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y ' IB '"*-' •- .<.... • 4:^.. - • _,> I"A.w ”5“ ».-.<•; ‘■J^^C'WwGn 'j<B»wßSßgkl?¥y t! £ . ■ VOL. 13-NO. 10. FARMS AND FARMERS. WHAT A GEORGIA FARMER SAW v IN OHIO- Recollections of the Excursion in the Fall of ’B9—Extracts from the Journal of Col, W. R. Gorman. EXTRACT NO. 5. Wellington, 0., Sept. 7,1889. During my afternoon ride today, I met with a farmer putting in wheat. The modus operandi is so unlike that gener ally pursued in Georgia that I give it verbatim, just as the farmer told it. Says he; “I am breaking the land with the team you see on tho opposite side of the field. They’have just finished. My breaker is a turning plow of the largest size,and it is set to break the land from nine to ten inches deep. It takes three good horses to pull it. That other team out there is drawing a harrow. That is run over the ground until it is reduced to good tilth. It sometimes requires requires three or four harrowing to do this. I am putting in my wheat with this machine you see here, and it does the work well. That team,” pointing in the direction of his barn, “is pulling a roller that weighs several hundred pounds, and the rolling, in my opinion, is a '-cry important part of the work.” '■ Uli 3 were -four eHstlueb ‘operati'.wu going on right under the farmer’s eye, and every 'one of them essential to the proper seeding of the wheat. I then outlined the methods usually followed for doing the same thing in Georgia. He laughed and said, “if we did that way here we could not make any wheat.” The culture of wheat in Georgia has been steadily declining for twenty year. The aggregate amount now made in the state would not, if turned into flour, make enough to supply the trade of two of our principal cities, say Atlanta and Macon. This is a bad showing but it is true. There are two reasons for the falling off in wheat. One is said to be it’s cheaper to buy the flour than to make it; and the other is that the land wont make wheat. Both are erroneous. It has been demonstrated time and again that wheat will succeed as well in Georgia as in any of the northern or older northwestern states. As far back as 1856 some notable experiments were made in Athens, Ga., by Dr. Hamilton, Col. W. E. Dearing, Mr. Phinizy and others, which may be found in the patent office report of that year. The largest yield reported was by one of the gentle men named and it was a fraction over forty-five bushels per acre. Another reported a yield a trifle under this. Several reported yields varying from thirty to forty bushels per acre. In 1870 the writer of this article made on a four acre lot 169 bushels of clean wheat, weighing over sixty pounds to the bush el. The average was over forty-two bushels per acre. The land was thor oughly broken and the wheat plowed in with the ordinary scooter plow. A good crop of cotton was made on the 1 and the year the wheat was sown. Manured it with liberal applications of cotton seed and raw bone. When the wheat was seeded, about November 10, fifty bushels of cotton seed and 100 pounds of bone per acre plowed in. In the latter part of February following, top dressed with a barrel of Nova Scotia land plaster (gyp sum) on every acre. This was an extra ordinary and profitable yield, Jand was made on land that had been cultivated for forty years. This can be done again, and probably beaten, on the same land. We have learned something about fer tilizers since 1870. Take out our sea board counties, and the ten or a dozen counties adjacent, and there is not a sec tion of Georgia where wheat can not4.be profitably grown. Suppose the millions that are sent out of the state for flour shouldjbe kept here in the pockets of our farmers, what a wonderful difference in the general con dition it;would make. We have the best money crop in cotton of any people on earth, and if they will supplement this with other crops, wheat among the rest, that can be profitably grown, very much of the present trouble will be removed. To make wheat, select land that has good drainage, prepare thoroughly and fertilize liberally, remembering always that nitrogen is what the crop needs, and the results will be good. It must be borne in mind by the farmer, that he must sow seed that is acclimated, or what would be better, get it from locali ties south of where he intends to sow. The reports from the experiment station of South Carolina for the year ,1889 show, that seed of the Fultz variety grown in that stat* and,sown alongside of seed of same-variety grown in Ohio and Pennsyl vania, made a better crop. The yield was two to three bushels per acre better, and the grain of superior quality. The incident related at the beginning of fthis number furnished the text for this somewhat lengthy writing about wheat. It is not seasonable but apro pos, and your readers might turn it to good account, when the time again comes to sow your grain. These Wellingtonians are a good peo ple, cultured, hospital and clever, noth ing bad about them save their politics. They are true to their traditions and no where will you find a greater republican stronghold than this. I heard a good one to day on old Zack Chandler. ;Although he lived in Michi gan, it was his wont to come down here and look after the canvass on presiden tial years, more especially if Frank Hurd or J udge Thurman had been among the people and got ’em stirred up. It way at Li ffin that he met. an im mense crowd. The prohibitionist, had been celebrating the same day, and large v..