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n "Toe Pfcjjrcj" give Farmer is a good paper far ibore the Tcr igc. and possibly the best advertis ing mediam in N. Qr Printers' Ink. fl3 'tis, Invest circsl&ttoa c! s.ny faciily .caries!:: ral cr paMicrl paper - patlisbs i eetwcca R i c h dead &cdl Atlanta, as fir xA f t ThTA T l UiY-i 1-'"'"" . . (l JvL i -. I L- -L-Uj jmjujimdij III TEG INDUSTRIAL AHD EDUCATIONAL INTERESTS OF OUE PEOPLE PAEMODET TO ALL OTHEE C0SSIDEBATI0S3 0? STATE FOLICIt ' - Vol.12. RALEIGH, H. 0., FEBRUARY 1, 1898. v ITo. 02 fCS NATIONAL FARMERS' ALLI ANCE AND INDUSTRIAL UHI01I. President Mann Pago, Brandon, Vs. Vico President 0. Vincent, Indian apolis, Ind. Secretary Treasurer W. P. Brick ex, Oogan Station, Fa. LEOTURKB3. J. P. Soesamon, Charlotte, N. O. Hamlin V. Poore, Bird Island, Minn. F. H. Peirsol, ParkerBburg, W. Va. NATIONAL EIEOUTAVZ3 COM2HTTE3. Mann Page, Brandon, Va. ; John Breiig, W. Va.; A. B. Welch. New York; V. A. Gardner, Andrew's Set tlement, Pa. JUDICIAEY. R. W. Beck, Alabama. IL D. Davie, Kentucky. SOUTH CACOLETA FAE3SDS3 STATE ALLI ANCE. President Jno. Graham, Ridge way, N.O. , Vice-President W. B. Upchurch, Morrisville, N. O. Secretary-Trea surer J.T. B.Hoover, Hillsboro. N. O. m n L State Business Agent T. B. Parker, Hillsboro, N. C. . . Lecturer Dr. V. N. Seawell, Villa- now, N. O. . Assistant Lecturer W. B. Brick house, Mackev Ferry, N. O. Chaplain W. S. Mercer, Moyock, N. C. r Door-keeper Geo. T. Lane, Greens boro, N. C. , assistant Door-keeper Jaa. E. Lyon, Dirham, N. C. Sergeant-at-Arms A. D. K. Wallace, Raleigh, N.O. Trustee Business Agency Fund W. A. Graham, Machpelan, N. C. EXECUTIVE OOMMTTTSB OF THE HORTH CAR ..A FARMERS' STATU ALLIANCE. J. W. Denmark, Chairman, Raleigh, N.O. John Graham, Warrenton, N. U. W. B. Fleming, Ridgeway, N. O. A. F Hileman, Concord, . C. Dr. J. B. &lxaader, Charlotte, N. C Thomas J. Oldham, Teer, N. C. gXATE AULIANCB JUDICIARY COMMITTEE. Dr. J. E Person, Pikeville, N. O. W. S Barnes. Raleigh, N. O. T. Ivey, Cary, N. C .ftHI CULTUBE. THE FARMER'S LETTER BOX. We hope every one of our sub senbara will contribute a brief letter to this department. Keep us informed as to what ia happening .among the farm era of your neighborhood. If you have either by experiment-or by any other method discovered anything which you think cm be of interest to North Caro lina farmers, tell them of it through oar columns. Don't think "I'll wait until others start the ball rolling," but jump in and help us yourself. Let us hear from you before next week Henceforth - we hope to make this a permanent feature of The Progressive Farmer. Al ways give your real name and address, even though you wish lome other name signed to your letter. Experiments prcive that excessive fertilization is unprofitable. One of my farm papers states that at a test at the New York Experiment 8tation ( f I remember orrectly, 1,000 pounds cf fertilizer applied to an acre of potatoes increased the croo 48 bushels in 95 and 40 bushels in '96 The same season the application of 2 000 pounds to alike area produced 53 buahels in '95 and 54 ia '96, thua showing that the use of over 1,000 pounds per acre was added with a loss compared with the use of 1,000 pounds. John Smith. Will a stalk of corn grown in a hill with two or three other stalks produce as good an ear as if the eame stalk had been grown by itself separated from siny other st ilk only so far as to permit perfect fertilization! Give the stalfc a chance and get ears weighing two or three pounds eachaLd msasuring 12 to 15 inches in leDgcti. The largf r the ear the larger the yield and the batter the quality. 4 Q lantity and quality" are the things desired when we plant corn ;everyone speaks for th 3 largest yield of crop and the very best quality when planting the crop, ani this cannot be had unless a variety 13 used that has been developed by proper cultivation and selection to groy large ears. E. S. Teagarden, Bxme, Iowa. For destroying rata, the following is one of the bst plans I have ever tried: Plasi an ordinary washtub in a locality infested by rat-, and for several days bar, it well with food suitable to their tee. After the rat3 have been prop erly attracted, fill the tub with water totQ3 d?p jti ot about six inches and vrr the water with a layer of wheat chaf!. Taen pprinkle over the chsff Bomn whet fl ur, or other attractive Bubnance, ad await results. The first