Wf
VOL. XXX.
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., JUNE 15, 1895.
NO. 24.
Cause of Agricultural Depression.
Editobs Indiana Fabkkb:
In your issue of January 12th appeared
an article on the depressed oondltion of
agriculture; Bald article having been read
at the Rush County Farmers' Institute by
Mr. Qeorge Griffin. I wish to comment
on some of the points in the article. Mr,
<;. says it seems passing strange thai man,
endowed with such wonderful faculties,
eto , shonld have to give so muoh of his
time and thought to the mere matter of
sustenance.
Indeed it does seem strange that he will
give all his time and thought to that matter, and so little of his time and thought
to the laws and law makers of his country
There ia something radically wrong with
the laws of any country where the resources are so great as oars, and where the
people produce suoh enormous wealth,
grow poorer each succeeding year. The
people of this oonntry are producing annually 119,000,000,000 worth of produce.
This is enormons.   Is it possible that a
people can produce so much that they will
become  pauperized?    It  certainly looks
that way.   lt  is an  evident faot that the
class that produces the great wealth of the
country are year by year  growing poorer.
This faot  the  last census  report, and all
other statistics relating to labor fully con-
firm.   But  some  friend  whispers, "you
oan't  legislate  money  or wealth  into a
man's pocket."   CJ*> ask the Pullmans, the
Carnegie»,   the   Havermyers,   the   bond
holders, the national bankers, the railroad
corporations and all  other robber monop
olies that are  living off labors'  earnings
He  says that the  labor problem ie claim
ing the minds of our  statesmen, the wise,
and good everywhere.
If the brother has reference to our law
makers, he is paving them a compliment
that very few deserve. The main ques
tion that is claiming the undivided attention of the leading portion of our law
makers Is who oan get the first and great-
eat bribe from the corporations. Yoa
may think that this ia patting the matter
a little too strong. However any person
that has given the matter of legislation of
the last 25 years any thought cannot deny
it. Mr.Grlffln says,"if there is any farmer
who is expecting the government to put
money in his pocket without any effort
upon his part, I want to disabuse his
mind " I think I can assure the gentleman that there Is no farmer or any other
class of laborers that are expecting snch a
thing. Why, it would be very absurd for
any person except the gentleman of lets
ure, the non producer, the rich man, to
ask snch a thing The banker, the bondholder, the money lender, the railroad,
express, and telegraph companies, etc.,
get their money legislated in their pock-
eta without any tffjrt except lobbying,
bribery, etc.
Mr. Griffin says do not suffer any longer
nnder the delusion of getting a 2 per oent,
or any other loan from the government;
the govern m.nt ls not in the loaning business, bat is just now a borrower of
money. The brother ia misinformed on
this matter. The government has not
borrowed any money since early In the
war of the rebellion, when It borrowed a
few million dolla*s, until the moneyed
men demanded 3 per oent interest; then
Uncle Sam got his back np and made money
ont of paper, and that same money paid
the soldiers, and all other expenses of the
war.
The government has also been loaning
money for many years to a select class of in -
dl vidals.and at the low rate of only one per
oent. He says it maters but little to yoa
or me how maoh money there ls in circulation, lt wlll do but little good, if we have
nothing to exchange for lt. However it
makes a great difference to all that have
labor or any of labor's products to exchange for it.
Prices of commodities are governed by
the amount of mony in circulation. It la
like placing the money in one end of a
balance and the products in the other end.
If the money end is heaviest, money goes
down and products go up and vice versa.
The money end of onr balance has been
growing lighter for many years, which
has caused the money end to stand high
up in the air. At the same time onr product end has grown heavier, year by year,
which has caused it to go to rook bottom.
Who is this detrimental to, and why?
Farmers and all other laborers must
buy the money that they get with their
labor direct, or the products of their labor. When dollars are dear and scarce it
takes a large amount of labor and Its products to get the dollar. On the other hand
the owner of the dollar that has no labor
or labor's products to sell wants dear and
scarce dollars and cheap products, so that
his dollars will purchase a great amount
of labor and Its products.
It is a very plain and common sense case
if yon will only give it a little thought,
that what the moneyed man, the great (financier as he Is called) wants, the masses
of the people that must buy their money
with their labor do not want.
