Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1895-07-09
FARMER ANDPLANTER.
"pivERslFIcATIoN."


A. Opposed Ia Shutting All the Egg iass
One Basket"
''Save the middleman's profit On
that which you have to sell and on
that which you have to buy. Produce
everything possible needed for home
use. Someone makes the profit of
you both ways II you grow something
to sell TO pay for that which you must
buy. There is nothing you can buy
as cheaply as you can grow 1t IL you
can grow il at all Editorial in April
number of Farmers Magazine.
The gospel of diversification IS
quoted above and as preached by our
worthy editor is as true as Holy Writ.
For years we have been an ultra"
diversificationist, going as far in that
line as my rope would let me. We have
lived in "specialistic" time and in q
specialistic country: have both seen
and felt the evil and pernicious effects
OF 'ispecialties" when carried TO the ex-
tent of putting all the eggs into one
basket" Had we lived in a time and
country where ultra" diversification
was the universal practice we would
proba bly, have been found advocating
specialties. We are no believer in
"extremes," either way, and the rea-
son of our ultra" tendencies Is
because the exegencics of the
times and the obstinacy and
blindness of those who adhere to
the "single-crop' policy (ruinous and
suicidal though it bel has hitherto
fnrca1 re in, fb;v J;ron%;o- What a 90
commonly known as cash" crops, so
called for the reason that one can real
ize actual cash lat some price or other)
on them at any desired period of time,
are good servants" but bad mas
sers;" they have, in almost every in
stance, proved to be both blessing"
and .curse;" an unmixed blessing
whenever the soil tillcr exercises d
due and judicious control over them,
but an unmitigated curse whenever
and wherever he allows himself to be
controlled by them. In our humble
opinion, the land was given us by an
all-wise and beneficent Creator to make
a living on. "He that tilleth the soil
shall have plenty of money? No, butt
bread" This is the Divine decree: and
from it there is no swerving. If one
plants cotton, hemp, fax, ramie, to-
bacco, sugar beet, sugar cane, hops, or
even fruits of any or all kinds to the
utter exclusion of the strictly ''provi-
sion crops" is subverting the divine
order; there is no promise to him. nor
comfort for him in the above quota
ton. Bread" is the "staff of life,"
and should receive paramount consid-
Grafton. By all means let us try to
make our farms self-sustaining. and by
so doing we will become self-depend-
ent, self-reliant, independent of
the middleman and the rail
roads to a great extent, and
prosperity is bound to follow.
The greatest drawback the American
farmer has to contend with may be
summed up in word of four letters
that word is debt. All debts are self
imposed, entered into voluntarily and
of their own free will and volition by
everyone who contracts them. The
best way out for those who are in debt
is to pay out" and the first step to-
ward paying out is to practice economy,
self-denial, industry, perseverance, and
to SO diversity as to make the farm as
nearly self-sustaining as possible, and
avoid all specialties unless you fully
understand the speciality. a. II.
Turner, in Farmers Magazine.