The sun., 1899-10-22
STORIES OF THE FARMERS.
LETTERS FROM MES WHO BEGAN WITH
EITTLE AND sUCCEEDED.
Mortgages Pnid oh-Crops Better Owing
to Improved MsthOds-Wages Abont
the Same Farmers Work Less Than

IN. same. Fnrmers work Less Than
They Used To-FinanciaI skill Needed.
n.o,rnipV in 1894 Edward Atkinson sent
o,, ci,cu,,ys seeking information In regard 10
IN. condition of IN. American farmer Tho re
piiea ,.ll an interesting story geographically
tb.v range from Vermont 10 Texas and Montana.
srhe farm holdings run between ninety acres and
tan tbous,nd oddly the largest farm repre-
..n.-d is no, in Texas but in Ssngsmon county.
Illinois. and i,s owner is Of Kentucky breed
These are the points Of likeness in the replies;
Eye,v farmer either went in debt for his farm. or
where il WAS inherited inherited a debt along
with a About half the debts were secured by
mortgage The extremes Of interest paid are
"a u, 8 DER cent. The lowest rate is more excep
,iopsl than the highest
A very .maIl percentage cling TO the onec crop
svstem and farmers have found that working
with batter tools gives better returns. Tools and
machinery are reported TO cost from one-half To
nne-,bird less than twenty five years ago and by
their betterment To have reduced the labor cost
Of many crops by nearly one half Farm wages
have fallen very little. in many cases not at all:
in a few they have even risen slightly A fair
wear around average il 500 a month without
board, but with house, garden ground, fuel and
COW pasturaRe or SIS a month with everything
found Day hands, in the stressful times Of
harvest. threshiug. etc, receive from sL5O to SIS.
according TO the work, and the correlation of
demand and supply
But while labor has held it's own. with the
products of labor II is quite another story From
1873 70 1894. every sort of farm stuff declined in
value oncfourth, one. half, even ,wo-thirds
Orchard, pasture meadow, arabic land have
yielded abundantly, yet put little money in the
purse. Living expenses meantime have not sui.
fered a corresponding fall Clothes, necessary
clothes. that is are reported 20 per cent
cheaper. The rising standard of living however,
makes greater outlay imperative. Small wonder
then that to the question as To whether the de
crease in the prices Of what he bought did not
offset the fall in prices Of what hc sold the au-
swer is No, emphatic as it is unanimous
Another negative, likewise unanimous is full
OF hopeful human interest These farmers do
not work so hard az Of old Some give as a reason
failing strength. or increasing affluence. but on
the whole there is an under recognition of new
ways better than the old In line is the recognition
Of the work Of agricultural colleges and expert.
ment stations. also OF the fact that given good
brain 1t can be turned into competence and con
sequence among men readily in the fields
as in the market or the forum.
On the question of farm mortgages here is
new light. Eugene Davenport of Woodland,
Mich. sometime a farmer pure and simple, now
an agricultural professor as well. writes:
you are right in holding that farm mortgages
do not represent by that much a loss Of farm
property. We have had all over the country
an era Of building upon our farm lands such
as have not seen, or known in any other country.
Whether wise policy not, this one outlay rep
resonts millions Of dollars. and our farmers are
better housed than any farmers on earth. Times
now arc close, and the shiftless farmers must
90 IN the wall Rut close times and nsrrn,r mar
',,ns ,-,,, .on,,., h.,,sr .,a.,, .nd ,a,,., ,a,h
ods Our farmers are poor Just now. not from
failure OF crops, but rather from over abundance"
noll,r wbs.t nav noss;h,v h,vs ind,,c.d ",
Doh"' "hoo' may possio's nave inuu'eo MI
Davenport TO revise that last sentence. FL. b.
Battle. director of a North Carolin. agricultural
.,ns,ir,.nt s,.,ion rri,as. "n". raau,n aaa
experiment station writes: Our people are
raising very largely their home supplies. and
with tho rest Of their land raise money crop
IN euo .eo' VI ,''e' inu ,'i'' money ,'op
! nus ,ney can i've IN comfort ,housn 'here Is
hu, little money in hand Farming is becoming
,..a 81, In, - , ,s -,
heha work WIN h"nd work. ana are properly
ton and brain work are essentials for success /"
-. -. .m.I-i. -,
against .hese onclals near PLAIN iarmer'
d. b. Walker who went from Taunton, Mass
to settle in his present home. Odell. NJ He had
III. - h.h pa s.oo '., H. 49, n 80. w. is 'nu Az
1855. Now he owns 24o acres worth SIS an acre
and still rising. He has broug ht up nine children
who take kindly to farming Il have seen hard
times" he writes. but worked hard until got a
start. At present have , mor,pave NJ "a OOo nm
my t,,m Io.nod n,,, son az noS W S.ouv Wv
my iafn' ioaheu my noh eo'ooo. nave gram.
cattle. horses, sheep and hogs These with grow
ing crops will more than nav my n,ortpaue hes;dss
,',. -, H.., ' o. -.
ho'e" anu accounts Many nave Done oet'er'
some not so we'll as myself An Irishman came
here the same year has raised eleven children and
.,hool.a ,h.r, H. H. o,,n - -, -
Enn,eu EnS;, 'neIn. nc nas mas iVv acres ol lahd goou
@ ns aHE ii1 aam she o"uIy LOOK !ho gen
us 9, %, mn ~ % VII u, ioyo. Many aIms mGl,gdged
, .ouu na"n SoneIa. Weathy farmers mat nave
,SE ,S oseause tney Keep puyihg iahd ana
o.nets teute Ell ron farming ana sell 10 the boys
or se' .ne JOYS 'dke over Ihe morgages .
49, oI ~ appe~aIs ~ Sme Oh tnese farmers agree win
L, pi',sn S.aSIlIan h VINO ,.ui,n i IN the national
neu. , na;.uhd, ;Ih, 9esslng omiI ahnlher view 3i
noikasSe ueo.ounessi IL iurhlshed Oy Wliiiam r.
10Y vi oie. uenesieVe MO VINO writes " hcn
,ionrs - w. no,iomea, ana ueeH Oh uust on land Is
sM sMn - IL, hee"rdea % III ne t'ttuiI Court ciefk $
hm.e h' anu .i,e tult amoun OF the loan Is slated
tu uut No a.upuu. p ol 'ne Parual payment IS kepi
trust entrs s.tsssd m Is Pa'q ana he aeea on
.iu,' rm.Ley "aNsslea .Us ny tne trustee, MI toA
says iui'neI' aoou' oo per ceh. oi iarms IN this
apSunE az NY ar. or inuRaseo lnr perhaps
~ PcI ,oi. Ill U; 'ici talut fauai payments
arc mo. taken "a consiuerau9n sun lhc amount
q! mo!sage lnueo'euneiss Is less man TWO years
nafk. MI COX is not himself farmer, but has
n regarding them among