Evening star., 1923-01-08

| days how greatly the farm conditionsI
nave advanced, until some impression
IS given that all depression has gone
by and the farmers are again on
Easy street. OptimistS point to the
fact-and it is a fact-that the crops
or 1872 were worth in the market
nearly two billion dollars more than
the crops of 1921, and the vision of
this two billion has become rosier
and roster day by day, until the blue
sky stories of stock statesmen have
paled in comparison. Here are some
statements just issued by the De
partnent of Agriculture. headed al
1t is by one of the best farmers who
ever graced it's mahogany:
Prices of all farm products, eX-
cept potatoes and eggs, have made
material net advances during the
year compared with prices year
than in 1913. the year universally I
selected as a base in making price
comparisons under peace-time CON
products have advanced during the
year, but prices of the things that
the farmers buy have gone up at a
speedy rate. so that although farm
prices are actually higher than in
1913, farmers present purchasing
nower is Sc, expressed as an in
deX figure, compared with 100 in
In plain English. it means that ID
crops the farmers Of today can buy
with the products of their farms
only two-thirds as much as they
could in 1913.
Here is another very significant
light thrown upon the matter by
the Department of Agriculture.
Final crop estimates for the year
place farm value of S7.572, ,S90090
On the 1922 crops, as compared with
$5,729.912 900 on December J. 1921
vi ..Ir Of . ha
crease is due to higher prices and
about % per cent to increased pro
duction. Although farmers Them
selves consume a vast quantity o.
crops represented in this valuation and
approximately one-third of the crops
may not bring the prices indicated.
farmers undoubtedly now have more
dollars than they did last year"
It is important that neither opt-1
mism nor pessimism be permitted to
adulterate statistics or their inter
probation. Farmers are more pros
porous than they were in 1921. but
approximately half of the excess is
only paper excess, since it is eaten or
fed on the farm and never reaches
market directly. Even on the face
of the whole figures. the purchasing
power of the crops is only two-thirds
as great as smaller crops and lower
prices gave them before the war, be
cause all that they nave 10 Duy mas .
gone up in cost.
The increase in cost of what the
farmers buy is directly traceable tof
the higher wages Of the machinlStS
and other producers and fabrlcators
of the articles needed by the farm
ers. Wages are more than doubled,
except for the farmer, and that in
crease of wages is what goes into
the cutting down Of net profits OF
the farm. through adding to costs
Of production.
The United States now has 80 per
cent of all the motor vehicles in the
world and produced 2,2S7000 new
"go- carts" for passengers and 240
600 motor trucks in 1922. No wonder
we need two-story thoroughfares,
America gave to the world nearlE
all of the modern inventions-the au
tomobile, the flying machine. the tele-
phone and the telegraph being fair
examples thereof Can any one imag
inc what civilization would be with
out America? 4
Yes, but let US not become proud
The former chief detective of Eng
land, the head of Scotland Yard, is
visiting us. and that noted criminolo-
gist is shocked to find that, while
England is ashamed to have one mur-
der in every 636,000 population, w
murder one in every $4,000. 1t was
not written in view Of such statistics,
but it fits:
"Oh, why should the spirit of mortal
be prOud?"
x X X x
We increase in material things, hui
is that why we degenerate in the
spirit, Think on these things" Judge
Ben B. Lindsey, the noted Judge OF =
Juvenile court in Denver, tells uSt
solemnly that in that city last year
there were issued 5000 marriags
licenses, while there were 1,500 di-
vorce suits filed and 800 more sepa
rations without divorce. Actually.
he says, there was enc separate
for every marriage. In CHI
cago last year there were $4,000 mar
riage licenses and 1900 divorce
signed. These signed divorces do NO
represent all that We're applied for
Think on these things"