Willmar tribune., 1920-02-25
GIVES SOME FIGURES I'M Us
:, FAVOR or THE HORSE
.Horseman Says Horses Are Only
Dependable Motive Power
Under all Conditions. =.

- no Gr6z0s LOT UlOLOFS uA6 Uoeu 6uCd
a constantly increasing cry during the
last decade that the approaching fun
eral OF the horse was accepted by many
as a certain future event. On sFebru-
ary 4th Mother Mature made men real
ize how Indispensable horses are by
sending to New York City and q large
part of the Atlantic coast, q rousing
good blizzard of the old-fashioned kind.
Under trying conditions such as these
the horse won out and the motor laid
right down on the job. rt>.
Within q radius of four miles Of the
heart of New York City there were
50 many machines stuck; fast in the
snow that ia was impossible for even
horses to get through some OF the
streets. AS q consequence, ON February
9Th. Mayor :Hylan issued a proclamation,
stopping traf1ic. Had larger number
# horses been used. previous to and
during the storm there would have been
fewer vehicles stuck In the drifts.
Consequently trafnc would not have been
held up. It has been estimated that the
blockade in traffic caused loss along
the Atlantic coast Of between 50 and 100
million dollars in period Of ten days.
During the tie-up which has not yet
been entirely relieved, the largest whole
sale dry goods house in lew York
kept all machines in and worked horses
only
The New York firm Of Bernheimer and
Schwartz had not bought horse for
over four years, yet SO greatly increas-
ed was the demand for horses during
. the traffic congestion that they sold
through Fiss Doer, Carol Company,
IS head at a single auction. The horses
which ranged from 10 to IA years in
age, brought an average price Of $422.5O
a head, one pair selling for $115O and
three others at $1,000 a pair. =:
The automobile interests have work
ed out a scientific scale by which a
truck owner can guage the depreciation
of his truck, but they fail to take into
consideration that element Of human
nature which refuses to pay anywhere
near the original cost for second
hand article, even If it has been in the
hands of the owner for only week.
But horse is never a second hand ar
ticle no matter how many hands he has
gone through, correct handling often
increasing his value Only actual de-
crease in his worth as worker will
bring down his selling price. Tony
Wright, teaming contractor of Chi
cago, says that he can keep three teams
in the barn cheaper than he can keep
one of his big $1,000 trucks idle. The
difference comes in the depreciation
which makes a motor a last-year's mo-
del in a very short time.
ment of depreciation enters into busi-
ness tranactions a. Chicago team con-
tractor, during time of prosperity,
bought nine trucks at an average of
$1,000 apiece, arranging to pay for them
on time.
He has been unable to make his pay
mants. but the truck company realizes
that depreciation has SO decreased the
value of their goods as to make fore
closure bring very srsaQ returns. It has
offered to take $4,000 from the con-
tractor as settlement on a debt that ap-
proaches $4,000 under condition that
he will promise to retire from business
Another teaming contractor in Chi
cago was making good three years ago
He followed the trend of public opinion
borrowed money and bought a motor
truck After six months all seemed to
| be going So we'll that he sold his horses
mortgaged his house and bought three
more, machines. He is a good sober
man and a mechanic who can attend to
most of his own repairs. For the past
| three years he has been working until
| one and two o'clock in the morning
but has lost all but one machine and
| is heavily in debt.
The same fallacy that exists in regard
to motor trucks for city work is in cir.
culation about tractors for farm use.
Edward Muzzal has $50 acres nea1
Crown Point, Indiana. He and his part
ner, John Ellsworth, bought a tractor
Muzzal didn't find it satisfactory and
sold it outright to Ellsworth for use or
| another farm. 5Muzzal lost $500 on thu
transaction. Then he bought 20 head
| OF horses and was through with his
| work three weeks before his neighbo,
who had two tractors. Having no. fur.
ther immediate use for his horses ht
put them on the market and made 1920
profit. In contrast to this profit. his
ne1ghbor had $4,000 investment lyins
idle and constantly depreciating IL
| value.
Transportation users in cities anf
farmers In the country are waking rur
to the situation. Buyers from the east
ern points have been on all the Western
markets Feb. 10th to 18th clamorins
for good horses. In many cases they
bought the horses as fast as they were
| led out of the cars, and they paid thu
dealers their price without haggling
Good horses are needed and we have
not nearly enough of them.
! George e. Mason, Special Investigate,
for the Horse Association of America