Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1911-01-13
FARM BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
BY Prof, John A. Bexell, Dean Of
Commerce., Oregon State Agricul-
tural College, Corvallis, Ore.


nounced, can be reconciled with my
discussion only when the word "busi-
ness is sued In its narrowest, COM
mercial sense. In its broader mean
ing, it embraces ever activity on the
farm, from the commonest chore to
the marketing of products.
At the recent convention of agri-
cultural societies at St. Louis, a
prominent Arkansas farm err said that
successful farming may be defined
as one-eighth agricultural science,
three-eighths practical farming skill,
and one-half business ability. This
statement does not mean that the
proportions are mathematically cor
rect, but it does indicate that there
| is an awakening among the farmers
as to their true place in the business
world.
| Not long ago a number of western
ranchmen met to consider the advis-
ability of constructing a great irri-
eating canal. A 15-mile railroad
had to be constructed; it was found
practicable to develop a power plant
in connection with the project, and
altogether, the undertaking required
a capitalization of hundreds of thous-
ands of dollars. Question of land
transfers, ights-of-way, contracts of
various forms, the purchase of equip
ment and supplies, methods of ac-
counting and reporting, organization
and business administration, and nu-
merous others came for discussion
The organization was effected, with
ease and rapidly; and the most no
table feature of the enterprise was
that every dollar of the required cap
itai was subscribe by the ranchme en-
The canal was built, and the various
interests of the business were taken
care of by the farmers with remark
ably little friction and delay. This
| incident teaches three things: That
| the American farmer has become a
! business man to be reckoned with;
that he is accommodating surplus capt.
tai for large enterprises land that
business training" is an important
element in the farmers education.
1t has been said that commerce is
the dynamic force of modern civiliza-
ton. To appreciate this statement
it is necessary to have a clear con-
ception of what is meant by com
merce. Webster defines it as the ex-
change of commodities between
places and places. 1t is not a sys-
tematiC robbery by a privileged class.
as some would have it; nor a misdir-
ected social force, as claimed by COM
munistic sociologists. Commerce
had its origin in the important dis
coyery that men are endowed with
different talents, and likewise that
certain localities are best adapted
for different industries. And it was
not long before it was discovered
that state becomes powerful and
great in proportion to its commerce.
Thus, it will be found that the ma
jority of civil laws deal directly or
indirectly with the regulation of COM
mercial relation between individuals,
organizations and states.
The connection with what has
been said and my subject may ap-
pear remote unless we consider the
remarkable changes in agriculture
during the last century. There was
time when practically the entire
population of the world derived its
sustenance directly from the natural
storehouses, but as population in
creased, division of labor and of in
! dustries developed in every depart
ment of human activity. Instead of
making his own shoes, the farmer
found 1t to his advantage to exchange
a part of his grain for his shoes. In
this transaction the shoemaker and
the farmer were both gamers: the
farmer could wear more and better
! shoes and the shoemaker could eat
more and better bread. In the pro-
cess of specialization, there develop
ed the miller, the tanner, and gradu-
ally thousand special trades and
vacations, each contributing to the
general welfare of the community
Thus the fundamental difference be-
tween the modern and the ancient
farmer is that now he produces
mainly for the market while former
ly he produced almost exclusively
for his own needs. Hence if the
modern farmer is to receive his full
share Of his labor, it is of the utmost
importance for him to understand
the laws and practices of commerce
The business of farming assumes
two distinct phases: The produc-