Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1915-04-23
DENMARK is IDEAL COUNTRY
Cooperative DEVELOPMENT Found
Complete In That Little Terri
tory-High-Priced Land.

operation. In that little country VI
mo cooperative enterprise in its mos
complete development II you speal
OF scrub cows, the American co-opera
.Ioh booster will begin to tell you
the wonderful work of the Danish CO
operative cow-testing societies. writes
r. Z. Ellis In Farm. Stock and Home
Your complaints of excessive dairy
manufacturing charges bring out the
story OF the cooperative cheese fac
tories and creameries of the Danes
marketing problems, 1t would seem
DO not now trouble that enterprisins
people-their cooperative marketing
societies attend to that Surely II CO
operation f. the solution of all din
culties. agricultural and otherwise. the
people Of Denmark should live In an
earthly paradise.
But all Is not well in Denmark.
With all Of their cooperative enter
prise and enthusiasm the Danish farm
er Is having hard time to make ends
meet and the tendency in that land Of
small farms is all towards the larger
farm and the division of the people
into the two classes characteristic Of
other European countries-the large
landlord and his many laborers or ten
ants
This tendency has been recognized
by the Danish government and they
nave made strenuous endeavors to
maintain the Homestead farm. They
have even gone 30 far as to offer
young men loan up to 80 per cent of
the value of the farm they propose to
buy with interest at less than half the
figure prevailing in America and the
principal payable over a long term Of
years. And now the government IL
forced to recognize that even this
measure has failed to hold the people
on their own small freeholds.
The Danish farmers themselves hold
no false illusions as to the all sufiici-
ency Of cooperation and education.
Their explanation is contained in three
words-high land values. All of the
benefits of cooperation. Of education
and Of industry have been capitalized
In land values. Add to this the specu-
lative value and we have the explana-
ton of the dificulties of the peasant
farmer of Denmark
A few years ago Rider Haggard, the
novelist, who is also .
farmer, visited Denmark. He pub
ished book on his observations. One
" the points that impressed him most
strongly was the high price paid for
Danish land. He saw poor sandy soil
hat the American or English farmer
would hardly consider suitable for
heep pasture. sell at $500 an acre.
really good land sold for much more.
Ind the price 10 still going up.
AS an instance of how quickly land |
alues expand to nullify the good re-
ults that should flow from social leg
Station we may mention the effects on
and values Of the government loans
D homeseekers. have 1t on the au-
hority Of the Danish Peasant Farm
rs union that land that could be pur-
hased for 500 an acre when money
ould not be had for less than 6 per
ent quickly advanced to $500 an acre
hen the government offered money
/ 8 per cent. And what better
nance has a man to pay for $500 land
it'll per cent money than he had
, establish a home Of his own on
100 land with money available at 6
er cent?
It has been so with their co-opera-
We enterprises. Cooperative trading
axes farming a more profitable in.
,stry. More profitable farming re-
Its in higher-priced farm land. II IL
everywhere. Consequently the
rmer who invests in that land finds
! the profits that should go into his
vn pockets flowing out in the form
interest. which ID the equivalent Of
Q rents paid by the American tenant
rmer At the same time the farmer
taxed on the food he eats (outsiAe
that which he grows on his own
rm). the clothes he wears and the
use he lives in. Danish farmers are
ming to see clearly that all the
xes they now pay add to the high
st of living. whereas the proportion
ely light tax on the land. advances
price and makes speculative hold
2 nossible and profitable