rat that comes along will of course walk in. Others will be attracted, and thus all the rats ia the vicinity can be taken the first night, provided the tub is sufUjiently large to hold them Where rata are very abundant it will be well to empty that tub about ten o'clock and prepare as aforesaid for a new crop. Bryan Tyson, Long Leaf, After picking the apples with the utmost care I put them in boxes of equal size, about six inches deep, without covers, and large enough to handle easily. I place these boxes in an open shed, all the boxes not quite full and set them in piles so as to make the second box cover the first, the third the second, and so on until the pile is as high as is convenient, and cover the last box with a board. I set these boxes a little one eide of directly over each other, so as to give a little air. I examine the fruit frequently, and if there is any moisture on the apples I slip the boxes so as to give a little more air; if the fruit is shriveled in the least, I shut off all the air. I keep the boxes out of the cellar until there is danger of freezing, and then set them in the cellar and ventilate as before. In this way I can keep my fruit until free it comes again. O. P. Mentor, Ohio. Mr. Editor, I see you have asked for the ideas of your different subscribers I heartily agree with Bro. Barkley, a fatal mistake of farming ia in tryiog to work too much land. Now, Mr. Elitor, one of your correspondents a few weeks ago asked for a remedy for the low price of cotton. I will give you and your many readers my idea, which, of course, will meet with a great deal of criticism. My opinion is that the farmers of the South will never reduce the acreage of cotton to one fourth un til compalled to do so. We need a rem edy at once. I think the legislature of each cotton growing State should pass a law making it a misdemeanor and a heavy fine for a farmer to plant over one fourth of his crop in cotton. If this were done, my word for it, we would have a remedy, and one which after a few years' trial, none would wish to have changed I will say no more at present. If this escapes the waste basket, I will say more in the future. J. R Callaway, Idalia, N. C. PLANT LESS COTTON. Correspondence of The Progressive Farmer. Lne disastrous result of ptauting too much cotton this year is ulraady clearly shown by comparison with last year, when the acreage devoted to cotton was decidedly less. Last year the amount of cotton mar keted to January 1st was 6 398,192 bales, the average price realized was 7 53 cents per pound, 137 97 per bale, or $212,939,350. Tnis year 7,260 033 bales were mar keted to January 1st, the average price realized was 6 05 cents per pound, $30 49 per bale, or $221,353 406. The planters shipped to market 861, 841 cales of cotton more by January l?t this year than last, and received for them $21,580,944 less money. In other words, owing to the lower price, in duced by overproduction, the people of the 8outh have lost on cotton shipped to market by January 1st this year, the total value of 861.841 bales, namely, $32 724,102, and $21,580 944 besides, makirgagrand total lossot $54,305 046. Ia 1893-947,549 817 bales were raised ; average price was 7 69; proceeds $292, 932,899 In 1894-959,901,251 bales were raised; average price was 5.79 ; proceeds 288, 918 504 1895-96 7,157 346 bales wore raised; averagfe price was 8.09; proceeds 292, 234,437. 1896 97 8,757,964 bales were raised; average price was 7.42; proceeds 327, 547,854 It will bo seen that in 1893-94 a crop of 7,549,617 bales sold for $4 014 395 more tnan the large crop of 9.901,251 bales the next year; in 1895-96 a crop of only 7,157,346 bales brought $3 315, 233 more than the 9,901,251 crop, and tnat the crop of 8 787,954 bales last year brought $38,629 350 more than was received for 9,901,251 bales mar keted in 1894-95. Cotton raising in this country is vir tually a monopoly two-thirds of the entire production each year is readily taken by buyers in fore 'go countries, and the planters in the South are justly entitled to a fair remuneration tor their labor. An over supply is the only reason why they have to sell 6,000,000 to 7,000,000 bales of "cotton to foreign spinners, without profit. On account of the large crop and low prices resulting therefrom, it is of vital importance, not only to the South, but the whole country, that the cotton acreage for next year be materially re