Macon beacon., 1889-07-27
THE FARMERS LOT.
1t Is Not MS Bad MS Some DisgruntIcd
IrllOMs TRY to pint LII.


Fellows Try to Paint II.
My Investigations lead ms to the
conclusion that there is good ground
Tor the frequent complaint of made
quate return from farming. But. after
all, low prices are not unprecedented.
For instance, in 1919 my father picked
up forty dairy cows, one or two in a
place, and the highest price for the
best of the herd was $ll, remember
when corn sold at 10 to IL cents n
bushcl. oats at 8 cents, oggs at cents
Il dozen and butter at 6 cents pound
Inc average price OF wheat in my local
market was very rarely 81 Il bushel.
ana for corn about IS cents. Durinu
the past four years wheat has aver
aged about - cents, and corn not far
from 40 cents. find that groceries,
woolcn goods rid boots and shoes cost
very nearly the same thirty years apo
I as now, but calico muslins, nails and
hardware were from p to 80 per cent.
higher then than now, and salt cost
twice as much. While a dollar will
purchase more of the ncccssarics of
lie now than then, it requires abont
thlrd more grain to bring us that
dollar On the other hand, so far rs
the labor is concerned, we can raise
and market the bushel of grain cheap-
er, for invention. railroads and i'm.
proved highways have increased the
power of muscle. To illustr2.a. II
frequently took Two men and two
horses a day to mark out ter acres of
corn land for planting and from two TO
four men another day to plant it.
Now with a check-rower in a larre
Held one man will plant without mark
ing twenty acres or more in day: or
II 1t must be marked one way and
checked by the lever, the farmer with
ms three-row sled-marker can mark
twenty-five acres or more in day and
two men can plant twenty acres
The cost of q marker which w;,, lac,
many years is only 81 to So, and of n
hrst-class planter $32 and about sI9
extra for the chcckrow attachment with
80 feet of wire. Formerly in heavy or
lodged grass it was hard days work
Tor man to NOW an acre, while now
with machine costing but $i5 the
farmer cuts with ease to himself and
his team nearly an acre an hour, and
Will save the cost of his machine in
cutting less than 100 acres. In PUTTING
In and harvesting crop of small
grain the expense has not been ro.
duced so much, but is considerable
less than formerly, while the grain is
all saved, whereas enough used to be
wasted to pay for harvesting. The ex-
pense OF marketing has in the aprrc-
gate been reduced by railroads and
bringing the markets to the farmers
door, Tho building OF turnpikes and
multiplication of bridges enables tho
farmer to take twice as much at a load
us was possible in former days. There
are men In my ncighborhood who can
market 100 to POO bushels of wheat n
aay' drawing ii from their farms to
.he railway station, who In the enrlv
tlmes spent ten days with II four horse
team taking forty bushels to Cincip.
h".'' their nearest market. The farmer
OUT Oh debt and whose crops arc ne
soou now as formerly can look Sc
reheiy at the situation; but those who
allowed their land to run down So
'ha' IN addition to low prices ,hcro
are also small yields or who aro c,rrn
ing a heavy load Of debt-cvop ho.
might bo worse oil, Waldo II naF my
In N. Y, Tribune, 'F0"u'