St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1914-12-12
MARKETING WORLDS
GREATEST PROBLEM
WE ARE LONG ON PRODUCTION,
SHORT ON DISTRIBUTION.
BY Peter Radford
Lecturer National Farmers' Union

| BY Peter Radford
| Lecturer National Farmers' Union.
The economic distribution Of farm
products is today the worlds greatest
problem and the war, while 1t hae
brought its hardships. has clearly en-
phasized the importance Of distribe'
ton as q factor In American agrfcuS
ture and promises to give the farm
ers the cooperation of the govern
ment and the business men tho
solution Of their marketing problem.
This result will, in a measure. COM
pensate us for our war losses, for tho
business interests and government
have been tn the main assisting al
most exclusively on the production
side of agriculture While the depart
ment Of agriculture has been dumping
tons Of literature on the farmer telling
him how to produce, the farmer has
been dumping tons Of products In the
nations garbage can for want OF .
market.
vuS VObJ0 UV0VOU 0A~s vOs
At no time since Adam and Eve
were driven from the Garden Of Eden
have the inhabitants Of this world
suffered from lack Of production. but
some people have gone hungry from
the day Of creation to this good hour
for the lack Of proper distribution.
Slight variations in production have
forced a change in diet and one local.
ity has felt the pinch Of want, while
another surfeited, but the world as q
whole has ever been q land Of plenty.
We now have less than one-tenth OF
the tillable land Of the earth's surface
under cultivation, and we not only
have this surplus area to draw on but
It Is safe to estimate that In case OF
dire necessity onehalf the earth's
population could at the present time
knock their living out Of the trees
Of the forest, gather It from wild
vines and draw It from streams No
one should become alarmed; the
world will never starve.
The consumer has always feared
that the producer would not supply
him and his fright has found express
sion on the statute books Of our states
and nations and the farmer has been
urged to produce recklessly and with
out reference to market, and regard
less Of the demands Of the consumer.
Back to the Soil.
The city people have been urging
each other 20 move back to the farm,
but very few Of them have moved.
We welcome our city cousins back to
the soil and this earth's surface con-
tains 16,092, 100, 900 idle acres Of till
able land where they can make .
living by tickling the earth with q
torked stick, but we do not need them
10 far as increasing production is coz
cerned: we now have all the producers
We can use. The city man has very
erroneous ideas Of agricultural condi-
lions. The commonly accepted theory
hat We are short on production 10 al
wrong. Our annual increase In pro
far exceeds that Of our in
:rease in population.
The World ~ Farm.
Taking tie world sss one big farm,
re find two billion acres Of land In
OF this amount there 10
approximately 750. 900. 900 acres on the
western sa1d 1850, 100000 acres on the
astern hemisphere, In cultivation.
his estimate, Of course. does not I'M
Jude grazing lands, forests. etc,
there large quaint tiles Of meat are
reduced
The worlds annual crop approx
,ates fifteen billion bushels Of CO.
calls, thirteen billion, pounds OF fibre
nd 'sfxty-five million tons Of meat
Tie average annua l world crop for
ae past five years, CO impaired with the
re vious five years, 8 a. follows:
Past Half Previous Half
Crops Decade. Decade.
orn (Bu.) 1894, 174,0 90 3,4o3, $751;, 900
7heat (Bu.) $685., 1890 90 1921, 62s. 900
ats (Bu.) 4.12o.o17,N 70 3.5os, 1916, 900
otton( Bales) 19,s63,N 70 1854 200
The world shows n average in
loeo0 LII cereal QTOQu StUu VI Id yes
mt during the past de, cade, compared
18th the previous five y ears, while the
orld's population sho MS an increase
only three per cen {.
The gain I'm product Q n far exceeds
at OF our increase in - opulation. and
1s safe to estimate Il u 1t the farmer
n easily increase pro, h uction Is per
MT II a remunerative i n arket can be
and for the producttL In textile
res the world shows an increase
ring the past half decs .ds in produc-
N OF ID per cent agai nn popula-
n increa SO of three pc z ,ent.
The people Of this n att, IN should
dress themselves to IL te q ubject OF
proved facilities for dir ,trih 'ution.
over-production and CT % n ,ortgage
ce the farmers into T uinos y COM
at1on with each other. The 'emedy
In organization and In CO opera,