The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1916-01-12
Virginia Pros
perity.
BY Governor H. c. Stuart, in
the Baltimore Sun.

Broadly spetsing, Virginia along will,
other Southern States. Is sharing In ,hc
prosperity which seems to have come to
the whole country We see that the out :
put of coal aud coke is larger than for
several years past, iron furnaces, long
cold are again in full blast; all bnnche'.
of manufacturing are getting into full
swing: labor is employed and is in incrcas-
ing demand at ronuinemti,e wages
money is easy for the more favored class
of borrowers AT reasonable rates, cspeci
ally IN the cities good crops ofgrain, lay f,
tobacco and peanuts have been already
gathered. We see that the aggregate
cash value OF the agricultural products al
the United States for the present year
reaches the phenominal figure of $4,000.
600
We know that tile prosperity of the
country is basel on and largely grows out
OF these agricultural products; that they
constitute and, In large sense. measure
our national income that they establish
and maintain the huge trade balance in
our favor These conditions give pros
pcri,y and stability to what is known As
"big business. and AFFORD the means
directly and indirectly OF building NJ
huge fortunes to- the credit however Of
men who have had the least to do with
producing of these conditions It must
be admitted that The men who have grown
these great crops aud thus created these
values aud opportunities, are the smallest
participants in tho rewards tina, iow from
them
With the unprecedented lo,eien de-
maud for agricultural products OF al
kinds, including live stock, wa find prac-
tiSally all of them below the average
price Of the three proceeding years and
most OF them below the fail cost Of pm
ducticn The cotton crop OF 1911 went
on, OF the hands OF The planters at figure
below cost Of production and only the
fac, OF a very short crop prevented thc
planter from meeting The same fate iu
1918.
Nearly all Of the grains arc lower than
Why NcIc ueinit lNH ishl'l'thu NNi HthNhF
only few grades of tobacco am selling
e, remuneraiiyc prices ON the warehouse
floor, though therc seems . glcam of
hope for better prices Peanuts, one of
the important money crops of Virginia,
are In tho same ratcgory, minus the glcam
of hope
tn average price of live cattlo Is much
lower than that of 1914 aud substantially
below tho average of thc last three years
The average prize Of hogs is lower than
1t has been for several years The
averages horse Is tower than for 10 wears
past rhcsc conditions as to live stock
eIis, Ia apiie OF an urgent foreign de-
mand at war,priees,,wh is being met
by unparalleled shipments TO European
markets, markets which have been more
OF less closed acains, Us Tor several yuars
in spite. also, OF big advances II, the
price oc bides amounting in cascs large
animals to IS OF 80 per head in spite, also
of sharp advances IN every 10y product
from the slaughter house
We are told that the prevailing dc
preston in the prices of agricultural pro-
ducts is due to an oyeisupply Let us
enquire int, this in the single case of
1.-Two cattle emitting enquiry As to other
agricultural products The question is,
how can there be an oversupply Of cattle
when there WAS an admitted shortage Ia
the American ard world supply dating