Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-01-08
THE BALANCE.
AS Between the Past and Present 1t Is in Favor
of the Present.

As Between the Past and Present 1t Is in Favor
of the Present.
DENTON, Tex, Jan. 5, 1883.
| To the Gazette.
AS we have some personal knowledge
of the times and things in dispute be-
tween THE GAZETTE and the Waco Day
we offer a few thoughts for what they are
worth. 1t seems that one great com
plant of the day is that the very good
days have gone. OF this we do not in
| quire rightly, Man, as general thing,
soon forgets past experience. He feels
only the present, and being generally
dissatisfied with it, he thinks the by-gone
days must have been better than the
present days.
To be brief, what was the condition of
| the farmer forty years ago, as seen by us
now in one of the leading states of the
| Union? The products of his farm
brought him from about one half
to three-fourths what they do to-day !,
and there were quite few things of his
farm that had scarcely any commercial
value at all that to-day enhance the cash
receipts materially of all thrifty farmers.
Let us itemiZe just a little: Horses,
first-class, $50; COW and calf, 81; hogs,
well, good cured hams brought cents
per pound; wheat, so cents per bushel.
Now excepting few articles, he paid as
much if not more for what he bought
than he does to-day; but remember he
bought very little. Nearly everything
was made at home, or in the neighbour
hood.
What did the farmer have in those
good days that we have not and cannot
have? L have no answer for the question.
What have we that he did not, nor
could have? The greater part of all kinds
of farm machinery and conveniences;
nearly all highly improved stock; the
greater part of all kinds of household
conveniences and necessities books, pa
pers, THE GAZETTE and literature gener-
ally, and that which goes to make up the
general superiority of hahiliment of our
sons and daughters. Why? Because
they were not able to buy them, had they
been laid down at their doors, at present
prices. How could they, when in many
places money was so scarce that cow
skins were taken in payment of their
taxes, and were good pay for whisky and
many other things? [ can scarcely see
anything in those days, materially speak
ing, that viii bear a comparison to the
present days. THE GAZETTE says the real
issue with the producers of
the country is not what a
dollar will buy, but what a bushel of
corn or wheat or bale of cotton will
buy. Now, just what a bushel of wheat
will buy dollar will also buy if dollar
be the price of the wheat. We are of
decided opinion that the preponderance
of bushel of wheat or a dollar as pur-
chasing medium forty years ago and now
is positively in favor of the wheat by
good per cent, and we think all other
farm products bear corresponding rela-
ton. But we by no means attribute this
to the high protective tariff and we do
appreciate THE GAZETTE IS manly fight
for its reduction. The rich are rich
enough. The poor of the land are the
people whose welfare needs attention,
and if they don t get it the wellzin will
ring. Thus we surmise, for let us re-
member that the poor are still laboring
at q disadvantage. q H. CLAY.