Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-09-11
FARMERS NOT HELPED
Some Claim High Price of
Their Farm Land is Detri-
ment to Them
MANY SURVEY WESTERN LANDS
A Large Number of Iowa Farmers Arc
Now Absent From Homo on Land
seekers Excursions, Etc Peculiar
Attitude Regarding Vacations = c..
e. Wilson's Rural Route Letter.
Special to Times Republican.

j Special to Times Republican,
1 Nora Springs. Sept. 11.--"Recrea-
tion," outing and vacation" are
terms which the ordinary farmer sell
dom uses in connection with the Incl
dents of his own life. In fact he Is in
clined to look upon such things with
some degree Of contempt regarding
| them as an indication of effeminacy
paratively can afford. However, one
| whose work to be successful, requires
daily meeting with from twenty-five
to forty farmers, when he drives over
rural mail route at time when o
national exposition and great state
! fair are in progress and when cheap
excursion rates to different parts OF
| the country can be obtained, and Is in
| formed at about every second stop he
makes, that Mr.. Smith is in Oregon, Or
Brown went to Denver or that Olson
has gone to the Minnesota state fair,
and Johnson joined Al party of land
seekers that started for Missouri last
Tuesday, he is inclined to the BELIEF
that farmers at rare intervals enjoy
vacations, even IL they don't designate
their absence from home by that par
ticular term.
Land In this vicinity is first
class ink quality and is valued by Its
owners at from SIS to 800 per acre.
| The farms are generally large and the
percentage Of renters is high. Owners
demand the payment Of cash rent,
which the tenants are reluctant to pay
declaring that they can hardly make
a living. They admit that IS divi-
dend on a $500 investment,
with taxes to pay and re-
pairs to keep UP does not look
like d bonanza for the owner, put
points to the fact that they themselves
are not making any progress IN
financial way, and the result Is that a
large number of men from here are
now in the regions Of cheap land look
ing for an opportunity to better their
prospects. It Is said that these dis
satisfied farmers are not a. class OF
ne'er- do-well's by any means. but are
hard working men whose failure to
prosper is due to the conditions OF the
last few years. So far as this section
Is concerned 1t looks as though there
would have to be change from cash
to share rent, an Importation to ten
ant farmers or still further dimin-
uation in the rural population.
N The owner of fine, we'll improved
quarter section speaking OF these con-
ditions made these assertions: "The
price of land, is too high. can raise
no more off my farm than could
when it was worth forty dollars an
acre. while my expenses for taxes and
repairs are greater now than then
The farmer receives no benefit from
rise In farm values. and the prospect
OF being compelled to pay hundred
dollars an acre for his farm is dis
couraging many young men from
making an effort in that direction
tending to habits of thriftlessness,
where II the possibilities of success
were greater they would at least make
the attempt. wish every acre OF
land in this state would drop in value
to about forty dollars and stay there
and I believe 1t will be lower when
all the cheap land of the west has been
occupied"
Thsal another. man was seen who
has different ideas on the subject. He
said: "The young man Of today has
just as good an opportunity as had
thirty years ago. The hay put up on
my ten-dollar land was scarcely
worth the price of the labor required
to get it in the stack. Corn was oc-
casionally used for fuel because 1t
was cheaper than anything else avail
able for the purpose. Hogs were sold
for about half what they bring these
days; poultry and dairy products
brought insignificant prices. Why, a
young man who worked two years for
me and who began without penny.
saved enough while in my employ and
during the one season since he left it.
to pay for complete farming outfit,
everything necessary to run 100 acres.
He is a prosperous renter now, in five
years more he will own a farm if he
continues his present gait. What
more could man do when land was
cheap? I have five brothers They
stayed in Illinois while came to Iowa
where land was cheap. Today they each
own farm about the same in value
as my own. Had I remained there I
would perhaps be in about the same
financial condition as I now am. The
TACT is" he continued, 1--WE desire old
time land values, attended with mod
ern conditions in other respects
situation that, IL 1t were possible,
would enable us all to enrich our
selves in very short time"
C. e. WILSON.