Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1888-07-27
LoKER EARN WAGES.

Colonel Edward l.. Martin OF Seaford
said before the State Grangers' meet
ing at Rehoboth on Wednesday even
ing that peaches could not be profita.
bly, raised unless the cost OF picking,
canning and evaporating could
be lessened. The peach grow
er must have lower wages to
pay or else go out Of the business.
Colonel Martin ought TO know all
about this matter, and we are certain
that he knows more about it than we
do. But we know, also, that il the Dell
aware farmer is constrained either to
quit his business or pay lower wages
to bis help, he would better quit
Farm wages are low enough, and an
agricultural leader as Intelligent rs
Colonel Martin should employ all his
wit and energy to devise means by
which those wages can be main tanned,
at least, il not increased.
Colonel Martin is a free trader, and
he naturally comes to free traders
conclusion when he argues an econo-
mic question, which is invariably
lower wages. II he was not free
trader he would look at such questions
from that point OF view, which does
not RECOGNIZES the contingency OF
lower wages. Less profit and not
lower wages should be the premise Of
all speculation on such ques-
tions. 1t is just possible that other
farm methods would solve this
difficulty which Colonel Martin
sees. He finds that evaporated
peaches cannot be made to COM
pete with European prunes. These
represent very cheap labor, but they
also represent very cheap methods.
The greatest possible number of
pounds are raised on the smallest pos
sible area by methods which the
American agriculturists is slow to
adopt. The American 'yeoman" loves
to look over his "lordly acres.
He dislikes farm over which he can
walk A small peach orchard excites
his COMMUNICATION. He wants to make
enough out Of his crop this year to en-
able him to buy another farm next
year. He pays from $40 TO Se5 an
acre for land and then expects
to clear the whole place by
a peach crop grown on trees six years
old. Anything short of this is dis
couraging. He wears a long face over
it and begrudges the wages, out Of
which bis lab0rers can barely make a
living. There is no state in the Union
unless It is California where farmers
have made money 80 rapidly as here
in Delaware. This is not true of all
farmers, but it is true Of all those
farmers who live in the fruit belt
below Smyrna and who have deserved
to make money by virtue OF their
industry and intelligence.
Another weakness of the peach
growers system is his persistent ad-
herence to one crop. The single crop
always demands low wages, while it's
laborers should invariably have the
highest wages. When cotton was
king no subjects Of royalty were more
poorly paid. In fact they were
slaves. If peaches become king,
peach plucks viii become slaves.
Where iron ore is king. the miner is a
slave, and so it is the world over.
The single pursuit is the bane
Of a community. Diversification
Of employment is the life
Of a community, and multiplicity
of crops the saving or the farm.
Smaller farms aud greater variety OF
crops will redeem the least encour.
aging agricultural area, and the same
conditions and they alone win always
afford abundance Of employment fol-
agricultural laborers, which is the
basis Of good wages.
We trust that Colonel Martin will
devote his undoubtsd ability not tC
any scheme for the reduction of wages
but ra her to the Improvement Of agri
cultural methods and the increase Of
crops, and thus insure not only gooc
profits to the farmers but also the pres