Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-02-28
The Wide-Awake Farmer.

Nontu8C u EScHy OPPoKtunAty- 10
vice for n Removing stumps and Rocks.
The Wide-Awake Farmer.
As the wants Of the people increase
there Is not only greater consump-
ton, but more variety Is sought. If the
world has changed and electricity is
beginning to supplant horses and men,
the farm is not exempt from the ibfiu-
ence Of progress. The articles used
as food, and the dishes prepared, are
very different from those II 4 century
ago. Many fruits and vegetables now
In general use we're gpknowp at the
beginning Of the present century. II
the farmer is to keep pace with those
engaged in other industries, he must
change his methods and his crops, to
correspond with conditions not Of his
own choosing, and meet the consumers
Of his products with commodities Of
q kind better adapted to their wants,
and not such as he may prefer to grow
for himself. Every year witnesses
something new in the field of agricul-
ture, and no farmer should be content
to follow q beaten path, but should
branch out and endeavor to take ad-
vantage Of every opportunity for pro-
ducing something on the farm that will
afford him a larger profit than he Sc
cured the previous year.
The fact is conceded that the low
prices for grain are caused by the
cheapening of the cost by the use Of
improved labor-saving implements and
machinery on the farm, and the day
when crop must be cultivated be-
cause 1t requires less labor than some
other has passed. The crops that pay
best now are those that are the most
costly to produce, because they are
grown less abuUdantly than the cheap
er kinds. Corn, wheat and oats are
grown at one foyirth the cost of former
times, and the old prices will never
return unless the misfortune Of fam
inc should occur, which is hardly pos
sible in a county with such diversity
of climate as ours. There are crops
grown in this country which apparent
ly are very large, but which do not
supply orr home markets, and among
them are potatoes and onions, and this
is due to the fact that they require
more labor than corn or wheat. Beans,
peas, apples, cherries, ounces and
some Of the garden crops are often be-
low the amount required for the sup
ply Of the home markets.
1t is not supposed that farmers will
suddenly revolutionize their methods,
to study the markets and statistics,
and endeavor to learn what may be re-
CURED. Labor should always be con-
sidercd in growing n special crop, for
it enters into the prices and the re-
Enumeration, for such expense Is never
overlooked. 1t is labor that makes the
value, and, while it is well to cheaper
the labor, yet the amount Of labor re-
quired should never deter one from
growing crop. A crop that pays well
one year may not be profitable the
next, as there is an inducement, by
higher prices, for the farmers to seek
the crop that pays best, but there are
too many farmers who adhere closely
to certain crops and thereby fail to
secure the highest prices or largest
profit. The progressive farmer will
keep himself well informed, and be
always prepared to avail himself Of
the advantages open by growing va
riety Of crops in order to satisfy the
demands of all Observation-Disclosures
Record.