£w; of .the white boutonnieres couldrbe seeiTatnong his audience.' After he began speaking he laid his manu script or head notes on a table before him, a puff of wind blew them off among the crowd, they were handed back to hiifl and his own words shall finish the story. Says he, “I pulled out what I supposed was my old barlow that I always car. ried along for that purpose and laid it on my papers; and in a moment I could see that something was the matter with my audience; at first there was a smile which soon widened into a broad grin, then from that to a general snicker. I happened to look down and instead of my barlow there lay my blankeddld cork-screw. It done me up completely! I felt like I had disgraced myself and I made a blanked poor speech.” He swore after he got home that he would never go back to Liffin to make a speech,and he never did; it was not long after this that he died. I saw a large onion field today, the land was immensely rich, and it looked like a bed of muck. The field was said to pro duce several hundred bushels per acre. Numbers of women and children gather ing and assorting the crop. The choice onions sold for 50 cents per bushel, and culls 30 to 40 cents. Although this is not considered as much of a farming country as other sections, I notice a great diversi fication of crops. This is one of the grand secrets of success and tells even here, where ( the farmer does not have the wide range lof creps that we have in Georgia. Occasionally you will find land here that is farmed on shares, but the wage system prevails. When the land is farmed on shares, the landlord gets half of the crops made though he furnishes nothing but the land. The tenant must have stock, provisions, etc., of his own. As yet we have not seen a single negro working on a farm. They are not con sidered reliable, and have not the intel ligence for managing machinery, and labor saving implements. Ohio has a negro population of 150,000 and it would seem that out of this would come much labor for the farm, but it does not. We are within 36 miles of Lake Erie and from here to the Ohio, we have not seen a negro at farm labor. It is not likely that under the conditions that prevail here, the negro population will increase much. There is but little difference be tween him here and in Georgia. He is quite a factor in politics at election times and always votes the republican ticket. The democrats claim that with the negro votes out,'Ohio is a democratic state. We leave here at 9 p. m. for Cleveland, all are deeply touched by the reception these people have given us. It has been a grand ovation from the time of our arrival. B. R. Herrich, Col. Horr, Col. Wads worth, Capt. Visscher. and let me add, everybody in Wellington has been ex ceedingly kind to the Georgians. THE OFFICIAL ORGAN OF TfrE GEORGIA STATE ALLIANCE. ATLANTA, GEORGIA, TUESDAY MORNING, MARCH 11,1890. I did intend in this paper to give your readers an account of the maimer of boring a gas well, but it must Le re served for a future number. There is no connection,as has been supposed, coal oil,and gas here. There is some con nection between gas and oil, but between coal, and either one of the others, where is none. It now nearly 9 o’clock; an immense throng of people have collected to see us off. The ladies have done us the htraor to turn out in large numbers. While good-byes are being said and regrets are expressed the bell clangs, and the last we hear, from our friends is three cSfeers for Georgia; it is returned with a will from the platforms and windows of our coaches—three cheers for Ohio! i-and away we go to Cleveland. THAT INTERVIEW. WHEN YOU CALL ON!HIM, HE ANSWERS. X No Alliance. Ticket in the Filed But Plenty of Alliance Doctrine fcr be Swallowed- On last Wednesday a Constitution re porter sought an interview with Col' > L. F. Livingston,'president of the StatxAl liance, and here is what he got: President Livingston unlimbercd last night when he was asked about the re port that tho Alliance would put oht a tiekpj against the democratic congress. “If there is any such movement among the farmers of Georgia, I am intirely ig norant of it,” said he, “and my relations with my people are such that I would know if there was such a movement. “There has been a good deal said in Georgia and outside of Georgia about three parties, but it has been confined to individuals and isolated cases. I have seen two or thee letters to Mr. Brown (editor of The Southern Alliance Farmer) from