Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1888-06-08
American Farmers Opinions.


. Eaily last summer the New York
Trib, determined upon canvass
of tho gricultural districts OF the
entire Jnion for the purpose Of OBJ
tanning an expression Of the feel
iOgs of farmers towards protection.
Accordingly, a nOn-partisan circu-
lar of inquiry was prepared and
mailed to the officers of oranges,
with a request that they submit it
to their respective organizations
and obtain a full expression of the
views of their members. Copies
were mailed to thousands of midi
vidual farmers without reference to
party. AS fast as the replies came
in they were filed, to await exam
ination by a committee composed
of gentlemen of known ability and
rectitude. 1t is a singular fact that
the several gentlemen OF free trade
proclivities who were invited to
act on this committee declined, con-
sequently the letters were exam
ined only by friends of protection,
many OF whom lived at some dis
lance from New York. IL is a pity
that the others should, with one
consent, have made excuse.
On the Sth of January the Irib-
une published the report of the ex-
aminers of the several thousand
letters OF farmers. 1t is an inval-
liable contribution to the discus
sion that is going on in every part
of the land; for it shows that, be-
yond question, an overwhelming
majority of the practical agricul-
turists of the United States favor
protection to all farm products.
The report says:
"The great majority of these let
tiers express the conviction that the
tariff, notwithstanding defects and
omissions, has contributed power
fully to the growth and welfare of
agriculture. Few are hostile or in
different. An overwhelming ma
jority of the writers realize that the
protective system, by building up
ether industries, has enormously
enlarged the demand for agricul-
tural products. While increasing
the demand it has greatly dimin-
ished the number of those who
would otherwise have been forced,
for lack of other employment, to
crowd into agricultural and to COM
pete with each other in supplying
that demand. 1t has helped to
bring TO tnls country nine million
immigrants since its adoption, and
during the past fifteen years not
one IN twelve of them have been
farmers, farm laborers or shep-
herds; out of 100000, more than
100000 have been of other
occupations. 1t has especially aid
ed the development of manufac-
lures and mining near the farms,
so that the safest and most profit
able of all markets for farm pro-
ducts has been enlarged. Thus, in
the ten great farming states OF the
West, the increase in acres OF i'm
proved land in farms from 1860 to
1880 was 100 per cent. A growth
so remarkable could not have Oc-
curred without disaster to farmers;
indeed, it would have been utterly
impossible if there had not been a
far more rapid growth OF other
branches of industry. For during
the same years, and in the same
great farming states, the hands
employed in manufactures lncreas-
ed 25l per cent, the wages paid to
them increased 3O3 per cent, and
the materials used IN manufactures,
bought mainly from farms, increas-
ed $3.50 per cent. The wages which
manufacturing hands in these
states had to spend, mainly IN buy
ing farm products, averaged Sl.lO
tor each improved acre in 1860, and
had risen to Sill for each improv-
ed acre in 1880. The value of ma
terials purchased for manufacture
in these states, manly from farms,
averaged S4.O2 for each improved
acre IN farms of those states IN"
1860. but -haA-ri-~- 20 500 lor
eacl, improved acre in farms IN
1850. The following tables, pre-
pared from census reports, verify
- - .4oknr,opfc.