duced, in order to advance the price of the greatest staple product of the United States to a paving basis If the planters of the South suffer loss, the people of the whole country must share in it. " The South cannot stand another cot ton crop of same dimensions as this year's, without bringing about disaster and bankruptcy to planters and band lers of cotton, and relative barm to the general mercantile interest of that sec tion. The mere fact that a large crop has been planted affects tho price adversely at once, and continues to affect it until the crop has been marketed, and if the planters of the South would determine to largely reduce the acreage, a favor able influence upon prices and the cot ton trade of the world would at once become .apparent. ' By the systematic and cooperative action between the merchants and planters the cotton crop must be kept within reasonable trade demands or else destroy tho'most valuable source of profit to the mercantile and agricul tural interest of the South. For the good of all concerned, it would be in finitely better any year to make a mil lion bales less cotton than half a mil lion bales more than necessary. Latham, Alexander & Co. , New York POLITICS, BUSINESS AND OTHERWISE. Correspondence of the Progressive Farmer. After reading your issue of January 11th, I have concluded that I would like to have a word or so on a few of the subjects treated in that issue. The Monroe Eaquirer says that the public schools are ulimly attended, and that those who do not patronizelhem are committing a grave error. The Asheville Citizen says "the same old complaint schools and teachers, but no scholars, good money paid out, but few to take advantage cf it." I believe that the people are more in terested in education than at any pre vious time in history. I believe the people of this 8 sate would patronize the schools but for special and good reasons. Tne Citizen says 4,8chool8and teachers," but I deny it. I claim that half the schools in the State are a farce and that percentage of the teachers are unfit to teach, and I honor the parent that would rather his child grew ,up ignorant and moral than to grow up learned and immoral and infidel at heart. The people have some responsi bility before God, as well as the State. Anyone that will commit his children to the care of a boy or girl inexperi enced and irreligious, careless and giddy, worldly and vain ju3t because they have a little learning, will rue it some day. Let us have a law that gives toe people a voice in the schools and the teachers, and there will be a vast change in the present condition. What we need is not barbarous ' com pulsion," but a 'voice" and interest. fertilizers, etc. Will Bro. Parker tell us why it is that we can buy 13 per cent, phospho ric acid cheaper than the Alliance brand! We did it here last year. And why it is that several things listed can be bought less than listed by him? POULTRY. The recommendations to go into the chicken business are becoming very fre quent of late. They tell us it is a verit able gold mine. Where is ibf Hens are now worth only 15 cents. Spring chickens bring about the same and come down to 7 cents. And eggs were 15 cents only one week this winter, and they get do we to five cents in trade. I see no gold mine in that. turnips. Bro. Foster claims there is money in turnips, and that they beat cotton. I don't think turnips would better us here. In the first place our land would uot make them as he does, and we could not sell them if we could; as scarce as they are here, 25 cents a bushel is all they bricg. Potatoes will beat that. TOO MUCH LAND, We all plant too much land, says Bro. Barkley, and I guess he is very near right. Tnere is too much planted for what we get. It may be we ought to work what we do plant better. Buj; that farmer who does not-plant much will not get much, is the general rule. And if he desires to improve and con centrate them he had 'better go slow if he has no bank account. There is a lot of priz3 farming these days where it's all brag and show and the net gain is precious little. One man raised -200 bushels corn on one acre in S. G, and got the prise. If it paid, why did he quit! Another made four bales cotton on ono acre,' what did he quit fori The strain and tention was too exhaustive, I BUppOCQ.