The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1895-08-06

UESOS or OGQ66 innings, We L001 as
tonished at the productive capacity of
the American farm. Chicago. Detroit,
st. Louis and scores of other large
cities would never have been built but
for the rich farming sections surround
ing them. And they are evidences
within themselves that much that
should have gone from the consumer
to reward and enrich the tillers Of the
soil was caught up by the s~peculator
and money sharper, who managed to
work a corner on grain, and thus it
went to erect palatial residences in
cities while the farmers home con
tinued to be, perhaps, a mere shanty,
destitute of comforts, and yearly get
ting worse and worse for want of re
pairs, which he was unable to make
without going in debt. The American
farmer has fair transportation advan-
tages. A hundred years ago he had to
haul everything by the slow process
of wagons and teams, but today hun
dreds of navigable rivers and thou
sands of railroads offer their services
in the transportation of products of all
kinds steam and electricity hurry the
products of the farm towards the cities
and ports of our own and foreign
countries.
The American farmer has the advan-
tages of the most improved nipple
ments. Invention has revolutionized
methods and multiplied the capacity
of agriculture. Overproduction is al
legged as one of the evils of our time
and country.
Agriculture enjoys prominently the
sanction of Divine Providence above
every other secular occupation. God,
himself laying out and planting the
first farm and putting the first man in
charge to cultivate and keep it By this
act God committed himself to bless
mani in his heaven ordained occupation,
81 long as he should conduct himself in
obedience to the instructions of his
Maker and should keep the garden in
proper condition. There is an indirect
"a uGA . dO444US W OO ali
that was necessary and to know all
that was required to keep the garden
in proper condition. With God above,
around and beneath the American
farmer, it would seem that he could
need but little more. But while God
in nature and revelation is thus allied
with the farmer, man and human
government are against him. The
American farmer needs that all dis
eliminating laws shall be eliminated
from our system Of government
Everything else has the advantage of
charter privileges corporate advan
tages, and special enactmet in legal
statute to promote it's prosperity, but
the farmer has none. He is expected
to keep pace with commercial pros
perity and flourish equal with manu-
featuring establishments He is ex
pected to thrive like municipal corpor
atoms and banking institutions though
he is unaided by legislative enacment.
The Americ an farmer needs to be
educated in regard to civil government
and the laws of finance He should
know how to compute the percentage
of loss and gain upon all crops. He
needs a more thorough knowledge of
the products of the different sections of
our country, and to what extent they
are able to supply the demand. To
gain this, he must read reliable books
and papers. He needs more Of the
spirit of cooperation with all men of
his own and kindred pursuits, and to
stand ready to share mutually any ad-
vantage and disadvantage alike. The
farmer needs to realize a handsome
profit on the products of his farm over
and above the actual cost of produc-
ton. He must get enough to make up
the wear of tools and stock, the ex-
haustion of fertility from the soil, and
the depreciation in buildings, interest,
etc , and have left something to spend
for education, health and comfort be-
fore he can claim to be prosperous and
contented. Never while the sun shines
can the American farmer prosper and
be satisfied under such a financial de-
preston az has prevailed in our coun-
try for the last few years. Farming
that has to be nurtured by funds made
through some other occupation to keep
it going, is no evidence that farming
pays, or that a majority of farmers do
not half work.
The American farmer needs more
than five or six cents a pound for his