The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-01-26

N''' '' ~ 'e't'i I'd lstlhltfS tn make thriF
crop upon the advance system ana
while this hats been regarded gs -,
economic error ou the side of thu
farmer by many merchants il haz
nrrh thought that il was RI Very profit
toie way of buying cotton.
The farmer realized that as a mat
Ter OF safety il was better To make IN,
Iood consumed by his family ami ms
STOCK upon the farm rather than ia
purchase IL. and especially when ho
hdd 10 promise payment out Of a urpu
winch had not as yet been made. i
nave been watching this phase al
country life ia the South Tor many
years and have come to the gonclu-
sion that the advance system" is iu&t
'tS great "a mlstdk" on the part of tn
merchant rs il is uu the pall of IN,
farmer, for the following reasons.
First the merchant takes great
risks, which, of course. he tries To
cover by increased charges But eN.u
though these charges are increased.
the staples of life are not such articles
as nigh percentage of profit Will
adhere To, and the merchant lis pUantI-
cally trading sold for promise To
pay. II the crop fails he is obliged
to carry and carry and carry. ana
possibly may ultimately, as i'm thOue-
andS OF cases. be obliged to take the
farm. for which he has NO use. and
under boil WceVil conditions is dim
cult to handle prohta5ly upon a ten
ant system.
Under a cash system There win be
a great reduction i'm the sales of some
staple foods, such as bacon. potatucs
beans, lard. vegetables canned goods.
hay, corn. etc, all articles that carry
low prOtts. The farmer is rarely a.
hoardcr of money, and If ne saves
two hundred dollars or more 10y pro-
ducinG all his feed supplies ut home
he has that much more to spend when
his crop is made, and il is cash
Under d cash system H. farmer win
buy with his surplus more dry goods.
clothing, shoes, furniture, ETC., tor his
family, better teams. lar mimple-
ments, wagons buggics. 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 Ii
year. Ten per cent. clear profit turned
monthly is better than IZU 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 4
debt, that saps the vitality Of the
former and affects the quality of his
tillagc IT really lowers the grade Of
farming. If upon the other hand the
merchants win Join with US in urging
farmers to raise all their food sup
plies and try 10 produce by better TIL
age double the crop per acre they
now produce. the result as 1t affects
the merchant viii be this.
All business win soon be on cash
basis and the volume win 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 VIII attract
manufactures to the market towns
If there are idle farms in the couu-
try, instead Of calling meetings iDT the
purpose Of raising funds to secure i'm
migration, call meetings 10 encourage
the farmers who know the country
and are loyal to it, to universally adopt
the following plan: First-proFlde
their own food supplies from tn" lafn
second double the average product
on every acre under cultivation ana
! let each work on the farm by th'
use Of better teams and tools. till three
times rs many acres as at present
not in the one crop but in variety
Of diversified and profitable rtops
This would cause an immediate d'-
mand for more land aud would pro-
vide the money 10 pay ioF IA l'@'
makes every man on 'pe.. t"rm more
than six times the IA t"''
-s>.s -.zs-.s is and gives l. i.-s--.-----s----
5tra iu discouragement tm.4 1......
oIfarants 20 come and pus man out
eho,lld not speak 80 posiuF.ltt
..,.I.. + have observed for a 4hai
of century that where l"e lr
merchants have chti-'" .,. ,l.r,4