The farmer and mechanic., 1909-06-01
A COMMON ECONOMICAL ERROR
s. A. Knapp Special Agent Charge Farmers Co-opera-
Work


hoarder Of money and if he saves
two hundred dollars or more by pro-
ducing all his food supplies at home.
he has that much more to spend when
his crop is made, and it is cash.
Under a cash system the farmer
will buy with his surplus more dry
goods, clothing, shoes, furniture, etc,
tor MS family, better teams, farm
implements, wagons, buggies, etc.
on which there is much greater
profit for the merchant than on staple
articles Of food. The merchant can
turn his money in thirty days, instead
Of year. Ten per cent clear profit
turned monthly is better than 120 per
cent gain received annually. Some
Of the farmers increased income goes
into permanent Improvement to enable
the farmer to produce more and
spend more annually.
Again, there is something about
raising cotton, tobacco, etc, to pay
debt that saps the vitality of the
farmer and affects the quality Of his
tillage 1t really lowers the grade Of
farming. If, upon the other hand,
the merchants will join with us in
urging farmers to raise all their food
supplies and try to produce by better
tillage double the crop per acre they
now produce, the result as it affects
the merchant will be this:
All business will soon be on a cash
basis and the volume will be three or
four times as large from the farmers
alone. The advent of more money
will bring diversified industries
among the farmers and eventually
will attract manufacturers to the
market towns.
If there are idle farms in the
country, instead of calling meetings
for the purpose of raising funds to
secure immi grafton, call meetings to
encourage the farmers who know
the country and are loyal to it, to
universally adopt the following plan:
First, provide their own food supplies
from the farm. Second, double the
average product on every acre under
cultivation and let each worker on
the farm by the use Of better teams
and tools, till three times as many
acres as at present, not in one crop
but in a variety of diversified and
profitable crops. This would cause
an immediate demand for more land
and would provide the money to pay
for it. This makes every man on the
farm more than six times the indus
trial power he now is and gives him a.
love of the farm. This is better than
to leave him in discoura cement and
secure immigrants to come and buy
him out
I should not speak so pOSlt1Vely,
onlv [ have observed for quarter OF
a century that where the Southern
merchants have changed from an
.'adyance system" to cash system,
they have prospered very much more
than in former years and the num-
Der of failures is immensely less. OF
course it is not meant that there
should be no credits but practically
there should be little necessity Tor
them until the crop is actually ready
for the harvest. then trade becomes j,
a cash transaction. Or better still,
the farmer can get his money from
the bank and pay cash in all cases, If
there is lack of ready money
The advance system bears down
upon the cotton farmer with special
hardship. His crop is e1thef Sold at
once or is forced to the gin and the
warehouse so as to secure loans. II
the cotton farmer is not forced to sell
to raise money or pay debts he will
store his chops on his farm and mar
ket at his leisure. which is in the IN
terests of all parties.
IT appears to me, therefore, that
the farmer Will immediately gam
when he produces what he has hither-
to bought in the way of living. lie
is not Compelled to sell his crop i'm
mediately uoon the harvest. v hen
he does sell he trades for cash. The
greater amount of money he has IS
very helpful to the family but the
stimulus to his self-respect is per-
haps the most important item TO be
considered. The merchant prospers
by the greater volume Of business
and by the quick return OF his money.
It seems to me that there points should
he urged llnOn all the people.