The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-09-22

value of an acre OF corn In NOIth Var
DINA is a few tents mere than IN I'LL
nois- The average value OF An acre
of corn in Lee county is greater thar
in a halt dozen of the foremost corn
states of the West.
The county folks are beginning to
realize such things as this and TO ten
their friends and neiShbors. and the
result is that the corn flower IS De-
coming a mighty popula boquet IN
the new county. The Old ioea was
that YOU can't make a profitable crop
in this section. Now. it has been
changed to the certainty that nobody
under heaven knows what You can
make in this land. From the old doc
trine of can't has come the doctrine
of can. and the can is bounded by no
limit that anybody can figure out l
suppose Lee county alone could pro-
duce fifteen million dollars worth OF
corn in a year, which is about as much
as the state of New York makes.
If you doubt his and l have to fig
ure it out for you l will try to show
you that the figures might safely be
put higher and include with New
York all the New England states.
Corn is only one crop. But it is
enough for an illustration. and that
illustration is to show that we have
no idea of what this county could
do if it had the people to make the
effort. Lee county needs about a
hundred thousand settlers. and it
| needs them becauSe it has here the
| for them to develop with
profit to themselves and the county.
Finding Out the Possibilities.
The first thing here was to find out
what can be done. Now that the peo-
pie have that they can DO
about anything they want to in the
county they are wanting to do far
more than has been A
movement has been set on foot by the
directors Of the Bank of Sanford to
give Lee a little more gasoline. and
the rest Of the folks are joining IN to
see what it will do. 1t may not be
well defined yet. for while the intent
is to get the OF the county
into more general use. how to do 1t
cannot always be mapped out in ad-
vance. h probability is that every
mar in the county will be put on the
watch tower to keep his eye open for
a chance to start something, and that
every suggestion proposed Will be
tried out in some way to see What 1t
signifies.
1t looks to me as if the Lee county
folks have taken the second important
step. 1t is probable that they have
not hit on the details of a plan, but
they are setting out for some place
anu DIS IIoy p1OpOSS " hSSp III - II
until they arrive at some desired deS-
tinatiOn there is no occasion to dOubi
the results if they hang to their in
tentlons. And I think they will hane
to their intentions because | do not
see how you can ever let go Of a thing
Of this kind once you have started it
The folks in Lee county have dis
covered the possibilities Of their cOun-
ty, or rather they have discovered thai
the county has possibilities that are
far out OF reach Of the occupation q
the present generation. They under
stand hat settlers may come this way
for years without pressing on the b
{ ity of the county to absorb all Wht
core. Knowing this the people havt
arrived at the further knowledge tina
the next thing is to apprise the worlt
of the situation in order that settler
! may ne encouraged to join in the prof
; liable Undertaking that awaits. Thi
, is another helpful symptom TIL
l lea derS have come to see that wha
l Lee does from now on is what tn
people do. tina, if the people work ag
excessively teacher the settling Of til
! county is wholly in their hands. ar
! that while the community will b
t built up Of it's own momentum SoOne
a or later. it will be built up much NOR
:. rapidly and Systematically if directe'
: by intelligent organization and plan.
1 Heightened Efficiency.
8 In the past few months desire ha
: taken shape in a certain unity Of pur
K pose and effort. The remarkabl
s force Of this working is seen in tn
8 vastly improved efficiency of every
thing in the county. On nearly ever
n road we were constantly coming u
y to what are right model farms. T
be sure these farms have not reach
ed the highest point Of economic an
6 productive operation, but they hav
gone so far ahead OF what was tn
rule a few years ago hat they hav
emphasized the possibilities, and 81
n the pace for all the rest of the farm
q 1t is the same way with the store
{. They have suddenly stepped up fro1
e village ways to city ways. They hay
z given to the town of Sanford the a
,e Of a place that has reorganized fl
IT a new and much more extensive OF
re Grafton, one that serves effectivel
y at the minimum cost and the max
mum Of efficiency.