The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-01-31
TIDE NOW TURNING
AND FARMING LIFE.
IS MORE POPULAR
Change of Population Between
The City and the Country Is
Now Just About a Stand
Off.
ALL CONVENIENCES AT
THE COUNTRY HOME
AqricuIturist Has Also Over
come the Transportation
Problem by Making Use Of
The Automobile.

desirable residence place has passed,
according to the testimony of the pro
gressive farmers of Wayne county.
They are proud of their country
homes and say that they do not desire
to move to the city. "Modern!" ex-
claimed a farmer yesterday on the
streets of Richmond. What do wou
call our telephones, free mail delivery,
the furnaces under our houses and our
automobiles, but modern improve
ments? Yes and we have baths too,
don't forget that In the summer we
plow our corn riding under awnings.
The farm is the residence place OF
the twentieth century just as the city
was the preferred dwelling place dur
ing the nineteenth. We have the
modern conveniences, as you call
them and We have a great many con-
veniences that are as old as creation
which the city no longer has. l drove
to the city today facing this blizzard,
but l did not get cold. 1 have storm
front and a stove in my buggy
Farmers Felt no Panic.
What was the effect Of the recent
panic upon the farmers?" the report
er asked.
We'll it increased our population
some,'' he said, "for, as remember it
there was quite number OF people
who wanted to get from the city back
to their farms before they went broke.
And the rest of us who had stayed in
the country were thankful that our
were backed by mortgages. We knew
that there was plenty of time for the
panic to blow over before we had to
pay" mo sir" added the farmer,
who by the way is Corn school en-
thusiast "the farmer is the last man
shaken by a panic
A local man who does an extensive
real estate business in farms is OF the
opinion that the movement of popula-
ton between the farm and the city is
stand-off at present. The movement
in December, 1907 was largely to the
farm on account of the panic. In the
five years precious the movement had
been to the cities and towns. The
fact that the ratio is about even at
present shows a reaction from former
years in favor of the farm. This re-
action he believes to be due to two
causes
Explains the Movement.
First" he said in discussing the
situation. "the movement to the farm
was given a great impetus by the
panic. Real estate business in the
city fell off at once. But the farm
realty business actually increased as
the panic swept the city. Many farm
ers, and men in the city too, for that
matter, began at once to look for a
place to invest the money which they
| had lying in the bank. They all want
ed farms. For the first three months
could not supply the demand. The
real estate business in farms has been
on the increase all year. In Decem-
ber and SO far in January have done
a record-breaking business in farms
! Since Septe ember many people have
been buying farms with the intention
1 of moving to them March l. 1t is a
real exodus, and l believe it will be
permanent too. The farm has become
most desirable place to live
Agent Swisher of the traction lines
says that a good part of the interur
ban business is farmer trade. The
| farmer realizes the value of the inter
urban and patronizes it. He says that
| the road gives a special rate to schoo
children under eighteen years Of age
| &,1- <,ft ~
order to get the advantage of cit,
high school instruction.
Farmer Likes Automobile.
But of all the ways in which the
farmer has surprised the world IL
the last few years the way In which
he has taken to the automobile beat:
the record. Automobile manufactur
ers say that they cannot supply the
demand of the farmers for automo
biles. The reason is obvious, the,
say. The farmers greatest problem
has always been transportation. Ths
auto has solved the problem, eliminat
ing the time element in the process
The farmer living five miles out from
Richmond can come into the city il
twenty minutes or to put 1t in anothe,
way, in less time than 1t takes tn,
shop employe living on Twentietl
street to walk to his work in rh,
] North End.
Harvey L. Ashley, manager of tn,
Westcott Carriage company says tha
the farmers of Wayne and surround
ing counties have broken all records
In the purchase OF automobiles. wv,