The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1889-09-13
THE FARMERS LOT.
Il II Not rs had ~ Some Diagruntled
Fellows Try to Patnt It.

Il II Not rs Had ss Some Disgruntled
FellOws Try to Paint IT.
My Investigations lead me to the
conclusion that there is good ground
for the frequent complaint of made
quate return from farming. But. after
all. low prices are not unprecedented.
For instance. in 1849 my father picked
up forty dairy cows. one or two in q
place. and the highest price for the
best OF the herd was $11. / remember
when corn sold at 10 to Is cents q
bushel. oats at 8 cents. eggs at 8 cents
dozen and butter at cents a pound.
The average price of wheat in my local
market was very rarely 81 bushel,
and for corn about Is cents. During
the past four years wheat has aver
aged about IS cents. and corn not far
from 40 cents. | find that groceries,
WOODEN goods and boots and shoes cost
very nearly the same thirty years ago
as now. but calico, muslins. nails and
hardware were from % to 80 per cent
higher then than now. and salt cost
twice as much. While dollar will
purchase more of the necessaries of
life now than then, it requires about
third more grain to bring us that
dollar. On the other hand. so far as
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 illustrates: 1t
frequently took two men and two
horses a day to mark out ten acres of
corn land for planting and from two to
four men another day to plant. It,
Now with a check-rower in a lar.e
iield one man will p ant without mark
ing twenty acres or more in day; or
il it must be marked one way and
checked by the lever, the farmer with
his threc-row sled-marker can mark
twenty-five acres or more in day aud
two men can plant twenty acres.
The cost Of a marker which will last
many years Is only 81 to S., and of
first-class planter $50 and about $l2
extra for the checkrow attachment with
so feet of wire. Formerly in heavy or
lodged grass it was hard days work
or man to NOW an acre. while now
with a machine costing but $40 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 re-
duced so much, but is considerably
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 aggre-
gate been reduced by railroads and
bringing the markets to the farmers
door. The building of turnpikes and
multiplication of bridges enables the
farmer to take twice as much at load
as was possible in former days. There
are men in my neighborhood who can
market 100 to 200 bushels of wheat a
day. drawing it from their farms to
the railway station. who in the early
times spent ten days with four horse
team taking forty bushels to Cincin-
natl, their nearest market. The farmer
out of debt and whose crops are as
good now as formerly can look Sc
renely Ut the situation but those who
allowed their land to run down so
that in addition to low prices there
are also small! yields or who are carry
ing heavy load of debt-even they
might be worse off-Waldo F. Brown.
in N. Y Tribune.