- KISPINQ ACCOUNTS. Some fresco to think farmers ought to keep accounts just as merchants do. I think they ought to keep accounts, but it would be. foolishness to keep it as a merchant does. All farmers ought to keep accounts so as to tell what comes in and what goes out and know what the -profit is at the year's end. : But this weighing of the milk and measur ing the cow's feed on a common farm would be perfect nonsense. Any good farmer's wife can tell the best cow in a herd in a week's time with the exact ness of a Babcock teeter. . STATE SECRETARY. I am glad that our State Secretary is making such a good showing. I think the people of North Carolina will be gratified to hear what he has done. They will even be glad to continue such a man in office a second term, if neces . sary. I think the Populists in North Carolina have done well, as a party. And with the recognized leader, Marion Butler, our Senator, I believe in trad ing even in politics, when it can be done honestly and fairly and for the good of the people. Yes, sir, if you can't get a whole loaf, why take a half, but let it be square and honest and on principle. free papers and seed. Why is it a crusade has started out against the free distribution of seed and documents by Congress! Do not thousands and tens of thousands get in troduced to new varieties and seeds that never would see one but for the free distribution ! And do not the Con gressmen enlighten the public mind by the free distribution of documents and keep them posted, even as no other source would do! I think so. And I believe there is nothing that could take r. placo and. do tjoe good it is doing. Why, sir, the bulletins of the Agri cultural Department are devoured here as letters from dear friends. I am glad to see the year starts out well with the Business Agent, and that we now can wear our own shoes. Very truly, &c, W. T. Cutchin. Shankle, N. C, Jan. 20, 1898. COTTON CROP RETURNS AND BY PRODUCTS. . Eds. Country Gentleman: Cotton was formerly tnought to be king of all crops, but it has wof ully fallen from its former prominence, and now is of quite inferior importance among national farm products. It is a striking feature cf Southern agriculture 'tnat the first value of cotton to the farmer is but a comparatively Email part of its value after it has left his hands, and that it is subject to a vast amount of expense in its disposal in the markets of the world. Its first value is, however, a very important matter, for it brings in to the grower considerably more than all the gold product of the world, for what is sent to foreign countries alone (leaving a very large amount to be dis tributed among the factories engaged in manufacture at home) is worth 200 millions of dollars. The crop is re markable for the amount of labor spent upon it beyond that which comes into the hands of growers themselves. In deed, this income to the Southern farmers is not quite half of its ultimate value. A study of the figures relating to it shows how the grower pays for the marketing of it to a far greater extent than seems necessary, thus largely re ducing his profits, apparently for want of some associated method of disposing of ip. First, the picking of the crop costs fifty millions yearly ; this work, after so many efforts to supplant hand labor by machinery for the harvest ing of it, being all done by the slow hand process cf pulling the lint from the bolls. After, this first cost comes the ginning, which is another outlay on the part of the grower, and then comes the baling, with cost of bags and ties more money taken from the cropland of course lessening the farmer's income. But the value of the seed, which was formsrly wasted, ex cept so far as it was used as a fertilizer, goes to make up fully for this loss, and the fifty millions of dollars made off this part of the crop more than pays the fertiliz3r bill? of the growers. The seed amounts to about eight thirteenths of the whole weight of the uncleaned crop, leaving the remainder for market. Here comes the first cost, which it seems quite possible to save to the growers by some organised system on their part For as soon as the great army of pick ers has done its work, the buyers (who number over 5,000) appear on the scene and strive to secure control of the crop for their employers. This costs more than two million dollars, the tax on the growers being 25 cents a bale. Then come the freights to the great shipping centers, the principal one being New York City. It is estimated that fully 300,000 