The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1914-09-03

was sufficient, in my estimation, to
bring the price down where it came to.
Now what is the condition that con-
fronts us today? To the north Of us
lies spring wheat region greater in
extent than the combined spring wheat
area of Minnesota, the two Dakotas
and Montana, and while we developed
our country with oxen and mules, they
are developing theirs with tractors.
The crop Of grain grown in Canada
in 1912 was estimated at 200,0OO,O0O
bushels. l don't know what it was
last year but it stands to reason with
the development going on there, it isn't
going to be many years before they
are going to increase the worlds Wis
ible supply of wheat to that extent
that the price of wheat in North Da-
kota, raised on $50 an acre land, is
going to be less than the cost of pro-
duction, unless we produce more
bushels to the acre. That is another
one of the reasons why we must diver
sify.
Now, there is another reason. Some
Of you American-born people here pos
sibly trace your geneaology back to
Massachusetts, where the country was
first settled. Now as you study the
history of the country, you find some
of those old fellows that came over
and settled in Massachusetts and 9th
Ier extreme eastern states, went into
the banking business and some went
to farming-it don't make any differ
ence what their occupation was. A
generation grew up and carried on the
farm, or operated the bank. By and
by the farm and the bank each got
too small; then they went west into
Michigan, New York and Ohio and
settled on wild land and developed
there another generation or two, and
when that country got more thickly
settled there wasn't business enough
for the old gentleman and his boys,
Then the boys came further west,
and settled in Illinois and Wisconsin
and when that locality became thickly
settled, then another crop Of boys
came west into Iowa and Minnesota,
and finally into the Dakotas and Mon
tana and even over on to the coast.
Now where is the boy of the future
generation going for his homestead?
With the boys growing up and the
homesteads in the United States
limited; and they have been lin
tied to certain extent for a
number of years back? What
will be and what has been the
result, even for the past twenty
years Why large percentage Of
the boys from the eastern states have
given up going west to look for home
steads, but don't imagine for minute
that they have been doing better farm
ing or better banking, even in these
localities. No. They haven't been do
ing that. I'll tell you what they have
been doing. Too many Of them have
been going to the big cities. They have
boy went into Chicago or New York
and picked up some street car mag
Mates daughter from getting run over
by street car, and where this street
car magnate took this boy into a bank
and raised him up started him as a
bookkeeper and by and by married
him off to his daughter, and he became
millionaire. Laughter). They have
had their heads filled with that kind Of
nonsense and have gone to the cities.
Now instead Of picking up the bank
er's daughter from in front Of the
street car they have been picking up q
lunch out of the soup houses, good
many Of them, and have grown up,
dissatisfied and disheartened men, un-
til there are today in the United States
two million laboring people who do
not know the value Of the days work
they are able to perform, and conse-
squently they are prey to sharpers
who take from them part Of what
little they are able to earn, for the
sake Of organizing them into Coxey-
ties, or I. w. VS.. This is the third,
and ! consider, the most important
reason why we must change our
methods Of farming in order to make
farm life more attractive to the boy
and girl, thereby retaining their SER
vices on the farm and ultimately rear
ing them into useful citizens in.
stead OF into tramps. II. FAY
Now you have got boys to start in
business. Where are you going to
start them up in the banking BUSH
ness There are no more North Da-
kotas to settle up What are you go
ing to do with them when they grow
up You have got to do either one OF;
the other u two things. Either got