Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1889-07-26

SOdHCl4LB 6WtcG Or three times the
strain, but their surplus strength is
wasted because Of this one weak link.
The farmers bushes character is a
chain Of many links, and is subject to
the same law that the weakest link is
the measure Of the strength of the |
chain. The weak link in the farmer |
is sometimes one thing and some
times another; sometimes it is want !
of method and thoroughness, some
times an inability to buy and sell. or
lack Of ability to judge Of the value
Of his goods.
The farmer is so much at the mercy
of the weather and the seasons that
he very often fails in methods of
thoroughness in his work. In fact, he
almost necessarily lacks training in
thoroughness. The business man has
his regular hours of business with
which he allows nothing to interfere.
He goes to his Office in the morning,
and If visitors come he gives them
but q minute of his time, and always
subOrdinates visiting to business. He
does not lose a customer because a
friend wants to see him. He excuses
himself at once. The mechanic re-
ceives the same training, he begins
his work at a certain hour, and quits
at another, and this becomes the
habit of his life. The farmer cannot
do this because of the weather, or the
condition of the soil. He is so often in
terferred with that it is apt to become
habit to submit to interference with
out even mental protest, and hence
he allows the Tightening rod agent,
or the patent right man, or the Cos
siping farmer to interfere with his
work. This we take to be one of the
main reasons why the business man
SO often outstrips the farmer in farm
ing. He takes INTO the new business
his business training, his accurate
method Of bookkeeping; his alert
ness, and his indisposition to have his
routine of business interfered with
by any who have no business to tran
sact with him. There is no more i'm
prOpTiety in a farmer politely excus-
ing himself during business hours
than In the merchant excusing him
self to a visitor.
| Other farmers are hard workers
! and succeed admirably in producing
crops, but do not have the faculty OF
making sales, mostly because they dc
not know the value of their products
They are likely to rate their products
too highly and ask a price that the
buyer cannot afford to give If they
are producing grain for sale they are
apt TO hold on till they need money
and are compelled to sell, and must
take what they can get, generally
lower than what they might have OBJ
tanned earlier. If producing live
stock, the besetting sin of many farm
ers is holding on till it Is over ripe
for instance, feeding pigs to 800 when
his profit ceased at 200 or $50 al
farthest, or feeding cattle to 16O(
when he can get no greater price pei
hundred pounds than he could hav,
obtained at lower weight. Ali those
heavy weights are made at great ex
pense, a far greater expense indeed
than farmers realize. The merchant
who turns farmer is not likely Il
make that mistake. He has all hii
life figured on cost. It has been tn,
study of his life to get winter goods
of his hands before spring, and sum
mer goods before winter, and to KEEP
his stock Of goods tailed up so tina
there will be no fragments or rem
nants, or damaged goods. When h,
sees that certain lines Of goods ar,
bound to lose him money he standi
the loss at once, while the farmer
sticks for his price on the blemisheC
horse or scaIawag steer until the!
have eaten their heads of.
Again, many farmers fail becaus,
they do not sort up their produce
They insist that the buyer shall tax,
the shaggy steer and the damaged
corn with the better lot, forgetting
that the buyer always makes a dis
count on the price Of the lot, to cover
twice over, the loss on the refuse.
wise merchant never does that. I'll
puts up his goods to suit customer
and charges for each grade what it i