men are employed in this stage of the business, including those who, handle the crop on the railroad, the lighterers at the ports, the sailors who man the ships, and the owxers of the vessels employed. But such is the competition for business that by the time the cotton reaches the ultimate market and gets into the hands of the manufacturers of the cloths, the in crease of value is not over 25 per cent, of its cost to the grower. Indeed, all the modern conveniences in the mov ing of these millions of bales, and in the final change of raw material into the cloths made of it, and the reduction of the cost of this manufacture, do not finally increase the total value more than 100 per cent. ; so that the ultimate cost of the goods is not over twice the value of the raw material. The South produces an average of eight million bales, which is about equal to the whole product of the world elsewhere. A full crop in India is four million bales. China produces about two million, and Egypt about as much. Brazil yields much less, and with the rest of the cotton producing countries of the world, the total product is swollen to about sixteen million bales. But our bales are much larger than those of Egypt, whose product is nearly all the long staple, which is known here as the Sea Island cotton, and is used for the finest lawns and laces on account of its length, fineness and strength of fiber, and which will not withstand the heavy pressure of baling, so that bales of this sort do not weigh over 200 pounds, or half of a full bale here. Altogether, our product thus makes up somethiog more than half of the world's yield of this staple. The utilization of the seed for the oil it contains is scarcely considered as to the magnitude of the business, which has mostly all grown up within the past twenty years, and since the inven tion by the French of that well maligned product, oleomargarine. This is made of the oil of the cotton seed mixed with refined tallow, and has given more worry to the butter and cheese makers than all the rest of their business com bined. Last year, more than a million and a half tons of seed were crushed for the oil contained in it. As one ton of seed yields 40 gallons of oil, worth 40 cents a gallon, this total value is added to the economic value of the cot ton crop; and although there is a wide and strong objection to the use of this oil, a vast quantity of it nearly the whole of it, in fact is surreptitiously disposed of for other kinds of oil, chiefly that of the olive. The culture of the olive for its oil product is almost wholly abandoned in Europe, the cotton oil having really equal value as a food product, and selling at a lower price. It cannot be justly charged against the cotton oil that it is in any way un wholesole or injurious, and there is doubtless a vast quantity of it going into both of our dairy products (butter as well as cheese), both in the hands of factories and private dairies; for it is quite possible to mix this oil with the cream of milk, in quantity of 25 to 50 per cent., and in cheese to the extent of nearly as much as of the natural but ter oil, and this without detection ex cept by careful chemical analysis. Another product of cotton seed is the meal of the crushed seed after the oil has been expressed. Taking out the weight of the oil from the quantity of seed crushed in the mills, there is about one half million tons of he meal left to be accounted for. Some of this is used for fertilizing Southern crops; the bulk is used for feeding catjle; a large quan tity is exported ; and all the money thus made goes to add to the actual value of this great crop, which, however, is no longer a king, except like some other kings now dethroned. It is a remark able fact, showing the rapid extension of the use of this cotton seed meal, that I was the first who used it for feeding cows in the North: A shipper of the meal to England applied to a New York agent to find a home market for it. The agent came to me (I then being actively engaged in dairy farming) to test the value of it, and after feeding a few bags I reported in favor of it, finding it not only exceedingly,, nutritions, but tending to improve the quality cf tha butter made.' 'Somo meal had..'