the northwest, and I.have had but one directly or indirectly on that question. It was from the secretary of the Banks County Alliance, saying some man had proposed that their people in the ninth district get together and or ganize a third party. I discouraged it roundly, saying in my reply that the dem ocratic and republican parties were well established in the country, their policy was pretty well understood and the mass of citizens would ally themselves with one or the other; that it was well nigh impossible to concentrate between these two parties anything with life and power, and I did not think there was any neces sity for getting up a third party, or what has been designated as an Alliance ticket. GETTING DOWN TO BUSINESS. “But I do want to say this, and I will say it publicly or privately: Our people have just interest enough in the politics of this country to inform themselves,and when informed they ought to go to the primaries and oast their votes for those men who will do the best for the whole people,not for any particular class. I don’t believe we ought to elect men to the leg islature to crush the railroads or the manufacturing interest, or any other in terest. We want men who will repre sent the whole people, and I think they can be selected through the parties that now exist. “When the nominating time comes in the fall, all those gentleman who stand for re-election, or renomination, which means election, will be asked to tell the publicjhow they stand on these questions that effect us, and if they can not answer correctly I can’t pledge my people to vote for tleem. Shall certainly not advise them to do it.” “On what questtons will you ask can didates to commit themselves?” “First, the sub-treasury plan. I don’t want to say that the Alliance people are wedded to that, but something of that kind will be demanded—something] that will give an effective currency to handle the business of the country without de pressing or encouraging corners and mo nopolies. lam perfectly willing if con gress thinks some other plan to increase currency will be better—provided the people control it. But lam decidedly in favor of the sub-treasury plan, and shall be until something better is presented. I am going to canvass the state on it, and' when I get through, I think can I say our people will not vote for any man who will not favor it—l mean in the nominations. In other words, will give their preference man to a who favors that plan, or something like it. If Mr. Blunt for instance, should say he favored tffie principle, but could give us a better bill, we would say, all right go ahead. “We believe, whether we are right or wrong—but the Alliance stands ready to change when convinced of an error—We believe the present currency system is the nursery of fhese corners, itrusts and combines. We believe it would be im possible to put up corners in cotton, wheat, or anything, if the sub-treasury system, as we presnt it to congress Jwei j adopted. We think so far as the simple reason goes that we put the producer in such a position that his product sare not forced on the market, or made to sell his produce at a given day. The producer gets twelve mouths to sell. A CURRENCY BASED ON CROPS. “The sub-treasury plan proposes, briefly, that the government take the farmers staple crops into its warehouses and issue him negotiable certificates to eighty per cent of the value of his pro ducts. With no charges but the bare expense of storage and insurance the crop is kept there a year. In that time the farmer sells it mouth by month, simply letting the supply keep up with the demand. This will regulate prices and prevent corners. It will break up all this speculation which is encouraged by the present-system. “In the fall and winter when the .farmer has,to sel ( l, money .is scarce and corn and wheat is low. Its the spring and summer when he has to buy, money is cheap and that makes provisions high. Tne present currency of inflexible vol ume forces the farmer to sell cheap and buy .at high prices. By the sub-treasury plan the currency would be expanded as the crop comes in, and retired as the crop is marketed. -Thus, there would be in all the seasons just such a volume of currency as the business demands, with no surplus to encourage speculation.” “Another thing. The price would be fixed month by month in just accordance with supply and demand. Cotton statis tics are at best an approximation. The estimates may miss several hundred thousand bales, and a hundred thousand in the supply may make a difference of a cent in the price*of cotton. When the crop is marketed or stored the actual number of bales will be known and the price will become steady. “I believe a plan of this kind will re lieve the farmer a thousand times more than a reformation of the tariff or any other thing of that kind. We believe that with our whole soul our people will say to Mr. Clements or Mr. Stewart or Mr. Anybodyelse, ‘will you vote for such a currency as we ask?’ “The present system makes the money kings our financial masters. This will make the government our ruler in money matters. Jay Gould has no interest in my physical or moral well-being. He does not care whether my children are educated or grow up to be heathens. But the government wants me strong of body so I can fight for it if necessary, and wants me moral and intelligent so that I will be a useful and a burden-bear ing citizen, able to pay my part of the tax.” “Some may say the farmer is asking too much, but he is only asking what the government gives to the whisky men. They get more. Whisky is worth $3 a gallon the minute it is put in a bonded warehouse, because the age gives it val ue by anticipation. That whisky was worth only fifty cents a gallon before.” “The farmers are only asking an exten sion of the favor already granted to the national banks. They deposit bonds in vaults, which stand in place of bonded warehouses, and they get ninety percent of the face value at one per cent per annum, meantime collecting interest on the bonds, and paying nothing for stor age, tax or insurance. We only ask the government to advance eighty per cent of the value of products, and we pay the storage and insurance. “I have no doubt this question will be propounded in every district: ‘How are you poor fellows going to get any money from the government when they do make plenty of it?’ The advance is made di rect from the government to the pro ducer. This system will encourage the production of the necessities of life, for when a man knows what he raises will sell for its value uninfluenced by specu lafion, he will plant heavily. It will stimulate agriculture world without end. “This plan applies to agricultural pro ducts, pig iron or any staple product,the principle now applied to silver under the eoheme devised by Alexander Stephens. The government issues money called silver certificates based on silver coin or bullion; also certificates based on gold or bullion. Silver and gold bullion have fluctuated widely. Some will say the fluctuations of products of the farm will be an obstacle. We answer, bullion has fluctuated also. Under this plan, how ever, fluctuations would be reduced to a minimum. It would have the same effect on agricultural product that remoniriza tion had on silver—it will solidfiy and steady its value. Fluctuation as a cause will be removed, aud prices will be left to adjust themselves firmly to the cost or abundance of the crops, and other legitimate factors in the cost of the article. “The farmer, as it now is, must pay the retailers profit, the wholesalers profit, the Georgia bankers profit, and the toll the New York bank makes off those in Georgia. With the other the money goes direct to the producer, and he gets his purchases at the lowest margin of profit. “Another question on which we will ask candidates for nomination to commit themselves, is that of railroad regula tion. The great difficulty is in discrim inating in favor of terminal points against the villages and rural districts. To HJusu-ate, » cm- l<r>»d of GwoP.ja phosphates' is drbppv of a train for me at Covington, and the freight is $4.30. The train goes to Atlanta and drops off several cars for George W. Scott & Co. at $3.40 a ton. It goes on to Montgom ery and drops several cars at $3 a ton, and carries the rest all the way out to Meridian, Mississippi, for $2.50. If we want to start an oil mill and fertilizer factory in Covington, this difference of ninety cents in favor of Atlanta is hard enough to overcome, but that is not all. We must stand another ninety cents on the fertilizer we ship out. So we are met with the obstacle of SI.BO a ton. This not only discourages the building up of industries in our small towns, but depresses our rural districts by killing their home markets. “We think the remedy is to be found principally through the inter-state com merce law- It must be so amended that the charge will be by wheelage. That is the gist of the resolution we passed on the subject at St. Louis. If this does not give relief then we are for govern ment control of railroads. “Without some relief of this kind, it will be an uphill business for us to build up rural districts and the country schools. Men of wealth move to the city, where the discrimination places the ad vantages, and with them they take their children and their money. There is less and less remaining to support the schools or develop tho farms. “We’ve decided to waive all minor con siderations, and concentrate our whole strength on these two measures. With the first secured, we think the rest will follow of themselves, for with a cur rency system expanded to meet the ne cessity of the harvest, the farmers will soon be able to build all the railroads we need, if it should become neces sary.” A Kingly Plan of Relief- in 1763, after a disastrous war of seven years in which he had contended with the strongest powers of Europein com bination against him, Frederick II of Prussia effected a treaty of peace at