The Holly chieftain., 1908-12-25
NEARLY EIGHT HUNDRED MIL
LION DOLLARS EARNED 6Y
DAIRY COWS LAST YEAR.
LARGE EXPORT TRADE
CHANGES THAT ARE MAKING
FARM LIFE PREFERAeLE TO
LIFE IN CITIES.

year SHOWS that the highest crop val
ues In comparison with former years
are held by corn, wheat. rice, all GER
eals, potatoes. sugar beets, possibly
tobacco. by beet sugar aud by beet and
cane sugar combined. Next to the
highest value was reached by hay. bar
ley, oats. sugar cane and cane sugar,
and perhaps by cotton.
Cotton-It seems likely that the cot
ton crop Is one of the highest three
ever produced, but with a value next to
the highest or perhaps more, although
the farm price of cotton this year Is
below the price of last year by more
than / cent.
For the first time In the history of
this country's agriculture, the value OF
the cotton crop, including seed, has
apparently exceeded the value of the
hay crop, which has heretofore held
second place.
The largest crop Of rice ever raised,
23.000.00O bushels. is this years, with
value of about $1S.000.00O, the crop
being 29 per cent. above the flve-year
average and its value, % per cent.
above
Animal Products-Although the
farmer gets hardly 20 cents pound for
his butter, between and 4 cents a
quart for his milk. and about III cents
for each egg, yet the value of the farm
products of the dairy COW is getting
close to $500 1000, 900, and the value Of
the eggs and poultry produced on the
farm is worth as much as the cotton
crop. seed included. or the hay crop, or
the wheat crop.
The aggregate value Of animals sold
and slaughtered and Of animal prod
ucts, at the farm amounts to about
three-eighths Of the value Of all farm
products, estimated upon the census
basis, and Is getting nearer and nearer
to $4,000. 100000.
The exports of agricultural products
in the fiscal year 1908 were valued at
31,017 10000 an amount greater than
for any year except 1907, the reduction
of $37,000,O00 under that year being
chiefly due to the falling off in value of
cotton exports.
The exported cotton was valued at
$43S,000,00O, the grain and grain prod
ucts at $215, 100000, and the packing
house products at $196, 100000.
The imports OF agricultural products
in 1908 were valued at $54O,000,000 in
the countries from which exported, re-
duction of $s7,000,000 below the value
for 1907. The exports of forest prod
ucts are beginning to decline, chiefly
in lumber and timber. The imports
of such products declined in 1908
mostly because Of India rubber, but
there were gains in imports Of pulp
wood and wood pulp.
The exports of domestic agricultural
products in 1908 being worth $1,017,-
1000, the exports OF foreign agricul-
tural products $10,000,000. and the I'M
ports of agricultural products $5l0,000,-
900, a balance of trade of the enormous
value Of $4SS,0O0,00O in favor OF the
farm products of this country results,
an amount exceeded only In 1901 and
1898.
In his review Of the last twelve
months of agriculture, the secretary
remarks that momentous changes have
occurred to agriculture during the per-
iod Features of great import have
been introduced; forces have become
operative whose results are already
enormous, with The certainty of cumu-
lative and accelerated future conse
quences, for the nations good. The
farmers work and harvest have had
the benefit of more varied knowledge
and more effective intelligence. His
life and living have undergone transfor-
nations which increasingly make the
farm preferable to the town.
The farmers are already demonstrat-
ing that they can provide for natur-
ally increasing population. The extra.
ordinary prosperity of the farmers fol-
lowing their low financial condition
dozen years ago and earlier has ena-
bled them to pay higher wages for farm
labor than before. From 1895 to 1906
farm wages increased in greater de-
gree than general prices did. The per-
centage of increase Of prices Of all
commodities, as Indicated by Brad.
streets index, was Sc per cent. while
the wages of farm labor by the month
for the year or season without board
increased 3S per cent. and with board
Al per cent; wages by the day in har-s
vest without board increased 46 per
cent. and with board IS per cent: the
wages OF ordinary labor by the day
without board increased sc per cent.
and with board 61 per cent. In the
matter of wage increase compared with
prices, the farm laborer has Jared bet
ter than the workingman employed In
manufacturing and mechanical indus.
trieSs