nearly every branch Of late
coEx.
In discussing the material resources of the West
and the condition OF the people we must not forget
to take into consideration the astounding
lions in live stock and the unsurpassed facilities for
pork packing which this region enjoys. Instead OF
falling OFF in any essential degree, these have
materially advanced in Importance, and the
sources Of great degree OF prosperity in this region
IL IL not at all necessary to set forth here how many
hogs slaughtered ut this point in 1875, 1876
1877. for the number astonishingly great. par
tcaiarly in the last mentioned yea-. But when we
to the figures, which tell the true story find
tina, from November 1, 1877, TO November l. 1875 the
number slaughtered and packed 4.5J3,000
than fry per cert increase upon the business
of the preceding year, which by the way ut that
time considered unprecedented. The actual con-
dition of the livestock trale-cattle--at this
point cannot for the present year be given
state the shipments exceeded those 1877
by at least twcnty-i per cent Tho growth Of the
consequent upon the experiments in the shipping
live stock from American ports has materially in
creased the business OF the great West in this pxrcu
lar branch OF industry. 1t has proved beneficial to
large degree; has presented increased market for
stock aud caused general feeling OF security
in that the price this class of stock been
equally maintained, while those Of hogs and
other animals have deprecated alarmingly.
In fact. so great has been the shrink
ago in the price of swine that stock-farmers
and others who have turned their attention
to the raising of these animals, have found very
serious question indeed to what they should do
with their product The complaint comes from
every quarter of the West. nave had the best of
opportunity for judging ~ TO the prevalence OF this
feeling, aud must say that the outlook is not very
encouraging to the breeder OF marketable porcincs
Where last year hogs brought from 81 to IS so per
hundred we now find them selling from ~ TO S2 80,
and II is not to be wondered AZ that the Western
farmer sends up cry of despair ~ he finds himself
burdencd with overwhelming supply OF corn Mt a
price far below that of the previous and hogs not
half valuable year ago. u II the occasion of
very depressing feeling the part OF the individual
who produces this i'm portant factor in the WORLDS