Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-01-14
Amount of Transactions In
volyed in Various Commune
ties Amount to Thousands
FAIL WHEN THEY QUIT FARMS
Experiences of Many Successful Asri-
cultursts as Business Men Where
Competition Must Be Met Tell Diff
ferent Story-WiIson's Rural obser-
vations.
Special to Times Republican.

cDeCldi To liflcS- nSpuDllCan.
Sheffield Jan. l4.--If the total
amount of money involved in transact
locality could be computed for year
the magnitude of the resulting sum
would be surprising The other day a
farmer near here shipped from anoth-
e'r Iowa county sixty head of 2-year-
old steers to be fed for the market
next winter. At the same time near
neighbor had on his farm a similar
herd which is for sale. Another farm
er, owner and manager Of a half-sec-
ton Of land not far away. after look
ing over his books, finds that in the
past twelve months he has bought and
sold to the amount OF 100000 Within
the last ten months twenty-t three car
loads of horses have been shipped from
the station of Rockwell The average
farmer during the course of year
makes many deals in the different
kinds Of farm products and his tinan-
cial success often depends in large
measure on his ability in this line Said
one recently: My crop this year was
a, failure. More than that, wind
storm blew some of my buildings over
and badly damaged my premises. Still
made little money" Then he de-
tailed cattle trade whereby he made
good profit. Anyone outside the
business who imagines that farming
consists entirely of cultivating the soil
and feeding the products to farm AMI
mails, selling them when marketable, is
likely to find on investigation that the
up to date farmer needs to be man
of education and good business capa-
city along with the other well under
stood characteristics.
One Of the local achievements in the
way of swine raising this lsear that is
Gibbs. who has nearly ESQ hogs OF
his own raising on his farm near this
town. Mr.. Gibbs is not at all dis
couraged over the present condition of
the hog market and is preparing to
duplicate this years record during the
coming season. Another man in the
vicinity, r. w. Clark, has constructed
sos feeding floor for his hogs that is
the result of an idea original in this
section. First he put in wall of con-
crete 2Ox4S feet, Is inches below the
surface 20 about a foot above the top
of the ground, exactly as for founda-
ton of building. Inside he filled in
with the same substance to the top
of the wall and cemented the floor.
thus formed. Putting the bottom Of
the wall below the surface shuts out
the rats, and as there was no wood
used the floor is a permanent one.
Within the past eight or ten years
several farmers living in the vicinity
of a town situated in this part of the
state have left their farms to the care
of tenants and engaged in various
lines of business. These men like per-
haps eighy per cent Of the entire
number of farmers in that locality. are
either immigrants from a foreign
country or the immediate descendants
of that class. Plenty Of capital, the
good will of his neighbors, and an edu-
cation limited to a knowledge of rails
ing corn and oats and feeding hogs
and cattle appears to have
been the equipment of each Of these
men who aspired to successful bus
mess career. The invarfable result Of
these ventures is not surprising. In
every case the farm has either already
been sold or is for sale. such trans
action being necessary to furnish funds
to cover business losses, and those
men who in each instance had arrived
by hard physical labor at a point
where financial independence was an