EELATIVE VALUE OF FAEmNG. 281 



facturcr, and so on to the dealer in the raw material, until we 

 finally reach the cotton-fields for the foundation of all after- 

 accumulations. And thus it is with the manufacturer and 

 dealer in woollen goods. It reaches back to the farmer, who 

 tends his flocks upon the hillsides and valleys, for the pro- 

 duction of wool. And thus we find it in every branch of 

 industry, traceable to the products of the soil ; so that the 

 question often forces itself upon us, Does the farmer get an 

 equal share of the profits compared with the capital invested, 

 and the amount of labor performed ? 



I sometimes think the various industries may be compared 

 to the erection of a vast edifice. The foundation must be 

 laid. Every stone is necessary, every timber, joist, board, 

 nail, door, window, and all the ornamental part. But how 

 many there are who are wishing for some one besides them- 

 selves to lay the foundation ! They are willing to work on 

 some other part, where the labor is less and the pay more, 

 but do not like the foundation-work. They will do the car- 

 penter-work, masonry, painting, or the manufacture of difier- 

 ent varieties of furniture to be used. One will purchase of 

 the farmer one variety of lumber, another will purchase an- 

 other, and after going through the various processes, it is sold 

 to the contractor, each getting a better profit than the farmer. 

 And thus it is with the various kinds of labor till the edifice 

 is completed, when the insurance agent steps in, and for the 

 best profit will insure against loss by fire, which always proves 

 good if losses are not too great. 



I have spoken of the comparative value of farming in a 

 former report ; and this will be substantiated by a reference 

 to the value of farm-products at that time, many of which 

 were from fifty to one hundred and fifty per cent, higher than 

 they have been for the past few years, when the cost of pro- 

 duction was but a trifle more than at the present time. With 

 this diminution of prices, and the cost of production remain- 

 ing nearly the same, there has consequently been a large re- 

 duction in the profits of the farm. The tendency of this has 

 been, and is, to deter young men from engaging in the busi- 

 ness, and also, in many localities, to depreciate the value of 

 farming-lands. The population of the State is regularly in- 

 creasing, as well as the entire valuation. This increase of 



36 



