Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1920-02-02

SMoNDAY EVENING, FEB. 2, 1870.
WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH
NV. FARMING:
within the past few days The Her
ald has published three articles deal
Ag with the general subject of farm
IN. which articles, all of them in
tesestinx taken separately, possess
ADDED interest when considered to-
agether.
The first Of these Is an Associated
Press dispatch telling Of the effort
made by an official of the p%ostofice
sdspartment to obtain information as
TO tho estimate placed by the farm
ers OF the country on their occupa-
tion by means Of q postal a r ques-
stionnaire. Cards bearing a carefully
prepared series of questions were
mailed to 200, 900 American farmers.
From these about 10000 replies
haye been received. 1t is stated that
aSlargo percentage Of those who have
replied complain of three principal
grievances. These are, inability to
obtain labor; high profits taken by
nliddlemen; and lack of desirable
marketing facilities. A large number
of the respondents, estimated by one
Official to be as many as so per cent,
declare their purpose to leave their
farms or curtail their production be-
n cause Of one or more of these disad.
.vantageous conditions.
"a Another article, also an Associated
Press; dispatch, presents "A summary
of the memorial addressed to con-
yress by the representatives of seven
great national farm organizations
having a total membership of over
four million. This article is more
cheerful than the other, because.
while the memorialists point out GER
have remedied, they are Of the opin-
ion that, after all, this is a pretty
good country, and the life of the
farmer a fairly satisfactory life. The
memorial says specifically:
This is the best country the
d lsun shines on. It's opportuni-
ties are boundless and are open
to every citizen who cares TO
avail himself of them. It's gov
aernment is the best in the world.
There IL nothing fundamentally
wrong with it, and q man, who
would injure or destroy it is un-
fit to live under the protection
Of itsfhE.
That makes feel better. The
ttthrdt article is that entitled High
iPneedl1And,s by j. W. Scott of Gil
isbE. which was published in The Her
taa On Sunday morning. Mr. Scott
has been 4 farmer all his life. The
things Of which he writes have all
8yaeaedk within his own personal ex-
tpaSdfnce He inquiries why it is that
S~llesn4Eming is the Undesirable and nm
Ssppefttable business that it is often
sid to be, farm lands are SO in de-
land that the price Of them has ad-
Sy1nced rapidly and continuously un-
Yafif they have reached the present fig
y ures. with the advance still going on.
fact cannot be denied. 1t is
right before us and all around us.
When. any other business becomes
$snOtoriously Improbable, men fight
shy of it. Is farming SO different
81 any other line Of business that
4 the o Improbable it becomes the
y more anxious men are to invest their
mooney in it?
Sonft 10noc mt fh;-1. IT.
sshbgelieves that farming is, on the whole,
s~%$aapretty fair business. He ought to
know. He has had the experience,
an the hundreds of people who know
him well know that he has demon
-fssttated the correctness of his own
by his own success. Mr..
scott has made money. He started
without any, and he is known to have
accumulated a very comfortable for
tune. He has done it by farming in
Grand Forks county. He has dealt
with packers. and elevator men, and
5sthe other agencies Of big b~usiness''
Ssnnch as usually come in contact with
tie farmer. And he feels sure that
b has been able to do business to
sbetter advantage by means of these
.sA9encies than he was ever able to do
without them. This is the, verdict
q practical farmer who is still
farming successfully.
Mr.. SCOTS comment on former con-
Editions nay set some Of his readers
4 thinking. There was a time when
the farmer spent o money for
II clpthes They were. made at home
sf4EoM material produced on the farm.
Clothes cost money these days. The
oaa Processes are still possible. Sheep
I'LL bear wool, and spinning wheels
I'D ooms may still be built and pper-
Aated by human hands. Would any
ssolle return to those conditions? The
tnAeodsrn farmer prefers to pay his
$snauney for clothes which meet his
5sfleeds and his tastes. and to let some
1U9e else attend to the making Of
gftemr. The farmer, like everybody
sesNes hAs changed hia habits OF life.
As13p demands, and receives more Of
aQ(ls Comforts ana con~veniences and
&tnrfsSz than his father over dreamed
And. 4 spite. OF this fact, his
sgslpine1 40 On the whole, % profit
n taat he has Il keep boosting the
sS4eof his & to keep some one
sseAa buying thefn avay from. him.
sSNSasetusDiAg 81 the Iesrfes Of COM
lintS who'll the spostoflce depart.
s5eSIk ~ uneafthsd. " find that re-
a. S6 EsNer Tocotvod from ~ NNA o,it