Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1922-04-27
BARRY CLARE ADVOCATES
ESTABLISHING CREAMERY
Editor

Ten per cent of the farmers in the
cotton belt are ruined, men operating
their own farms have lost their land,
tenants have lost their stock, this
has taken place in a great measure
during the past few years, there are
many contributing causes, they are
not treated with the consideration due
to them by either STATE or county,
they are taxed out of proportion to
the revenue derived from the land,
the commissioners have wasted pub
lie money in building roads for the
benefit of tourists travelling from Cal
ifornia to Florida, If this helped the
town, which is a question, il certain
ly injured the farmer, because this
money properly spent would have OPP
ened at least twenty thousand ocrcs
of farm land which today is cut off
from the world, the farming country
cannot develop more than its market
town form which it looks for help and
support. The farm Journals and week
ly papers devote columns of their pa
pers to advising farmers what to grow
but never a word how to sell it, so
the farmer has tried one crop after
another for years with a uniform
measure of failure. Tobacco was the
last, and while it is true this section
is we'll adapted to the growth of this
plant, farmers received less THAI Sc
a pound when the real value was 35c
have some tobacco in my office,
sample of some that sold for this price
yet Mr.. Owens brought some tobacco
experts to see me and after care
fully examining it. said it ought to
have brought Csc a pound, as the
price paid did not cover curing ex-
penses. Tobacco as a money crop is
at an end.
Last years farms in the United
States produced value of $780,,
0,0OO,0O000, but the farmers share
OF this amounted to Tess than Is per
cent. A pound of cotton he produced
for which he was paid lac, if he were
to buy pound of handkerchiefs in
store they would cost him $3.50, so
the factory, the raikay and the manu-
facturers and ston9 keeper gets $2.36
of it. Is there a remedy l think so
possibly. Our land is poor and wont
produce without fertilization but ar
tificiai fertilizer has been big factor
in the farmers ruined condition. so
he must try to eliminate this feature.
and the only answer at this time is
cattle. There is an unlimited demand
for butter and fat cattle will sell at
profit. A few days ago farmer sold
sixty-nine head of Hereford calves
averaging about six months old which
brought him over $1,000 He stated
TO me that the cost in growing them
was small but it takes twelve fairly
good cows to make five gallons of
cream every other day, and this is a
minimum in summer. Few farmers
nave SO many cows and they have not
money to buy them or enough feed
tor so many cows. The remedy is
the creamery, so that farmers produc-
ing as much as a gallon in this time
could sell it If the farmers then would
then grow velvet beans wherever avail
able, use large quantities of nine
needles which contain potash for bed
ding, the question of fertilizing would
be nearly solved as 200 pounds or less
guano to the acre would be sufficient
to put under cotton to insure a ou;ck
growth and stand.
If another year is allowed to 60 bv
some of our neighboring towns will
have forestalled US and it will be too
late.
My final suggestion is to have the
country between Triton, Rochelle and
Douglas to get pledges OF support and
with what cows are already here the
creamery ought to be fully supported.
The banks at Ashburn and in other
counties are now assisting their farm
ers to buy more cows. We ought o
do the same thing. am advised
that the hardware stores will sell sep
arators to these people and accept
one-half of the cream returns in pay
ment.
1t | can get the men who are finan-
cially able, to interest themselves in
this matter, would suggest that a |
Creamery be built in as central
location as sanitation and other rules
for this class of building, equipped |
with frigidare, win permit
BARRY CLARE. |
MpC DTnUT AMI