The bondholders and national bankers
and other large moneyed corporations
want a small basis (a gold basis), and the
wealth producers should have independence and intelligence enough to unite and
demand, not a gold basis, nor a gold and
silver basis, but a basis on the wealth of
the nation. Then we oould rejoice while
the other class would howl.
A nation is very like the individual, the
more it has, the more prosperous, the
more money a person haa, the more of his
wants he can snpply, and vice versa.
Prioes of all commodities have been going
down gradually ever since silver was demonetized, when half of our basis was
taken away.
Bro. Griffin says the intrinsic value of
money is largely determined by the
amount of human toll lt takes to dig it
from the mines or produce it. Who ever
heard of any person digging money out the
mines or prodnclng it either. Gold, silver,
Iron, lead, copper, eto , is dug <int of tbe
mines, but money never. Money is made
by an act of law, and whatever that act
of law says shall be money, is money. A
person might have mountains of silver
and gold and yet have no money. How
muoh human toil does it take to dig our
paper money frc m the mines?
The money question is the question of
all questions. The nations having the
most money, other things being equal, are
the most prosperous, the most enlightened, and there Is where the wealth producers are most prosperous and contented, and nations that have the least amount
of money are most uncivilized, and the
wealth producers are poorest and mcst ignorant.
The last thing I would refer to ia Mr.
G's article is where he claims that all the
suffering and starvation of tbe people ls
on account of idleness and laziness. How
can he make such an assertion eg .Inst the
farmers and laborers of this oonntry,
when every one knows that there are millions of men, women, and children all
over this nation demanding work that
they may sustain life. I hope the brother
may see his mistake and recall lt, especially for the sake of his Hush oounty
farmers. About the time that I read his
article I picked up a Cincinnati paper and
read cf the horrible condition of 10,000
Buffering and starving, industrious, and
intelligent people in one oonnty in Ohio.
The same paper said tbat over in New
Fonndland the laboring people were
marching with banners inscribed "give us
work or bread." I oould recall thousands
of suoh instances.   I wonld  suggest that
Bro. Griffin get some of those little books
on the labor and money question, also
some of the late census reports and study
them before he writes another article on
the depressed condition of agriculture.
The brother also referred to the saying
"every man the architect of his own
fortune," etc., and tbe fable of the old
man telling his ions that there was a
gold mine on his farm, and "luok and
pluck," "a little farm well tilled," etc.
But none of these things oonnt for mnch
unless we have equal and exaot justice to
all, and special privileges to none.
Anderson. |W. Cory.
WEATHER CHOP BULLETIN.
Onited State* Department of Agriculture,
Weather Bureau. Orop Bulletin of the Indiana Weather /Service in Oo-operation
With the Agricultural Experiment Station
at Purdue University, Monday, June 10,
1896.
Central Station al Indianapolis, June 10.
Cool weather prevailed with muoh sunshine until Sunday when the temperature
rose rapidly; rains fell on Tuesday, but
they were badly distributed; while in some
portion of every county very good and
beneficial rains occurred, in other portions
the showers were very light or no rain fell
at all; wherever good rains fell everything
that could be benefitted was muoh improved, elsewhere rain is needed very
mnch for corn and potatoes and other
growirg crop. not yet maturing; wheat is
beyond help from rain, it has headed and
in most fields it Is maturing fast; the orop
promises to be small except in few favorable fields; rye and barley have headed, but
in many fields they are not filling well;
Oats are short and thin and heading, being
only from fonr to 12 lnohes high; grasses
of all kind are short and pasturage and
meadows are light; olover and hay cutting
has commenced everywhere ln the southern and central portions, but only in few
localities in the northern portion; the orops
are only light; oorn, potatoes and gardens
were much benefitted and improved mnch
in localities where good rains fell; oorn,
even the third planting, is there ooming
up nicely and cultivation has advanced so
much that the fields are olean and the corn
holds its own and with rains from time to
time, in the future the orop is very promising; cutworm) almost everywhere have
disappeared; much tobacco has been put
ont in the southern oounties since the rain;
late potatoes are in good oondltion, early
planted less so, they are only slowly recovering; the hessian fly still Injures wheat
in localities; water continues to be scarce
on some farms and in some localities, stook
has to be fed as pasturage is dry; apples
and pears are abundant and promising;
small fruit and berries less so.
SOUTHERN PORTION.
