The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1891-09-24
The American Farmer.

Ever since the invention of that
masterpiece of human diabolism-a
needlessly excessive tarif-the condi-
ton of the American farmer has been
one of dependency, hopelessness,
hardship, want aud misfortune. The
fleeing merchant on each side of him,
the tax-gatherer behind him, and the
mortgage-shark in front of him,
fly which way he would or could, the
same ills and woes confronted him
every avenue Of escape completely cut
of. Drought parched his field, storm
laid waste his crops, sickness pros
trated him, and yet the remorseless
Money-Devil stood by his bed of SUI
fering and snatched the last dollar
from his trembling hand. Other in
dustries prospercd and fourished,
other classes fattened and grew rich,
while the fruits of his own withered
away, and he himself drew nearer and
nearer to the ragged verge of bank
ruptcy and ruin. He went backwards
in the same ratio that others went for
ward. The rest of the world did not
need his surplus for they had an
abundance of their own. 1t has come
to this that there must be general
shortage OF crops in Europe, and the
American farmer must have plenty,
before he can have anything like pros
porous year, and this state of affairs
may happen on an average once in a
decade. So the American farmer,
hemmed and hedged in by the barri-
ers of the tariff and excluded from the
open markets OF the world by its over
whelming iniquities, must depend for
his occasional thrift and good fortune
upon the miseries and misfortunes Of
others. Never in the history Of this
country has such an abundant crop
rewarded the agricultural industry.
God has sent the rain and sunshine at
the most needful seasons and mingled
them in a manner to evoke the full
measure OF the earth's riches. After
feeding his family of sixty-four mill.
ons, the American farmer will have a
surplus OF two hundred and fifty mil
lions bushels of wheat for the outside
world. He has two billion bushels of
corn growing in his fields. He willhave
for export sixty million bales of cot
ton, besides unlimited quantities of to-
bacco, pork and beef.
With all this bountiful harvest there
will be practical illustration of the
fact, that drought and storm anC
hunger and war in Europe are the
only real friends that the American
farmer has. This year drought anC
storm combined to seriously effect the
yield of the European grain fields
England has the poorest crop she evel
raised with no hope of supp ying thu
deficit from her old standby and de
pendence- the usually plethora
granaries of India. To large extern
she must depend on the American
farmer, not only for the cotton to feec
her spindles, but for bread to feed he
people. Hereis bright streak OF gooC
luck for our farmer as well as her need.
millions, for we have free trade in tn
markets of Great Britain. The wolf o
starvation is already at the door OF tn
peasantry of Germany, the tariff bar
riers of its want-stricken States mus
fall before the terrible exigencies OF tn
situation, and free trade in meat ant
grain from America will not only b
eagerly demanded but must be speedil.
granted. Russia, the great rye AM
wheat producing country, to avoi'
famine, has forbidden the expectation
OF grain, retires from competition an
leaves the American farmer tn