The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-10-22
FARMERS MAKE MONEY OUT OF
 SCRAP METAL
Immense Demand for Iron and Steel Provides Mar
 ket for Waste

The shortage in the supply of the iron and steel, which this country
 must have in increasing amounts if
 the war is to be won, has developed Ia new source of income for the far
 mer. and not merely a few farmers
 but most farmers.
 The United States Geological Sur vey,, Department of the Interior, calls
 the attention of farmers to the fact that even at the recently fixed prices of iron and steel it should be pos sible for most farmers to reap an overlooked profit through the sale of the old iron and steel scattered about their premises; that the saving of such old scrap metal will help to meet the present serious deficiency in the supply of iron and steel; that the use of the old metal will accomplish saw ings in coke which is now to be had only at unprecedented prices; that the delivery of the old iron and steel
 at foundries' far from iron mines and big steel centers will correspondingly relieve the excessive strain on the
 mines, some of the furnaces, and the railway and boat traffic in the coke and iron producing districts. The far raer who turns in his junk while the present prices prevail is likely not only to make a clear profit over the
 cost of hauling and freight, through increasing the iron and steel supply,
 he is contributing to the successful
 prosecution of the war.
 Iron and steel are needed for innu-
 merable things-for guns, shells.
 ships. bridges. buildings. docks, auto
 mobiles. airplanes, rails, cars, engines,
 pipe, odl-well castings. etc, and for ex-
 port to. the Allies, Italy in particular
 being badly in need of steel for all
 purposes. This is the main fact.
 In the northeastern states scrap metals have long been more or less fully taken care of. mainly by the ILbiquitous junk man, and along most
 railways and about most industrial plants they are now salvaged system Iatically. However, in the greater part of the United States little atten- tion-is given to saving the old, metal
 scattered about the industrial plants ot the farmers. where abandoned 1 binders, blows. mowers, r.iKes, etc.
 Decorate the fence corners and road
 sides, and discarded stoves, pumps, pipe. and small utensils rust about 1.-the barns and shed. A considerable part of this junk is already on wheels with tongue and ,whiffletree attached, ready in fact to be walked on its
 own legs to the freight station
 According to the census returns
 there were in 1910 about $1,265, O00,-
 900 worth of agricultural machinery
 alone @on the 6,361,502 American
 farms Farm implements, not in-
 clnding stoves. chains. tools. etc, val ued at about $165,000,00o, are sold
 annually. A considerable part of the cost of manufacturing this farm ma chinery lies in the metals used, and the metals include not only iron and
 steel of various grades and values but
 occasional small parts of brass so1 copper. Most binders and mowers Fhave one or more bearings lined with
 Rabbi. metal containing tin now worth about 60, cents and lead worth I 10 cents per pound. On the whole excluding the metals used in railroad l transportation, or in city engineering
 and building. by far the greater par
 of all the iron and steel produced ir this country in normal years is ship Ei ped out to the farm 1t has beer
 roughly estimated that three-fourth,
 of this metal stays on the farms As tc
 this question, the farmer. can judge
 for himself. How much of this i, lying around on your premises, Mir Farmer? If you have any-and yol probably have plenty-its Is a goot time to consider its disposal while tn, war lasts and the prices are high. Be sides, your country needs the metal Many farmers will take advantag of the opportunity. to recover profit able revenue from this overlooke, and waste product; others, accordini
 tc distance from the markets, ma,
 | n% ~ Ef--- n. : satisfying sense of patriotic duty per formed. Still others remote from tn consuming foundries and furnace
 cannot afford a high cost of deliver
 which may far exceed the price re
 ceived for junk. Information shoul
 be secured in advance on this Ques tion. The Geological Survey suggest that farmers take up the Questio through the Grange, the Alliance, tn farmers unions, state experiment sta tions, the farmers institutes, and oth CT. similar organizations, with vie1 tG ascertaining the location of tn best market, probably the neares s foundry or junk dealer; the cost ( transportation; the best prices obtain able for the different classes of jun
 or implements, and the quantities (
 junk that can be used at the foundr , IOl handled Dy the dealer. The sam , agencies might well arrange for e , operative local action on the part ( ' the farmers in the different commuT
 ities, fixing dates when cars would F in readiness for loading the old me- f als. informing the farmers as to pos 8 lsible grading of their junk and al ] tending to railway transportation, ds y livery. and possible settlements { e the points of consumption.
 s Cooperation should bring the be- n results. Care should be taken not 1 = overwhelm the furnace or consume 6 by all shipping at once; so that to e Igreat quantities are delivered withi Q a short period, for it is important 1 e bear in mind that many foundri,
 imay not have the junk, capacity or u