The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1888-01-12

every lOO1 OI railway LII 1ulo Sl0"o
country, and every dollar of their
| equipments, and have over $500, OOO,-
900, left. 1t is enough money to pay
for every foot of real estate in these
ten States, with the public debt of the
United States and of Great Britain
added. 1t is enough money to give
So, 500 to each person over ten years
of age in these States, engaged in agrl-
culture. Where is this colossal pile
of wealth ? What has become of 1t ?
Is it to be found in beautified and i'm
proved homes, enriched and improved
farms, improved public roads, i'm
proved implements and machinery,
improved stock, in increasing and
multiplying agencies for the comfort,
happiness and independence Of South
ern farmers? Why is it that with all
the wonderful and marvellous produc-
tive capacity of this G~od-favored
Southland, States are represented
here today, whose farmers are in as
bad condition, financially, as they
were in the dark days of 1866? Why
is it, that they have contributed faith
fully, the perjury of their humble mite
to the wealth of this great abundance,
that they have worked hard and lived
hard, have furnished the land, fur
nished the stock, furnished the labor,
furnished the implements for the last
twenty years to produce this vast sum
of money and today find themselves
entangled in the meshes Of merciless
debt, and are bound to the earth with
heaviness Of spirit? Are our indus
tries properly adjusted and equally
fostered and protected :?
Why is it that the estimated increase
of manufacturing in these States with
in the past six years, amounts to
Sl6S, OOO, 900, and there has been no
corresponding increase in the savings
of our farmers? Why is it that
within the past eighteen years our
facilities in railroad transportation in
these States, have increased 200 per
cent. and there has been no CORE
spending growth in the savings of our
agriculture =? Why is it that while
the annual agricultural products of
these States amount to about one-ffth
Of those Of the whole country, we
should have only about one-thirtieth
of the banking capital Of the country:
Why is it that of the crop Of 1856,
6,550,2l5 bales of the value of $500
COS, 600, the Northern manufacturers
consumed 756, 900, 600 pounds, while
the South consumed only l55, 600, OOO
pounds Are III energies properly
directed? Are our resources properly
husbanded Being chiefly and largely
a agricultural people, do we suffer
from unequal and therefore unjust
burdens, under the operations of par.
tial and discriminating laws ?
The causes which retard our pro
gress and weigh down our energies,
the serious exigency of the situation,
to us as farmers, demands the most
candid and honest investigation. The
questions I have propounded should
enlist the serious thought and most
patriotic consideration, not only of the
farmers Of the South, but of the whole
country. For, Mr.. President, retro
erosion in American agriculture,
means national decline, national de-
cay and ultimate and inevitable ruin.
Rome attained to the zenith of her
splendor and greatness and power, by
recognizing and fostering with jealous
care this greatest of all interests in the
broad domain of human effort, and
never in the history of our country,
has there been a grander opportunity
for noble and immortal achievement
in the science of political economy and
profound craftsmanship, than is pre-
sented for the restoration Of that equi-
poise between the great industries of
the country, that shall secure to agri-
culture. the greatest of all-its true po-
sition. But are we Of the cotton States
laboring under the aggregate evil of
accumulated individual error, or the
more important and serious trouble
of inherent defects in our agricultural
system? Representing a country of
such vast and immense capabilities as
are found within the limit of these ten
States with it's great variety of climate
and fertility of soils, with it's wonder
full adaptability to the successful cul
tivation of all the leading agricultural
products known to the civilized world,
with it's admirable and inviting CON
ditions for diversified husbandry with
its accessibility to the markets of the