Evening star., 1923-12-12
FARM IMPLEMENT
MAKERS REJOICING
Much Better Buying and
Quicker Payments-EIec-
tricity Now Big Factor.
BY j. c. ROYLE.

Special Dispatch TO The Star.
NEW YORK, December l2.-Manu-
facturers of farm implements are
looking over their 1923 balance sheets
with happier faces than they exhibit
ed year ago. They still decline to
hazard any guess as to what the
trend of the industry will bring them
In 1924, but it is known that the last
1ew months of this year have brought
improvements from the three years of
depression which have weighed on
the industry since the war
Low values for the farmer, espe-
ciallysin the states devoted to raising
small grains. have curtailed his abil-
ity and desire to buy farm imple-
rnents. This feeling has been intensi-
ned by the high cost of those imple-
ments. which, manufacturers assert
nave peen forced by labor and mate
rial conditions. Betterment of the con-
ditlon OF the farmer this wear has AL
ready been reflected in late sales,
however. and the added purchasing
power OF the agriculturist, placed by
secretary of Agriculture Wallace at
Sl,250.000,000. is counted on to slim
uIate sales during the first quarter of
1874. when purchases of farm equip
~AAS'ie iioA Hietily are HtdNleSI.
Good Buying Ahead.
implement manufacturers have
benefted by this increase in other
ways than actual new sales Farm
implements are usually disposed of
on time, and the financial situation Of
many of the farmers this fall has
been such that they have liuuidated
debts for machinery which have been
hanging over them for several wears
Ihere is at present. no overstock
OF farm implements i'll the hands of
dealers throughout the country and
the surplus supplies of the manufac-.
turers have been greatly reduced. The
trend OF wages on the farms has
turned the attention of the owners to
mechanical equipment. They have
found it necessary to supplant men
by machines. This trend is shown by
The greatly increased sales of Ford
son tractors during the last three
months. Horse feed is gradually in
creasing in price. while tractor fuel
mas shown a drop during this year
ana the farmer is getting along with
less help.
Trucks More Popular.
The possibilities 10 the farmer
through the use Of trucks and trac-
tors are emphasized by the reports
of the United States bureau of pub
lie roads. Investigations by this body
show that as a result of the use of
motor vehicles in the grain growing
states of the middlewest, the average
haul of the farmer to market has in
creased from 60 miles to 17.6 miles
while the cost of hauling corn and
wheat from farms to shipping points
has declined about So per cent The
cost of hauling cotton has diminished
to an even greater extent.
Electrical equipment manufacturers
expect to benefit considerably by the
trend of farmers in the northwest to-
ward application of electric power on
hai~ y,
the electrification of Minnesota farms
from small central hydro-electric sta
tions, are reported to have been sue
cessful. This trend, experts say, will
be followed, whether power can be
supplied on a so-called profitable"
basis or not.
Prolong Lives by Electricity.
Farmers" said DR.. E. A Stewart
OF the University ot Minnesota. will
have electricity 70 make life con
venient g-6 1sQSy- irrespective OF
whether they a-a able 70 show that
lars and cents NJ Il. Aylesworth,
executive manager Of -he National
Electric Light Association believes
that the use OF electricity on the farm
the farmers wife
Water in the home. pumped by
electricity: the electric iron. the elec-
trio washing machine. refrigerators.
percolators and other electrical house
hold equipment in many cases will
turn misery to happiness" he said.
'Most important of all to the farm
ers household will be electric light
ing"
Small Tools I'm Demand.
Demand for the smaller farm i'm
pqements, fencing and wire from the !
agricultural states has not kept pace
with the demand for hardware in
the cities, where activity has been
aided by the volume Of building con-
struCtlon. Consumers in the rural
districts are pressing for price re-
duction on hardware. and recently
there have been some slight recess
slons in prices for black smiths tools,
axes and other implements