Middletown transcript., 1917-01-27
THE BASIS Of
CANADA's RICHES
A Theme Discussed by the Wall
Street Journal.

ago the Wall Street journal mace the
statement that 1.-THE basis of Canadas
riches is the fertility Of the soil, ana
no freak of warfare can injure thal
while her grain will increase IN de-
mand as the population of the worIo
grows. AS an investment field Canada
is worthy of consideration. Ihese
words are well worthy of attention, es'
pecially coming from such source as
this eminent financial journal. with
IL land area exceeding that OF the
United States and with tillable areas
coming under cultivation. the weaith
of Canada's future can scarcely be estl-
mated, while the wealth today is such
as to bring her most prominently De-
fore the world
During the past year thousands o,
farmers In Western Canada sold their
crops for more than the total cost OF
their land. Lands at from SD to $3o
an acre produced crops worth $4t 10
SIS an acre. Stock raising and dairy
ing were equally profitable.
The year 1915 saw most wonderful
crops and magnificent yields over the
entire country. and many farmers
wiped out indebtednesses that had
hung over them long before they came
to the country. and the year 1915 put
them in a condition of absolute inde-
pendence. A report to hand verlhed
by a high official might seem marvel-
Gus, were the particulars not well
known. and where are not other cases
that would seem almost as phenOm-
enal. This is q southern Alberta story:
A farmer wished to rent an adjoining
farm on which loan company held u
| mortgage. The applicant said he want
| ed the first ten bushels of wheat. after
| which he would divide. giving the loan
company one-third. After threshing
| he paid into the bank at Calgary Sl6
| per acre for every acre cultivated. 10
| the credit of the loan company. as
their share or their third of the crop.
Sixteen dollars per acre rent. HIS
two-thrds was $32 and in addition the
first ten bushels of wheat. Land on
this same security can be purchased
| for from SIG to $50 per acre. Won
derful Yields are reported from all
parts of this district. Recently 4.64o
| acres of a ranch were sold to an ILL
nois farmer; 800 acres Of wheat In
1916 produced yield that averaged
42k bushels of wheat ner acre. George
| Drny TX l
on q southern Alberta farm got 2.Oo2
bushels of wheat from q 50-acre field,
or over 40 bushels per acre, and from
a 5O-acre field Of oats got return OF
| &c bushels per acre and still had some
| sheaves left over for feeding.
A report just issued by the Alberta
government gives the yield-of wheat In
the showing of 1915 as % bushels pei
acre: as bushels of oats and 80 bushels
of barley.
Travellers through Alberta's wheat
belt have had revealed to them scenes
Of agricultural productiveness unap
preached in any other part of the
world.
Alberta farms, selected with ever
moderate discretion, have raised meI
to independence and affluence with rec
ords Of wonderful development unsur
passed amongst the phenomenal indus
trial success of which Canada well may
boast.
Many almost incredible yields have
been reported by reliable authorities
wheat exceeding 70 bushels per acre
; and oats 145 bushels.
Numerous records show that the COS
of farms has been more than repaid o.
this years crop. In one instance, lant
purchased for 5000 produced whea
During the year 1917 there will b.
an immense amount of labor required
to take care of the crop in Manitoba
saskatchewan and Alberta.
One of the problems which Western
Canada has to face every year Is III
, securing of an adequate supply o
: labor to handle the harvesting an
l. | threshing of it's big crops. This prot
| ZEN, lHUcGu, Is OiHdSS piCSSht III t'A
country that has big agricultural pre-
. duction; in the case of Western Car
ada it Is enhanced by the cOmparativ
sparsity of population and the long dis
tance from industrial districts. whic
a can be expected to offer surplus c
labor.
In Western Canada the present diff
cuities are increased by the war. A yer
large number of Western Canada
o small population have enlisted for SER
l. ice with the Canadian forces in Europ
r and at the present time there is gel
orally speaking no surplus of labor ft
the ordinary channels of industry.
say nothing of the abnormal demand
!. of harvest time. The situation. hoy
q ever, has to some extent been met b
v the action Of the Canadian militia d
y partment, who have released all sue
l. men who are still in training In tt
t western military camps and who desil
Is to engage in harvest work for perit
Of generally one month.
!. The actual number of men engage
: in 1915 in harvest work was betwet
forty and fifty thousand. Wages we
higher than usual. Running from 81
to $4.OO a day with board. and fro
> $35 to $50 a month.-Advertisement.