Hu bertsburg, by which Maria Theresa withdrew claim to Silesia, the exciting cause of conflict. As the monarch re turned to his capital he was met by del egations of farmers from various prov inces through which his road led, who represented that the country had been overrun, and they were destitute of food and seed. The royal promise was given that whatever relief lay in his power should be granted. Every horse that could be spared without endangering the country in case of sudden attack was delivered up to the needy farmers, and the military storehouses were drawn on for seed for a crop. In one province, 8,- 600 houses were rebuilt which had been destroyed, and the most distressed sec- SINGLE COPY 5C tions relieved from taxation, in Silesia the term being two years and in others shorter exemptions, as need suggested. In the work of recuperation, which took several years of constant application, those cities which had been fined by in vaders under threat of fire had tlje money returned to them, and the Gov ernment accepted as the burden of the whole people the financial disaster inci dent to the national defense. The fourth and fifth years after peace were crop failures, and in some provinces the spec ulators ran the price of rye, the bread of the people, up to five thalers (3.65) per bushel. The policy of the government had been to hoard grain for a time of military need, and the storehouses were opened and rye distributed at the price which the government paid for it in nor mal markets; thus causing disaster to the speculators and relief to the masses. A bank of 8,000,000 thalers capital was started in Berlin by the king, who seems in ever instance to have moved to relieve his subjects from extortion by usurers. Finding that agriculture was not reliev ed by the bank, but lagged in the march of progress, Frederick took a step which entitles him to more praise, and better earned the distinction’of “Great” gen erally affixed to his name than every other act of his busy life, and which was • one of those victories more renowned than any on the battle-field. The king seems to have realized the power of money to oppress in the condition of scarcity, the process of lowering values from the scarcity of war and famine be ing in active operation at the time, attjT ttre being restored to standard value after very great debase- i ment during the war period. The land owners of Silesia were yet the greatest sufferers, and the king founded in that province a plan of co-operative banking, by which the land-owers unitedly pledg de the whole land of the prov ince to the government, which in turn raised money on its own credit as if for a public loan. This money was lent to the Association of land-ewners at the rate it cost the government, being in the form of land stock, ’ guaranteed by the government and transferable at pleasure. The immediate effect of this placing the government’s credit at the disposal of the farmers was a fall in interest through out the country to the government rate, and the people were freed from the power of money to oppress. .This system was extended through other Iprovinces with like beneficial results. It is pertinent to note that there yet remains something of this system of co-operation of Germany, and it is stated that it is a means of great prosperity, having done much to raise the condition of agriculture where tiied. Just substitute the use of the products of the people for the credit of the government, and the operation of the sub-treasury plan would be almost identical with that devised by Frederick the Great, who has been cred ited by history with having performed almost a miracle of statesmanship in leading his country to perfect recupera tion despite failure of crops and the dis asters of war, together with the necessity for an army absolutely upon a war foot ing and all the preparations for war nec essary by contiguity of enemies who were constantly prepared, and whose hostile demonstrations were prevented by fear of the military prowess of Prussia rather than honest unwillingness to be guilty of any breach of the national peace. Congressman Teller said the other day that Wall Street was running the govern ment, and it verily looks that way, for you can’t get our law-making powers to pass a single law that would put a brake on their greed and robbery. If they hadn’t had a finger in the pie I think the Olive bill would have passed by a large majority. The time has come when we must pick ' our men, and let no man beguile you. . “He that is not with us is against us.” Be sure not to vote for any man who wont come out and show his hand before election time. If he is a friend to tjatT"* ~ monopolists and is trying to run witty th o hare and the hounds, elect him to<stay at home with the old woman aud the babies. The farmers of Georgia spoke , out in plain terms last snmmeij on some important measures, and candidates w&o are against us or lack manhood enough to say which side they are on, ought®© s tay at home.