Great Falls weekly tribune., 1895-01-18
A PAYING BUSINESS.
A Cascade County Farmer Tells no"
Farming Pays Here.

and contains some very interesting facts
and figures:
In times of the past it has been as
serted that even hogs would not grow
aud thrive in Montana, but would pine
away and die; but we find at present
this is false. On the contrary, sWine do
better mere and on account Of the climate
are healthier than elsewhere. Nowhere
can this industry be engaged in with
greater profit than right here. Our
markets in Great Falls are now supplied
almost with ZONE grown pork, and no
nicer, better fattened product OF the
kind can be found on exhibition In any
market of tie world. | settled in Mon
tana only six years ago next May. l have
been an enthusiast on Montana as an
agricultural country from the start, and
being of this mind have broken up and
improved a large farm, aud claim to be
one OF the fixtures (hlthough poor one)
of Montana. l have received lots OF
advice and have been counseled by old
timers, some Of whom came here when
the Highwood mountains we're only little
hills. Feeling deep interest IN my
welfare, they told me would starve If !
took up the dry bench which L now call
home and attempted to make living by
farming. My reply was, we will see.
My neighbors, who discouraged me
from the start, are now initiating my OK
ample and are also producing the larg-
est crops of all kinds of farm products
that are known to grow in any country.
/ They are getting comfortably fixed in
every way, and all by farming.
Now, to stop forever all assertions of
the grumbler and the enemy TO the
farming interests, | wish right here to
make statement of the earnings of my
farm and labor for the five years | have
farmed in Montana. Remember, l
! landed in Montana with only $50 in
money, four head of cutie, a horse. team.
4 and other stuff not to exceed 500 IN
{ value. And every hundred dollars
worth Of property have since accumu-
q lated has been wrung out of the soil by
the labor of myself and teams. ] am
not an overstrong OF healthy man, aid
other who have the proper grit can do
much better than | have done. l keep
Il set of books and can tell you to whom
III and when l have sold every pound of
I product and what it has brought, it's
yield, and profits also keep Il diary of
4 the weather.
q My earnings are as follows: Earned
n by labor myself and team, S773.4O: but
81 ter sold, 322.S9; vegetables $}22 40;
ID timothy seed, SAB; oats. S452 &c; cattle
# sold, first cost deducted, Sl;G}; barley,
# S3ll.2O; hay, S3,Ej833; winter rye, SG2;
ss flax, S25; wheat S2,l54.l2; eggs, 55l.57 ;
\ hogs sold, 1925; total sold, 1864 OF. On
Al hand--23 head grown hogs 0t5l5, 5:'l5;
"a 13 COWS and one hull, n $50, $40: 60 tons
VA hay, worth on ranch s. ton, $500; grain
on hand, 500 bushels 1,GD, $500; one
horse, my own raising, $40; on hand,
total. Sl,4O5; earnings grand total,
$lO,039 OG. This does not include poultry
spring calves, small pigs, etc. Thus you
see an average of over $1,000 yearly
a earned, and to start with the virgin soil
and scarcely any capital. Name the
country that can beat it You can't do
X. it. This all on land which has cost but
little more than settlement aud improve
ment, gentlemen. This is the past and
present of my experiences. have yet
the advantage of the increased value of
the 48O acres to receive in the future,
besides its products, which are the most
valuable feature Of the case, and worth
to me and my children more than all the
rest. The earnings are the recompense
of experience Of experiment of the past.
The land shall be an inheritance fol the
future welfare of my children. And
what greater and grander inheritance
4 can Il chld become the possessor of than
home for which father and mother
have born the toll, hardehlps aud priva,
tions of frontier fe to obtain. Now. my
farmer friends, we have passed through
this age of expe iment. 1t is past and
the present crowns our efforts with rch
rewards. Farming in Montana is mo
longer an experiment. 1T IA an estab.
lshed success: it has been demonstrated
beyond d doubt that all kinds of grains
vegetables and many fruits as well as all
kinds of livestock. thrive better and are
more profitable here than in any other
state of this grand union Of ours. Let
US no longer then listen to the cry Of the
lazy, shftless farmer, or the man who
. says "no to agriculture, but live and
profit by our experience. learned through
the experiments of the past. And when
| conceive how great, how grand are the
possibilities of the country in the neal
future, | feel encouraged to greater
exertion. When / look at the future
prospects of Montana, and particularly
this vicinity with which am the most
acquainted, with the outlook for develop
ment in Great Falls, which will give us
near and ready market, | feel, with
these prospects, that W. need have no
fear of overproduction
The esent prospect of the largest re-
tinery IN the world, the prospect of an
other large Touring mill, another large
brewery, the Burlington railroad and
numerous other industries, should be ar
incentive for US, each one and all, tC
take off our coats in the spring and with
greater energy grasp the pillow handles
and turn over these fertile praires, Let
US improve our land, cultivate it prop
erly, and rich will be tho harvest. Let
us not contine our attention exclusively
to any one product, but diversity oul
farming Get few COWS, few hogs
some poultry, house and feed them well
SOW some grain of all kinds, in fact, r~iat
little of all the PRODUCTS; then youl
time will be continually occupied anc
money continually coming in. Contint
your time and attention to the farm; tic
not loaf around town; leave high ant