The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1915-01-19

Y ~ cldoAC a-
nually thirty million dollars in taxes
10 the State II we get the people II
contact with the that they
may be developed and made produe-
tive.
I have dealt only with state taxes
in Pennsylvania. That State collects.
state. county township, roa and
school taxes. The last school Stats
tics tina I have IS for the year 1909.
In that-ear the total expenditure
for public schools was s38,523,925.
The average length Of the school term
in Pennsylvania IS eight and a half
months.
This is not done differently in
Pennsylvania tina in North Carolina
because Pennsylvania people are any
more Intelligent or progressive or de-
voted to education, OF because they
are any more favordbiy situated, but
solely because being more Of them
they are able to make their State pro-
duce more. and from that greater
production they are able to get more
public conveniences, to say nothing
Of more private conveniences and
greater wealth in every way. Think
Of it. Pennsylvania has public school
property valued at almost a hundred
n.I.4pn dollars. and the assessed value
Of the personal property in the State
in 1893 was ever eleven hundred mil
lion dollars. This. remember, is
merely the personal property. Penn
s~yiyania pays about five million dol
lars a year taxes on its personal
property alone.
That is what | can see as | look out
over the ridges here.
We Want More People.
We want more people in North Car
DINA. We want 100000 more to
give rs as many rs Pennsylvania has
now, so that We can produce enough
things in the State to give US a plenty
Of money for the tax collectors that
the legislature and the tax commits
sion may know where to urn for the
revenue that they must have.
The Farmers Bulletin for Decem-
Der on the agricultural outlook issued
from Washington says hat North
Carolina buys in a year from other
States wheat worth S5.610,000, corr
worth $4,379,00o, and with oats and
hay q total running up to nearly
thirteen million dollars. Suppose We
had enough farmers or The undevel-
oped land TO make this amount OF
stuff and save buying it from other
States. Then suppose we had other
farmers raising the meat, butter, DC.
~t2toes, fruit and other stuff bought
from other States. At least 100000
900 North Carolina sends to othe,
3-|tNo y pdJ " lain stun DOuSl II
from them, and which could be made
in the State il We had the people tt
do it. That $40, o 900 would pa!
a lot of taxes, wouldn't it?
Last year Pennsylvania made owe
32,000,000 bushels of oats. NORTH
Carolina. which is a little bigger Stat
than Pennsylvania. made 4,375,0O'
bushels. and bought a fourth as much
more. Last year Pennsylvania raiseC
23,141,000 bushels of wheat. NORTH
J Carolina, which is a little bigger thar
| Pennsylvania, raised 100000 bush
els and bought 5,276,0 900 bushels from
t other States. Pennsylvania raise,
1000, 900 tons Of hay. North Caro-
; lima raised 306,000 tons of hay an,
I, bought 10000 tons. and the averag
yield to the acre in Pennsylvania am
the average yield to the acre in Perm
: sylvania and North Carolina is a to,
and a third to the acre. But Penn
l sylVanla has the people on the farm
g to raise this stuff, while North Caro-
lima is short of people.
a There is a Bright Side.
The price of cotton makes US all fee
= that the sun has gone down to sta
. forever. but at the same time if W
look about US here on these hills w
= can see some things. The west lin
:. OF this big development for thre
miles is the line Of the new county c
= Hoke. Hoke will raise more cotto
O by the time it is all ginned than
= did in 1913. But along with that
: has also introduced a new crop an
some 1900 acres of tobacco cam
o into the new warehouse at Raefor
y ana brought many thousand dollar
Had cotton held to q normal pric
the tobacco coming along with
would have made Hoke county fe
+ as II paying taxes this year was a 10
% In spite of the gloom that hit tt
# whole cotton belt this county h
wldened out immensely in the yea
n ana IN the years to come the improv
ment of the past year will add We
decidedly to each years tax receipt
1t is this development Of new r
r sources in Hoke that has made til
"a county the progressive county that
/ Is. To get back again to Senat,
I'd Johnson. Two years ago he bong
w 1900 acres Of land a few miles O
"a from RaefoTd. He has put a lot
- ImnnaN into - 49,