Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1892-01-21
SOMETHING ROTTEN.
7. t. CAN'T DISCUSSES THE CONDt-
TON or THE FARMERS.

'tON VI tVC TPNWCu0.
They Are In Trouble, and Our System r.
sse~p<'nsibIe--A Distressing Condition
uf Affairs. Which Must He Rem edied
Ur We viii Suffer.
have been mingling with the farm
ers and Alliance men of the counties Of
lGonee. Clarke. Madison and Oglethorpe,
and have also seen and conversed with
planters from other sections. have
made u special study Of the political
views of Alliance men, investigated their
faith in the ultimate success of their or
ganization, and given particular atten-
ton to the financial condition of our ag-
ricultural element. will give you a
plain and unvarnished report of the out
look. rs it appears to me, and from what
] can gather from parties living in other
sections of the state. believe that the
situation in the counties around me will
also apply to any part Of Georgia.
There is no Disgusting the fact that
the average farmer has about reached
the end of his row, and unless the
merchant and creditor carries him an
other year and leaves him the land and
implements with which to make another
crop. that hundreds Of men will be
turned out of house and home, or forced
to become hirelings and tenants in fields
that they once owned. And the poor
farmer is in no way responsible for this
condition of affairs. and neither can it
he laid at the door Of that great scape-
goat--overproduction Of the fleecy staple
to the exclusion of provision crops.
Even with the short crop made, had
the gold kings of Wall street unlocked
their Golfers when the necessities of the
country demanded that they do so-en-
abling our southern banks to accommO-
date the merchants and the merchant in
turn to indulge the planter and Q reason
able price had been paid him for his
staple. we could have easily weathered
the storm. and by the exercise of mutual
concessions and economy doubtless re-
gained in 1899 all we had lost in 1891.
There is no reason whatever for this
epidemic of distress warrants and fore
closures of mortgages now sweeping over
our state. The farmers are not bank
rupt, and their lands are worth many
times the amount Of their indebtedness.
There is more home raised corn. forage
and bacon in the country than known
since the abolition Of slavery. Three
fourtAs, il not more, Of our planters will
be able to operate their farms next year
with but little, il any. assistance from
the west. Their plow stock and cattle
are in better condition than ever knew
them before. BY the improved system
Of preparing against washes and the ro-
tation Of crops. our fields will produce
fully Is per cent. more than they did five
years ago. Farmers are learning to
economist too, and cny merchant will
tell you that their store accounts have
been greatly reduced. And neither can
4 see any Just reason for the low price
that cotton brings. II there be an over
production Of the staple, it should also
affect the price Of manufactured goods
a we'll as Ut raw material, and yet we
are still forced to pay rs much for cotton
clothes rs when the Heecy staple brought
ten and eleven cents. There is some
thing rotten in Denmark" and believe
that there has been an unholy combina-
ton formed between spectators and
somebody else to force the farmer to
cell his crop ut less than the cost Of pro-
ductiOD.
We are now confronted by An unnat-
uraI and AN nnwarranted state ut affairs
We see the granaries Ut Georgia. burst