The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1924-01-05
4 CANADIAN VIEW

that while the road lies uphill,
possibly for some years to come, !
the grade is not So steep hut that
~ is possible to make it, If banks
and other financial institutions viii!
cooperate. Possibly not the least
hopeful sign of the times in the
west is the increasing extent to
which this cooperation is taking
place.
Banks, insurance and loan com
ranies all report that farmers have
greatly reduced their Indebtedness
in the past two years and there IS
a growing disposition to help, in
every possible way, the men who
are showing an earnest disposition
to help themselves. BY the last
week of December. it is possible to
get some line upon what the year
has meant in point Of achievement
and in the west. Naturally the first
consideration is wheat.
Tn to December 81, the official
figures show that there was moved
from the farms to market 317 Bal
361 bushels of wheat. If we as
sumo that putting lower grades
against higher the whole or this
wheat graded number two north
ern. which would be very cOnS9r-
vative, and allowing for freight.
the movement of wheat from the
farmers would represent the put-
ting into circulation Of something
like $500 100000 between Septem-
Der first and December DIST. The
circulation OF so large a volume OF
money, even though the profit to /
the farmer on his wheat has been
small and in some cases not
has had a profound effect both |
financially and psychologically |
possibly the latter being the more
profound effect Of the two. To the |
money that has come from wheat |
there must be added the sales of !
coarse grains, the sales of live
stock, not only since September,
not incOnsiderable returns from
poultry, butter, cheese. vegetables
and honey. A great volume d
money has moved.
Granted the volume has not been
at all in proportion to the value Of
the product and that what the
farmer has had to buy has been
much higher in price than what he
| has had to sell, the mere fact of
the money moving, stimulated bust
ness of all kinds. and generally i'm
proved the outlook of both farmers
and business men.
II trnla in, hn,vv ,.lnit, ;p,p ma
winter supplies has been undoubt-
Cdly curtailed by the extremely fine
weather, but Christmas trade in all
lines is generally admitted to have
been better than expected.
While the extra fine weather has
had its drawbacks. not only for the
merchants but for the farmers also
in the matter of the more peris h
able farm products. it has had
compensating advantages in .he CO.
polturGties of moving grain to
marekt more Cleaply than it can
be done in extremely cold weather.
in getting threshing we'll cleaned
up and in the preparation of large
areas of land for next season.
The west may be said to be in
excellent shape for seeding next
spring.
While the exceptionally heavy
crop in Alberta arl in parts of
Saskatchewan has been matter
of rejoicing, the lowness of the
prices, while an evil. is possibly
not an unmixed evil. The narrow
ness OF the margin OF profit, if any,
is checking any tendency to in
crease acreages and it is quite
among the possibilities that there
will be a slight decrease in wheat
acreages next year. On the other
hand there will be greatly in
creased acreage of fodder, corn
and forage crops in all the pro-
vinces. Feed Of all kinds is very
abundant this winter. and. while
the prices of livestock have been
low. the farmers are slowly but
surely realizing that it pays to feed
certain crops and have them walk
Off the farms on four. feet, while
there is no doubt that the tremend-
Gus losses of livestock in Britain,
due to foot and mouth disease,
suggests to the westerns farmer
that his stock will be needed next
spring. If in good condition for
shipping, and he is figuring that
while he has lost something this
fall owing to the impossibi.ity Of
moving stock to Britain while
these guarantees are in force, he
stands to make it again next
spring.
; Manitoba to date is the only pro-
vince with an honest-to-goodnes
Cattle Loan company in operation
and the demand for loans to buy
, cattle for feeding show that while
Manitoba was short on wheat Ow-
ing to rust, she has abundance of
feed and is making good use of it.
, The demand for breeding sows and
ewes and the demand for dairy
COWS. due TO freshen Immediately,
are all healthy signs that point to
the fact that in spite of low prices
western farmers are resolute ly
prepared to carry on, and to, as
soon as possible, 50 change their
farming methods as to both lessen
the cost of production and of mar
keting.
T In quite number of sections of
the west. Boards of Trade are COM
ing to the assistance of the farm
f, ers in the matter of the purchase
) of dairy cows and similar efforts to
help along the necessary change
from exclusive grain to more var
led farming, a change which, some
people seem to forget cannot be
made overnight or made without
the expenditure of certain amount
of money.-Winnipeg Free Press.
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