-beca-used before this, as I afterwards learned in the South, but not, as I believe, in the North. For each ton cf eeed thers is left 750 pounds of the meal and tha value of all of it is to be added to thh great staple crop..; I might add somo conclusions in re gard to the culture of cotton, consider ing that the average yield-ia not over, 150 pounds of lint to the acre, whereas, it is quite possible to produco o fsll 1,000 pounds, -end easily 00 pounds. Wnat would be the result if Southern farmers thould all cultivate this crc? in the best manner, making tlis present product from eevea million acres instoad of twenty million, occu pying the remainder thus saved in ths culture of grass and other feeding crops, keeping cattle pigs, and sheep, and on the same system of culture pro ducing full yields of these, as well as of all other products! I put the ques tion, but refrain from further comment on 'these quite possible opportunities for agriculture in the South. H, 6T2T7AL7. Macon county, N. C. NOT QUITE SATISFIED. There are, and probably always will be, people who look persistently on tha dark j3ide. One of these was Uncls Jerome Saunders, who, for many years, had taken the Widow Creighton's farm 'at the halves." Everything seemed to prosper under his hands. The ilella seemed to grow more fertile, and to yield more abundant pasturage, and &11 the crops rioted in plenty, but still Uncle Jerome was not satisfied. "Farm in' aint now what 't used to be," he grumbled. "Things don't go as they did. Farms are gistin' all run Finally, there came a fall, when na ture outdid herself There was sueh a yield of apples as had not been seen for years; the potatoes were great, mealy f Hows, and the corn seemtd not to offer a worthless ear. Well, I hope you're satisfied with the way things have come out this year, Uncle Jerome," said Mrs. Creigh ton, as the two were one day taking account of their ripening store. Pretty well, pretty well," said the old gentleman, almost as dismally as ever. I could ha' mentioned things I'd ha' liked different." "Aren't the apples as fine as ever you saw them!" "Wal, I s'pose they'll do." "Now, Uncle Jerome, you know you can't find fault with the potatoes. When were they ever bigger or better !" "I don' kno w's I can ezckly tell, but I aint purpared to say I never see sich taters afore." "Now look at those pumpkins! The field is yellow with them, and there's hardly room for another' one on the ground. What fault can you find there!" Uncle Jerome looked severely critical. "There fee a good passel on 'em," he said at last; "but seems to me I have seen 'em yallerer 1" Ex. NEGLECTED SUBJECTS. This is the time of year when ths farm publications are telling us that an educational institution the "Institute" is, giving us "one hundred hints on dairying," telling us how we ought to fix up for the winter, "how to make hens lay in a sitting posture," how to shelter and feed sheep and jbogs," and so forth, all of which isvery well. They tell us how, in a most scientific ana practical way, to make money and save it, and still there is one question of great expense and vital importance to tne agriculturist which receives very little attention at the editor's hands. Fences, farm fecces, lawn, chicken and ornamental fences Every one of us have to use them, and while wo be lieve that all are now e greed that tho new fences must be made of wire, yet the question arises, "which one is most economical!" We further believe that almost all are agree! that the wire must ba woven, because just stretching up a lot of horizontal wires will not control the stock. Nol these long wires must be tied together as short inter vals, or the animals can push the wires apart and go through it. Wo have now ia use a lot of the Page woven wire fence, manufactured at Adrian, Mich., which is advertised in your columns, and it has proved very satisfactory. We used the 12 wire 58 inch high farm and stock fence, and it certainly possesses some advan tages over any over any other that we .' mt 1 Z ll - nave seen xna uun m iuo wire pro vents it from sagging in the eummer, which is no small ac vantage, wh lethe spring steel wire is hard enough to held the coil ebape for a great many years. If any farmer will figure up the cost of all the fencing on his farm he will be surprised at the results, and will welcome any information on this im portant subject. R D , Newburyportg Mass., in American Cultivator.
The Progressive Farmer (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 1, 1898, edition 1
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