El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-03-30

M dUstry promises more for the
- future than the genral adoption
Of power-propened vehicles on the
farms of the country 1t has been
demonstrated time and again that the
automobile on the farm is a paying
investment Wherever 1t has Deen
adopted in the rural communities IL
has added much to the rapidity with
which the farm work may be done
Those who have made use Of II declare
that next to the telephone, II gives
the farmer more advantages than any
other innovation since the rise Of har-
Vesting machinery.
The main difficulty confronting the
automobile manufacturer in getting
his machine into the hands OF the
farmer, has been the ultra conservative
tendencies Of this large army OF Amer
leans. The average farmer Is especlat-
/ " conservative in che matter OF pay
ing out his hard earned dollars Wnlle
he may use the produce OF his farm
with what seems sometimes to be
profit gacy, he dislikes TO buy anything
which costs him an actual outlay OF
money. He thinks nothing OF feeding
his stock so well that they nLeral1y
roll in fat" even when grain Is %
cents a busheI, and hay is $50 a ton
But II he has to buy hay and grain
different complexion is placed upon the
New Magic Circle.
1t is here that a new magic circle
ting the use OF denatured alcohol for
industrial purposes. has opened
new field OF hope for the far-sighted
automobile manufacturer. The farmer
may now grow potatoes and may utl-
ize the small ones for making dena-
tured alcohol to drive his farm macnln-
cry. Wherever this has been tried. II
has been demonstrated that IL costs
less to manufacture enough alcohol TO
take the place Of a horse than 1t does
TO keep the horse 1t doubtless will re-
quire years to get the conservative
farmer 10 act upon this Well-prOFeo
theory, but IL is believed by many stu
dents o. farm economics that in the
course OF the coming decade or two,
hundreds Of thousands Of farmers viii
adopt this method Of securing power
for their farm work in preference to
the use OF the horse.
Horses a Burden.
II IS estimated that there are nearly
SO,O0O,OOO horses and mules In the Unit
ed States. and that IL takes the pro
duct OF some five acres OF land 10
keep each one The emancipation OF
the land from the burden Of support
ing the horses would make available
many millions OF acres for other pur-
poses. OF course, some OF this land
would be required for growing the po-
tatOes from which to make the alcohol.
The net result however. would be a
great saving IN the number Of acres
required TO furnish the farm power OF
the United States.
justified in his conservatism In not
adopting the farm tractor for all farm
purposes, Is shown BY a few statistics
OF the present annual upkeep account
OF the automobile In the United States
leading trade authority calculates
that the present day value OF the au-
tOmobiles in this country IN money
aggregates more than double the total
cost Of the Panama canal 1t is esti-
mated that the tire and inner tube bill
Of the automooLe-using public OF the
United States now amounts to $4,000
600 year. The gasoline used IN 1914
Will cost, authorities estimate, nearly
as much as IL costs to maintain the
American army. Adding to this S2O,-
100000 for oil and grease for lubricat-
ing purposes. il win be seen that the
expense accounts for automobile opera
ton, leaving out the matter Of repairs
and depreciation is very heavy one
Use Of the Farm Tractor.
The versatility Of the farm tractor Is
one OF the most remarkable features
of the whole automobile business Many
of them are so constructed that they
can haul g good sized train of loaded
wagons to market one day, the next
day serve as power for the operation
OF a thrashlng machine or a wood saw.
and the following day draw g series OF
harrOWs, rollers and drills over a large
field. While the farm tractor is being
most widely used IN the middle west,
on the Pacific coast and IN the wheat
raising districts OF Canada, IL IS along
with the pleasure car, gradually com
ing into is own in the other sections
OF the country.
The worlds record for blowing has
been made by an oil-driven tractor, I
tried out az Purdue university. Haul !
ing q unit Of 90 plOWs, three OF these
tractors recently plOWed a stubble z
field at that Indiana institution At the I
rate or an acre every four and one
fourth minutes. The three tractors,
working together, were found 10 have
a greater capacity than the three work [
Ing slngly. This is explained by the !
Iact Unat ploWtng requires a great [
deal OF reserve force, and that the re- (
serve force Of one Is practically suffi- I
elent for all three. The tractors in this ]
eNperime nt were operated on a low /
grade OF kerosene distillate, costing {
about four cents a gallon. The fuel I
cost FOR plOWlng was six nd one-half I
cents gallon. The big gang-plOW /
turned over seven acres OF soil for ev- l
cry mile II traversed-
While, in many cases, the manufac-
Uurers Of self-prOpelling farm machin-
cry have been inclined to make the !
whole machine as a unit. others have /
found il more profitable to manufac- I
ture tractors which could be used sim
ply as mechanical horses. With a com
paratively small motor truck, or trac- /
tor, the farmer is able to hitch up one /
binder or two mowers and go around /
a Held OF grain or grass at a much 4
greater speed than with the horse /
drawn machinery.
Rural Prejudice Overcome.
One Of the difficulties tending to pre- /
vent the general adoption Of farm /
tractors is the prejudice in the rural I
mind against automobiles in general. [
Many an intelligent cOuntryman has I
observed that this prejudice comes from
the automObilists themselves. They I
assert that so long as an automobilist I
observes the speed laws and takes those /
precautions which insure the safety OF /
the hOrse-using traveller, they have no 4
conn paint 10 make, and welcome rath-
er than complain Of the advent Of the /
automobile. 1t is when such things !
happen as a farmers four-horse team I
being scared and made to run away 4
without the automobiles even stop I
ping TO prevent the disaster, or to 1
protect the farmer, that bitterness Is
engendered- In great many COM
wives and daughters Of \
farmers are entirely stopped from trav-
cling on the public highways for fear
of having their horses frightened by
careless and reckless autOmobiIists
drivers. The farmer contends that il
the better class Of automobiIists
would help TO bring to justice such
reckless drivers as these. there would /
be no complaint on his part when