The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-11-25

| years ago Wisconsin was growing grain | for market. Her lands were depreciating in value as well as in fertility The farm
 CTS saw that a change had to come and they wisely set to work to grow colVers
 and grasses and to make of their coun-
 try a live stock producing country. In connection with this came the great dairy
 and cheese industry. and these things have changed the whole financial condi- tions of the state. There are no longer debts mortgages, poor soil or cheap lands in this state.
 Other Crops Abundant.
 Travelling out of Chicago. passing out of l the state of Illinois, but commencing in the state, we begin to see great fields of l cabbage, onions, potatoes and celery. and not only cars. but whole trains being l loaded with these and being shipped to all our great southern cities. We find l these great fields of the same crops on up around the great lakes In Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. The whole l country from Chicago to Milwaukee along the Chicago and Northwestern rail- 1 way is almost a solid garden-the main crops of which consist of potatoes, onions. cabbage and celery. These crops bring in a great revenue to these sections. It is also very remarkable to note the sys- tenn of cultivation and marketing of these crops as well to see the great amount of manure that is used in keeping the soil builded up and to keep 1t prepared for the production of such large crops, all of which are greedy feeders. Here noth- ing that can be used fertilizer Is wasted, but everything is saved and 1 turned back upon the farm
 Manure Hauled Out.
 Then the cities and towns are kept cleaned up and all fertilizer material
 hauled out for the farms. Some of these i farms have railroad tracks laid out, and whole trains of flats load with manure from the city stables is hauled out right into the fields. These tracks are also
 used for loading the crops when they are ready for shipment.
 | It takes organization, the best business methods and education to carry on such a system of diversf6cation and rotation of crops. Many of our readers who do not travel have heard of the wealth of these states but have never known of their system or how they get their wealth. They have long since abandoned the one crop idea and this is what the south will have to do before she becomes l as prosperous as her soil and climate l will allow. We can produce in most of our southern states two crops to one l in the states I have named, and then, too. We can produce as great variety of 1 crops they can. The question is, why are we so slow in doing thes things?
 There is one thing that has held us back. that is yet holding us back, and that is the question of labor. Our people will not work as the people of the west or northwest do. We had better be hon. est with our readers in this matter and meet fairly the conditions that confront us. l know that the south is making wonderful strides along nearly all indus trial lines but these changes are not coming fast enough to meet the demands of the country. The labor question is one of the chief causes. In the states men toned above the farmers, as a rule. own small farms and they do their own work the family milks the cows, grows the crops, gathers and markets them-in fact they do the work and get and en- joy the proceeds of their farms. This is the only way by which diverslfcation can be successfully conducted in any country
 l have repeatedly stated in these writ ings that the time has come in this country when 1t is almost impossible for a farmer to make something out of an other mans labor on a farm. The more I travel over this country and the more l mix with farmers in all parts of the country the firmer I am convinced of the | truth of this statement. l repeat again the farmer who owns his own home and
 is out of debt, and has his own help with
 in his own family Is the rich farmer of 1 this country and also the farmer who will succeed along the line of diversification.