The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1903-05-05

J ally large but the crop not alone above
an average.
Farmers associations should be organ
lied in every township. These associa-
tons. besides gathering and disseminat-
ing would serve as a~gricul-
, tural schools, and the experience and SUI
Derior Intelligence OF one farmer would
teach an inexperienced or less gifted
ueighbor. What is said of the tobacco
farmer applies with equal force TO the
/ cotton. grain. stock. truck or general
farmer. The practical benefits TO be de-
rived from farmers associations are too
many To enumerate.
An intelligent club Of farmers could use
only what their soils demanded and buy
their fertilizer in quantities, which would
be a great saving. As an illustration OF
the difference in wholesale and retail
prices, ! viii instance one. Acid phos
phate was offered in December. 1883. Tor
$3.50 q ton and sold at retail IN May.
1900. at S16.0 90 a ton.
The difficulty of securing farm insur-
ance and the apparent discrimination
against farm property should cause the
farmer to look to himself for protection
and organize farmers mutual insur-
ance companies, but these companies
should be upon conservative business
principles and so s~afe-guarded as to maze
the risks absolutely solvent.
1t is wise and advisable for the town
ship organizations to have a benevolent
feature, and upon the death OF a member
to collect not more than one dollar each
from it's members to pay TO the widow
or dependent minor children of the de-
ceased member, but in no case for tits
amount to be above three hundred COL
lars.
A non-political, agricultural newspaper
would be a valuable aid and educator to
the farmers of North Carolina. and
should be established.
For a generation the power and influ-
! ence Of the farmer has been waning. In
| North Carolina four-fifths of our people
live by agriculture. but they are scatter
ed, unorganized. and do not exercise the
influence they should.
In the United States today more than
half Of its population live on the farm.
More than one-third Of the people en-
gagged in 'gainful occupations work on
the farms, and they have invested Ill
| agriculture thirty billion dollars, or four
times that invested in manufactures.
Of the appropriations of the last billion
dollar Congress the smallest of the ger
| eral appropriations was made to agri-
1uACdit IN 1AC Oo0S VI
| agriculture amount to five billion dollars
annually. The business interests of the
country are organized and are legislataf
for and protected-the laboring man is
organized and demands protection, and
his voice is heard-the millions Of farm
ers are forgotten. Why? Because they
will not assert Observation-Disclosures they
| are unorganized. Combined they would
be all-powerful.
There are many other great advantages
that suggest themselves to a student of
this subject which would be derived from
an intelligent organization of farmers.
Will our farmers wait until all prices
are low for their products, to organize?
Will our farmers wait until their labor
has moved away to organize and to dis
cuss the question Of machinery, that is
necessary to be used in order to make up
for the loss of labor.
The professional and all people of every
calling, North and South, have organized
and so should our farmers and the quick
er the better, and not put it off until
necessity forces them 10 do so.