New Iberia enterprise and independent observer., 1914-07-11
MAKING FARMING PROFIT
ABLE,

"The weak point in the whole
fam proposition is the lack OF a
sales department. declares a
writer in the current Collier s.
"You may brush aside every
other consideration; they all ad-
Just themselves as soon as the
sales department is settled. Make
farming profitable and men will
graviate toward it. The same
old economic law is in force now
that has been governing man for
ages: He seeks the biggest re-
turn for the least effort in the
shortest time. If the farm eau
give that, farming will be attrac-
tive. 1t is money that brings
men back to the soil. "
The "back to the farm argu-
ment that does not show men
how they can make at least as
much money as they are now
making is not going to get men
to 90 to farming. The argument
designed to keep the boy on the
farm that does not demonstrate
to him that there is more money
for him on the farm than there is
in the city is not going to keep
the boy away from the bright
lights. Sentiment makes and un-
makes few farmers. 1t is the
coin of the realm that does IT.
The attractiveness or unattrac-
tiveness Of an occupation or To-
cality has little influence. "Does
it payg" is the point that counts.
"The trouble with farming
has been not SO much lack OF abll-
itv to raise crops as lack Of abll-
ity to sell them. The lack OF
ability to sell crops lies in the
fact that farmers do not or
ganize their selling forces.
FARMERS who cooperate, COM
pared with farmers who are not
organized, are like an army COM
pared with a moe. onion grow
ers OF west Texas are getting =
1-2 cents a pound for onions
e uuey organized, as against
half a cent a pound when they
were selling on the every -man-
1or-nnmsen plan. The cabbage
growers got $3.50 ton on the
~ Now they are getting
500 a ton. The prune growers
of California raised just as good
prunes before they were organ
lied, but they got nothing for
their prunes and the prune was
one of the stock subjects for the
newspaper joke. Since the prune
growers organized the prune has
become staple and prune grow
ing is profitable, not because
prune growers advertised prunes,
but because they organized.
Farmers complain Of the profit
taken by the middleman, and
there is no doubt that the mid
,dleman does get more out Of the
final cost Of most farm produce
han the farmer gets, but it is the
farmers fault because he does
not take the selling into his own
hands by organizing.
The boy will stay on the farm
when he makes money on the
farm. He will not stay because
IA bunch Of highbrows get to-
|gether and appoint committees
to investigate the psychology
and the ethical aspects Of the
exodus from the farm. When a
bov sees his father raising good
crops year after year and getting
very little for them above the
bare cost Of produc ction, it is a
hard matter to show him that he
ought to stick to the farm for the
fine air and the superior pump
water he is getting. The farmer
boy wants to make money the
same as the city boy, and if he
can't make it on the farm he is
going to the city.
The farmer cant make money
as long as he gets from 20 per
cent down as low as 5 per cent
of what the consumer finally
pays. He will get these percent
ages just as long as he permits
everybody else to take whack
out Of what he raises. Those