The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1882-09-15

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| I'm one year In Mankato. Strawberries, rasp-
berries, apples, grapes, asparagus and the
long line Of vegetables can all he easily rails
cd at but moderate outlay and find a ready
sale. The county is certainly not Overstock-
I'd with fruit and vegetables as long us per-
sons living In the country send in to friends
In Mankato for them. A glut In the market
IL not likely as long as straw com
mand the high prices ruling this summer.
| The same is'true Of raspberries, grapes and
| the other fruits The labor demanded by
small fruits Is trifiing and can be done by
children, The ground they need il insight
cant and cannot be used for other purposes.
In view of all this, how many farmers OF this
county, I'm or out of debt, have planted suill-
cient asparagus. straw berries, raspbcrries or
grapes to supply their own tables, to say
nothing of supplying the general marketf
| Comparatively few. II is not an unknown
thing for farmer to mortgage prospective
wheat crop to meet family expenses. Where
such expenses are not caused by unusual cir
cumstances. such farming is suicidal. In
case the farmer has bought his machinery;
erected barn or house, or bought stocx with
borrowed money, tho third income. to the ex-
| tent Of the incumbrance, must he paid over
To some one else, and the means with which II
IL to he done must come too often from the
growth of an uncertain wheat crop. At its
best. wheat In this county rarely yields beyond
fifteen bushels per acre. This Is the average
reached in Pennsylvania and Now York,
places much nearer to market. The eastern
farmer has given up Its general culture as
unremunerative. Land IL too valuable. What
the western farmer gains In cheapness OF
land Is made up I'm cost Of transportation
| Only on the frontier, where the new land
yields large crops and the exigcncies of the
case require that what Is swn shall be har-
vested In few months and disposed of, does
| II seem that wheat can pay as a crop from
year to year.
THE FAVORABLE GROWTH OF WHEAT
depends upon a peculiar condition Of the
weather duri~g the spring and summer. |
have heard'' I'm old settlers that the times
! were when liable weather for late sum
mer was almost an absolute certainty. That
such is not true now, we know only too well
The cause for the change is not far to seek.
We see around about US many of our smaller
lakes and marshes drying up, not because
there il less rainfall, but 1t is differently dis
tributed throughout the year and more
quickly drained of. The opening OF vast
stretches of prairie land 10 cultivation, the
cutting down OF our extensive wooded dis
tricts, along with the manifold ways I'm which
man influences his surroundings have chang
ed In some measure the climatic peculiarities
Of this district.
In calling your attention to the condition
of ireland, presented ID you the picture of a
people dependant on one crop. Ask yourselves
whether 1t is good husbandry to risk SINH
lar condition here. The presence of the
grasshoppers once brought us very close to
it. 1t is certainly source OF intense gratif-
cation to see the gradual spread of
DIVERSIFIED FARMING
throughout all this country. Every year has
added to the acreage devoted to other crops
| than whest. dwell upon this subject here,
partly because the success OF the wheat crop
this season may tend to induce some to go
back to 1t as the one crop. Business princip-
| les require that the prudent farmer shall in
sure himself against the possible failure Of
anyone crop, and this insurance can be Sc
cured by diversifying. If the wheat crop
| should prove a failure some other crop may
more than make up the loss. The adjust
ment of the number of acres to be given to a
crop ought to be made with view to balance
the loss Of any one. The amount Of income
possible is diminished but circumstances are
not often favorable and it makes reasonably
certain what before was all uncertainty. An
additional reason may be assigned for this
course, namely; protection against the i'm
position Of carriers and buyers. You have
sought for protection against both buyer and
carrier from the legislature. Under your
suferance be it said,-I do not believe that
any legislative enactment will be of more ef-
feot than the Pope's bull against the comet
No enactment can be drawn which can not be
evaded, and, until the legislature can make
spotless cherubs of SHINING mOrtals, men
will take advantage of their neighbours neces-
stiles. If all the farmers OF this county were
compelled by circumstances to buy their
goods of three or four dealers; these dealers
would probably combine to keep up the
price Of goods. Reverse the case: When the
people Of this county were compelled to buy
their hay. by reason of bad weather, from
farmer favorably situated. the price OF hay
become Unfortunately high and strenuous ef-
fors were made I'd keep 1t up. You have Of
ten had just cause of
COMPLAINT AGAINST RAILROADS
and wheat buyers but cannot see how you
are to be helped by legislation. A few me-
ments depression may be warranted to con-
slider the origin Of your troubles. A number
of men subscribe stock to build a railroad
They elect board of directors who secure
land grant from the state and money bonuses
from the townships along the projected road.
The stockholders wish to do proper lawful
i 1,.,ot I'M
are in all likelihood, interested In develop
ing the country through which the road
passes. The opportunities for making money
are too tempting to be long resisted by the
directors. They form therefore a corpora
ton within a corporation, and to this in
side ring as construction company,
they let the building Of the road. In this
way they use up the stock, money bonuses
and it may be a first mortgage on the road
bed. To another inside corporation as a land
company they may soil the valuable portion
of the land grant at a trifiing valuation. A
third wheel within a wheel, as a trust COM
pany may furnish the rolling stock. Still
another inside corporation may sell to the
now completed road, side roads, and still
another as freight companies and authorized
buyers may control the freight shipments
and wheat buying. The dictatorship may
crush out the original stockholders by means
| well understood on Wall street and may pro-
coed to play with the property as cat does
with the mouse. Under such circumstances.
where the owners of the railroad property
are swindled and cheated and the legisla
lures are helpless to give aid, how much help
can a shipper or seller look for? Time works
a remedy. The competition of neighborinr
roads may compel the management to serve
the interests Of the people along their lines
or the rotten mass, from its very rOttenness
may go to pieces, and the public for q time
receive honorable treatment
As long as produce must be marketed within
certain time, and over two railroads. and as
long men are not angels. the carrier will control
the rates for freight, and the buyer the price to be
paid. As long as all the farmers produce, on the
way to Market is handled by few men. these men
have undue advantage. Not so very long ago
the only outlet the manufacturer of iron and the
miner Of coal in the Schuykill Valley had. was over
the Reading railroad The result was warfare with
the railroad company. Gradually the Reading rail-
road company became the owner of coal mine
and iron furnace after another, crushed out every
individual owner and then the unweldy. rotten car.
cass went into bankruptcy. The farmer can not be
dealt with in that way. The railroads do not want
| his land and can not take advantage Of him where
| there many things to be sold and he need sell
only what peases him. 1t is unlikely that combin-
alton Of the buyers Of wheat. oats barley. corn po-
| tatoes and cattle would hold any time. The de-
mands of the market would break it down. This
leads me to another thought.
VALUE OF CATTLE.
Some OF the most energetic and well TODD farmers
Of Pennsylvania and New York will not sell spear
grass or oats or wheat other staple off from the
farm. They feed it to stock. Something is expend-
ed for barns and sheds hogs and cattle bought
when and where they are cheapest fatened and then