Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1913-07-09
Gan Add s47,OOO,OOO TO
States Annual Farm Profits.
Consumers Will
Benefit.

approximately one and one-half bushels
10 the acre
1T may be interesting to note what
it would mean to Wisconsin farmers
in dollars and cents if from the area
they till to these five crops they Sc
cured the same acreage Yields as are
obtained by the farmers of Germany.
Official statistics of the two nations
show that if Wisconsin farmers had
reaped in 1910 the same yield per acre
of the four cereal crops and potatoes
that German farmers harvested. in-
stead of a cash return of S54.000,o00
the higher yields per acre would have
brought them at the sana prices to-
tai return of over sol 100000. By
merely equaling the Yields obtained In
Germany the farm wealth of Wiseon-
sin from these five crops would have
been increased by S4T000.000 in this
one year. 1t is evident from the mere
statement of this fact that it would
mean much in the way Of added pros
perity. not only to the farmers, but TO
all the industries OF the state, to Sc
cure such results year after year Yet
there is no reason why Wisconsin's
yields should not equal or exceed those
of Germany.
"As n result Of many years of study
and investigation l have no hesitation
in saying that there is one principal
cause. and one only. for the fact that
The nations of northern Europe have
outdistanced Us in improving the pro-
ductivity of their farm lands That
cause is the systematic cultivation Of
hoed root crop an average OF one
year in four IN rotation with cereals
and other staples. find also a thor
ough agreement, both among agricul-
turd scientists aud among practical
farmers, that the best OF hoed root
crops for This purpose is the sugar beet
The reason for this is that wherever
beet sugar factories have been estab-
lished che farmer can sell the sugar
content Of his G@et crop and receive a
direct cash return theI afor The pulp
and tops of the beets remaining after
the sugar is extracted form the finest
of stock foods. and il these are fed
back onto the land none Of its fertile
elements are taken away Ia the ease
of other root crops the only available
use for the roots is to feed them to live
stock. The direct cash return. which
is clear gain TO the sugar beet grower.
is lost In the cultivation of these other
root crops
German administrators early grasp
ed the great possibilities OF the sugar
beet in increasing the productivity Of
their farm lands, and Germany has
steadily encouraged the culture Of this
crop In all possible ways. They have
done this not only by imposing heavy
tariff duties upon imported sugar, but
also by direct bounties upon the ex-
ported sugar of domestic growth. In
the past Germany has expended hum
dreds of millions of dollars IL export
bounties upon sugar to enable her
manufacturers to sell abroad at less
than the cost of production. She has
done this solely because of the bene
fits of the sugar beet In increasing
general agricultural production.
American sugar beet farmers are
now rapidly learning to adopt propef
methods Of rotation. Reports which
have collected from lis farmers scat
tered from Ohio TO California who
have kept records of their Yields be-
fore and since growing sugar beets in
rotation with their other crops show
that they have increased their average
yield Of corn 2T6 per cent, of oats 4S.1
per cent, Of wheat 49.1 per cent, and
of barley - per cent, collective NV
erage increase Of 446 per cent. due to
the intelligent rotation of these crops
with sugar beets.
"To the farmers Of your own state
this subject has special importance,
Wisconsin has every climatic and soil
condition requisite to the successful
scale This has been demonstrate I
within the past few years In the most
practical way by the experience Of
thousands of Wisconsin farmers In the
actual growing OF sugar beets and by
the successful operation Of several beet
sugar factories within the state limits.
can extension Of this industry
throughout the state would mean not
only large direct return 10 the gen
eral industry Of the state from IT'S OPP
Grafton, but slso an addition Of many
millions Of dollars year to the in
come Of the people of the state as a
result Of the additional millions OF
bushels Of staple crops that would be
harvested But this result cannot be
attained If the tariff ON sugar Is re
moved or seriously reduced because
capital will not invest in expensive
plants for sugar manufacture under
conditions Of certain disaster and loss.
Moreover. the consumers Of the
country win benefit a hundredfold
more by the increase I'm the output Of
food products through the general and
rapid extension Of sugar beet culture
than they possibly could through the
saving of even the full duty now
charged on Imported sugar. and no one
who has studied the subject believes
that any ouch saving would result from
"a.