Good beneficial rains fell In most localities, nearly in all oounties on Tuesday; in
Dubois and Greene counties the showers
were only light; sunny and cool weather
prevailed tbe greater portion of the week;
growing orops and all vegetation were
much refreshed by the rains for a time;
wheat is ripening fast; in Bartholomew,
Switzerland, Ripley, Jennings aud a few
other oounties the Hessian fly is still active; the crop will be only small, less than
one half in most fields, in some fields
there wlll be only the seed returned; barley and rye are ripening; ln most counties
the crops promise to be fair; in Ohio and
a few other oounties rye in localities has
been injured too much; Oats is a poor
orop nearly everywhere, lt Is heading at
the height of 4 inches in Bartholomew
county and at from 6 to 12 Inches in other
counties; in Ripley and Ohio counties it
has improved sinoe the rains in less advanced fields; corn ls in fair oondltion
and maoh improved by the rain; replanting islnot yetlfinished ln Harrison, Switz
erland, Jefferson and Dubois oountiee;
muoh plowing has been done and the
fields ln general are olean; potatoes are
ooming on nicely, in Dearborn county
they are in bloom; in Dubois and Bartholomew oounties they are in poor oondltion and in Ripley connty bugs are doing much damage; gardens have been
much Improved; meadows and pasturage
has been Improved where good rains fell
but in many localities they are short and
dry; timothy ls short; (lover and hay
outting has commenced, the orops are
short but ln several counties the bay ii
gocd; muoh tobacco has been set out since
the rains in Switzerland county; trees are
laden with apples and pears, some are
dropping; a heavy wind and rain storm
passed over parts of Washington county
on Tuesday and did injury to timber, orchards and fences; lightning struok several barns and injured some people; water
is scarce in Dubois oounty and rain much
needed.
CENTRAL PORTION.
In most !• aunties good rains fell in localities and did much good; in Hamilton,
Marlon, Owen, Hancock, Henry, Boone
and Vigo counties the showers were insufficient to be of benefit; on most fields
the rains oame too late to help wheat as it
is maturing; it is only a poor crop except
on very good soil; In Deoature county it
is the worst orop for years; ln f«w oonn-
ties the Hessian fly ls still doing damage;
oorn is coming on nicely since the rains
and the fields are clean; they are planting
corn ths third time in Franklin and a few
other counties; rye is maturing, promising a fair crop in most fields; barley is not
filling well in some counties; some fields
ln Hancock oounty are cut fer feed; hay
and olover cutting has begun, the crop is
light and short; timothy in some counties
ls a failure; grass has grown some where
rain fell but still it is short on most meadows; in Hancock county meadows and
pastures are dry; late potatoes are in good
oondltion, early planted less so; in Marion
and Hancock oounties potatoes do not
promise well; grapes are putting out a
second growth in Parke oounty; apples
and pears are still abundant; water ia
scarce and wells are dry In Owen oounty;
outworms are still active ln few localities.
NORTHERN PORTION.
Cool fair weather prevailed and beneficial rains fell in many counties; in
Miami, Cass, Howard, Carroll, Tippecanoe,
Clinton and Lake oounties no rains fell, or
bat 1 ttle; rains oould not Improve the
wheat, it has headed and is maturing bnt
promises in most fields only a small crop;
in few counties the fly still does Injury;
oats are short and only promise a poor
orop; in Tippecanoe oonnty it is heading
from eight to ten Inches high only; potatoes are in gocd condition; the late
planted are not all up yet; rye in some
localities is not promising; in Starke
oounty some tields are ont for fodder, corn
most everywhere ls coming up nicely ln
olean fields; the third planting is coming
np; in Miami connty some oorn has not
oome up yet; clover in mcst localities is
short and thin but well in head; in some
fields it is not promising; in Carroll
oonnty cutting has commenced, in most
other counties cutting will begin next
week. Timothy will make a fair orop in
some oounties. In Miami county pasturage is so dry that stcck has to be fed; in
Cass and Howard oounties everything is
wilting; in Adams connty everything is
fresh and green after the rain; no cabbage
yet in Starke oounty, althongh sown three
times; honey bees are making but little
honey because of short bee pasture; wells
are failing in Carroll county.
H. A. Huston,
Dlreotor Indiana Weather Servioe.
Per C. F. R. Wappenhans,
Weather    Bureau,   Assistant Dlreotor.