Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1913-10-23
SPECTATORS Oh FARMERsg

ing is OnOmic-DiScOur it
a Fundamental Union Principle.
The fundamental idea of farming
should be, first of all to produce a liv-
ing at home as far as soil and climatic
conditions will permit.
A living at home means not only to
produce all the food products that can
be economically grown, but also the
livestock, including mules and horses.
1t is just as bad business to pay $3.50
for a mule that Gamble grown onSfthe
farm for SIS as 1t is to pay a dollar a
bushel for corn that can be grown for
thirty cents, or to pay twelve cents a
pound for meat that can be- produced
at five cents. In this age of high cost
of distribution it is a suicidal policy
to plant a so-called money crop" to
exchange for the farmers .S5-cent dol
lar and then use that small dollar to
buy food products that have travelled
through expensive toll gates which
pass all the expenses on to the con
sumner. In making this fundamental
economic error we voluntarily tax
ourselves to maintain the most extrav-
agant system of distribution the old
has ever seen, both on the selling and
buying side, when it isn't necessary
for us to carry this heavy load. The
farmer who produces his living at
home gets his food products Eat cost"
He pays no unnecessary freight
charges, no middleman's tolls, and
doesn't have to employ himself and
team to haul the products from the
market town.
In Arson county twenty years ago
a young man married and went to
housekeeping on a rented farm. His
local merchant furnished his supplies,
taking a lien and mortgage on his
crop. Finding himself pretty well tied
up under the provisions of the mort
gage, he said to his time merchant
just before planting time: "I belong
tc you and I've come to ask instruc-
tions as to what sort of crops you
want me to plant" The merchant as
suIed him he had no suggestions to
offer, but would leave that to his judg-
meRt. "Well, if you do that I am go
1ng to plant for a living for myself and
family and put the balance of the acre
age in cotton and let you take the cot
tcn," said the young farmer. All of
his life he has rigidly followed that
plan out, and while he doesn't live in
what is known as a wheat producing
section, he has succeeded in getting a
yield of wheat that averages close
around 20 bushels per acre, and he
buys neither -four, meat, corn nor mo-
lasses but frequently has a surplus
OF these products for the markets. He
now owns a large productive farm,
with splendid buildings, and his bank
account always shows a comfortable
balance in his favor. Some years ago
another farmer in Union county was
in debt for land and in his supreme
effort to cacel the debt he put in a
little bigger acreage in money crops"
each year. only to find himself deeper
in debt. Finally in his dependency
and disappointment he said to his wife
n day: I'm going to change my
plans. / know / can't make it any
worse. I'm going to plant for a liv-
ing at home and let the cotton be a
surplus crop" Following out this SEN
s!ble economic idea, he was out of
debt in three years, and to s his ex-
preston, Il hardly knew how l got
out, but I know I'm out all right"
These are only examples of a hundred
ike them. / have yet seen in
North Carolina a farmer who started
out in life with the idea of making. a
living at home and has adhered to that
Folicy who is financially embarrassed,
and who has not been III position at
times to pull through all kinds of
financial panics that have I'M along,
without disastrous results. And the
I've at home farmer has another adj
vantage, of being able to hold his sur
J lus products of the market until
market conditions are favorable, and
he doesn't have to sell until he gets
good and ready to sell. There are no