The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1886-12-17

prices are correspondingly low. But
still the farmer is not satisfied. | sup
pose if he raised forty bushels of good,
sound No. wheat, and get twenty-five
cents bushel for It, he would still growl.
In fact most of us farmers seem to be
born grumblers any way, and for some
pretty good reasons too. Well, let us
look over some of our grievances AZ well
AZ our joys. In fact some of us would
get discouraged entirely if il was not for
our Farmers institute. We come and
listen to well prepared eulogies on farm
ing, farm profits and the great independ-
ence of farmers, read by some politician,
school teacher, lawyer or from a speech
of some genial old farmer, who feels so
honored To be called upon to give his ex-
perience on farming before such an in
telligent audience of farmers and towns
people, that he forgets to tell of his loss
as, mishaps, ETC., but goes OH and tells Of
his big profits till we get encouraged,
and assure ourselves that we could not
have managed right, and go home feel
ing that we will try again. But somehow
or another We always come out about the
same. A few years ago there was great
cry for stock. The farmers must have
more stock. Any number of farmers
had got rich by raising stock. Dairying
was also the great cry. We have tried
that experiment q little. would like
to know how many of the farmers have
made big fortune out of either. But
still the poor farmers live. Why? Who
would the farmers have to bleed if it was
not for the farmers? The poor laborer
strikes on working ten hours day at
one dollar fifty to one dollar seventy five
cents up to four dollars day, with no
money INVESTED, while the farmers have
to invest all their capital, work all their
family and then will not clear as much as
| the average working man. Still they
would not change places because il is
such an Independent business. They have
the choice of working from fourteen to
eighteen hours day. They know moth
ing of the hated ten hour iawI they have
the privilege of hauling their grain to
any market they wish and sell for Just
what the buyer will give. Now when We
go to the store for a pair of shoes, or any
thing, you tell the merchant that that il
too much for such an article, and he will
tell you that II cost him 80 much, and
that is the best he could possibly sell il
| for. If we Independent farmers should
tell our buyers that our wheat or stock
cost us so much, we could not afford &c
sell it at their prices, they would only
laugh at us. Now show us any other
business where there is so much money
invested and such small returns rs there
is i'm farming. We have to stand tho
drought, excessive rains, wind storms
hail, foreign competition, and draft OF
grain going to the grain kings. Poor fel
lows they arc too poor to lose that. Bu
the Independent farmer can stand it all
But We can stand all of this better than
the gambling dens of Chicago, New York
and all large commercial cities, known
as the exchange. See how quick they
will pull gambling den in any of those
cities If a rich man, or foolish man rath
er, should venture his cash on a game O
chance and get beat. He runs and in
forms the police. Now We farmers are
tieeced every year by men who are jus
as bad as any three card monte men OF
faro banks. Their gambling in grain ant
produce is the very worst form of gam
bling, inasmuch as the poor, laboring
honest and economiZing farmers, ar,
fieeced with, and not even having ths
privilege of holding hand in the gam,
of chance. On the other hand, the tire,
card monte men and faro banks, the in
dividual being fleeced has the consola
ton of betting or not, while we have II,
chance at ali, and have to stand the con
sequences of it all. Now when we hea
of mans downfall on the exchange, W,
think that is all right; that 1t served hin
right. We do not look behind thi
mans failure and see that we are the
losers as we'll as he. Now we can 60 al
most any where and hear people preach
Ing against gambling, gambling saloons
etc, but it is very seldom We hear of tn,
aristocratic men on the exchange de
nounced as gamblers, because they ar,
in licensed business, and are consider
ed very respectable men. say the,
ought not to be more favored by thu
same law than the lowest gamblers OF
this free soil, as they are sapping tn,
hearts blood out of every industriou
farmer in this country, and at presen
there seems to be no remedy. You hav,
tried to better it by the Grange, but tina
fell through, and now some of you ar
, ashamed to own that you ever belonge,
to such an institution. False pride
Afraid of being laughed at is one of tn
greatest faults of the farmers. We hav
been beaten once, but why be dIscour
aged? Gather yourselves together, an,
try again. i believe in the gathering o
farmers, and think they ought to b
utilized in organizing SO as TO proteC
themselves. Formers have grit, and lie
them show it, and take a stand in tn
right direction, even if we are laughe,
at. Remember, he who laughs las
laughs the longest. The tillers of tn
soil have right inheritance to tie rich
est benefits and joys of this country.