The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1883-05-03
The Kind of Farming That Pays.

Some time ago Mr.. J. S. Blalock
gave to friend, from Texas, state
ment showing the expenses and prof.
its of his five-mule farm last year, and
to his surprise the statement found It's
way into the newspapers. Mr.. Blalock
is quiet, unobtrusiye man, without
any disposition to thrust himself be-
fore the public, or to seek notoriety,
and with reluctance he yielded to the
request of friends and furnished US, Tor
publication, fuller account than that
which has already appeared. We are
glad to publish the statement, for we
feel that its effects will not be lost on
those OF our readers who, are engaged
in farming.
The cost Of running his fivezmule
farm. was about rs follows hire and
board of hands, 81, ,l60; day labor,
$3.50; hire for picking cotton, s4oO !;
feed OF mules, S375; fertilizers about
500; repairs, ETC., S75.
The receipts were as follows, the es-
innate in dollars being ours On ITO
acres he made 107 bales Of cotton aver
aging 4SO pounds, this at an average
of s cents pound, gives the handsome
total of S4,l0S.S0; 20 acres OF creek
bottom yielded 1850 bushels OF corn,
at S5 cents a bushel, $S92.5O; 10 acres
III wheat, 200 bushels, or, at sl.21
bushel, $3.50; from the oats made on
130 acres, he thrashed l,700 bushels.
and fed II head of horses on the rest
from the 10th OF May until the 10Th OF
November; he puts the crop at 2,5c0
bushels, or, 40 cents bushel, 81 900 :;
from of an acre he gathered 200 bush
els of sweet potatoes, which we may
fairly place at 500 ne gathered loo
bushels of peas, about half the yield OF
20. acres, SIPS ;-ten tons Of hay, $50 !;
6,000 pounds of fodder, $50; 10 bush.
els OF barley, $685. 5000 bushels o.!
cotton seed, 1850; he killed 10 head OF
hogs, aggregating 1000 pounds gross,
which, at 5 cents, gives $32O,-he fatten-
ed these hogs on = acres OF chufaS,
feeding them some corn, late in the
fall: s.surplus" cattle brought S75 !;
butter, $50. The products of his orch
ard and garden, as we'll as the expen-
ses of bagging, taxes, ETC., are not IN
cluded in this statement. From these
items, we get the following totals
Cost of running farm, 50, llO.00
Receipts, I,49o.Oo
Net profit, j.. = S,3eo.oo
These figures would be almost il-
credible, did we not know the charac-
ter and habits of the man who furnish
ed them. Mr. .Blalock began with men,
.onessplow-boy and one girl, as regular
wages hands. In June one man died
ana another left him. AS the state
ment of expenses shows, he depended
largely upon day labor. He was un-
able to cultivate his crop after the
first Of July, owing to the unfavorable-
ness Of the seasons, and he had great
difficulty in picking his cotton; much
of it remained in the field until this
year, on account of the scarcity OF la
Dor. These circumstances affected the
results.
He says that while this crop was
little better than usual, with him large
crops are not uncommon and are not
a matter OF surprise. Being asked the
secret of his successful farming, he
said, Prepare the soil well, ma
nure we'll, and cultivate well 4; there
is 10 secret about it, He always ma;
nures his corn. Last year, on So acres
OF his cotton, he used 200 pounds OF
Acid Phosphate and 40 pounds OF
Kainit to the acre; and on 80 acres
he used, to the acre, 200 pounds OF
Ammoniated Guano, and 40 pounds OF
Kainit. On his corn land he used ten
or twelve bushels of cotton seed and
40 poands of Kainit to the acre.
In addition; Two renters made, on
a aone-mule farm each, Is bales OF cotton
and 100 bushels Of wheat. Another
renter made on one-mule farm, IA
bales of cotton and 100 bushels Of corn.
Otherrenters made on a two-mule farm,
2S bales of cotton, 800 bushels OF corn,
100 bushels of wheat, and $50 bushels
of oats.
This shows what is in 4 farm, when
it is run by the right kind Of q farmer.
Mr.. Blalock farms in the tield-he
sticks to his farm and drives his busi-
ness. Farming is much like other call
ings; there is money in it, but it can
be got out only by business men in