The Opelousas courier., 1898-12-24
TRADE IN FARM IMPLEMENTS.
10 Other Country Compares with the
United States In This Line.

No Other Country Compares with the
United States in This Line.
At the close of the civil war a reap
er now selling for s75 cost s120; a steel
plow, nov costing s12, sold for s26;
a potato digger, now costing 81, sold
for S25; grain scythes, costing 50
| a dozen, cost SIG; shovels, now costing
SO a dozen, cost $40; binders, now cost
ing $3.50, cost $500, and moving ma
chimes, now costing $50, cost SllO. AS
this process of reduction has been go
ing on, the product of American fac
tories in the line of agricultural lmple-
ments has been generally extended ana
vastly improved, so that the United
States are now not only at the head OF
all other countries, but so far at the
head of other countries that there has
practically ceased to be n serious
competition except in respect to the
supplies sold by certain European
countries to their colonies. Throuat
the free markets of u world, WITH III
restrictions established by ~ I'm
ments, the United States are the great
source of supply. The Importance OF
the business carried on both at nome
and abroad by the United States manu-
~facturers Of farming implements IS
shown by the figures of the last federal
census Of 1890. There were at that
time, approximately, 1000 manufactor-
les Of agricultural implements IN the
United States, the amount invested IN
this line Of manufacture being nearly
$3.50, 600 600, the average number or
persons employed in it being $4,000, the
materials used averaging in value SO
DOC, 900 and the output $780, COS ,0oo.
Since the summer of 1892 the American
trade in agricultural implements has
been subjected to a marked prostratlon.
The export trade Of the country IN
agricultural implements has continued
large and has even Increased:
1893 fiscal Year, ............S4,ooI,Oo o
1894 Fiscal Year, ............ 5,02I,o oo
1895 fiscal year, ............ o,4lo,ooo
1896 (f1scal Year, ............ o,l'o'ooo
1897 (t1Scal Year, ............ 5,ziO ,oVu
The Argentine republic has been the
SiiC1 tlololliC1 VI Tic bLlkSo >~N
this item OF manufacture, and the
South American countries and West
Indies have been customers to a small
er extent. But while the foreign mar
ket has continued. the home mar
ket for American agricultural products
has been curtailed greatly, in conse-
quence of the failure Of some crops,
the diminished prices for cereals, the
accumulation, west and south, OF mort
cages and the contraction Of credit to
farmers, who, as a rule, buy their agrl-
cultural machinery or credit, payment
being predicated on the success of the
crops and of paying prices for them.
AS a result of the agricultural depres-
sion in the west in 1898, 1894, 1895 and
1896, it is hardF. TOO much to say that
the farming implements used during
the past five years in the United States
have been literally wearing out. The
large concerns have been carrying their
customers on credit, and with large
debts outstanding the farmers general
ly speaking, have been awaiting the
return of better times and better prices.
The favorable conditions of a year ago
were not without their effect on this
branch of business, and those of this
year are being reflected in the enlarged
market for farming machinery, reap
ers, threshers, plows, rakes, binders.
scythes and harrows. At the head OF
the states of the country in the volume
of it's manufacture of agricultural i'm
Elements Is Illinois, with an invested
capital Of nearly $50, 0Oo, 0O0. Ohio fol-
lows, then New York and then Wis
consin. Ohio supplies most Of the
southern market Of demand and New
York the middle and eastern states.
OF recent years California has develop
ed it's manufacture of farming imple-
ments largely.