NXJMEBICAL STKENGTH OF THE FARMEKS. 77 



strangled the serpent in his cradle witness the Illinois 

 judicial elections, the Illinois &quot;Bailroad Law,&quot; and the panic 

 precipitated among stock-jobbers by the prescience of their 

 impending fate. And truly it is time that the many-headed 

 hydra of corruption prepared for its approaching end. 



NUMERICAL STRENGTH OF THE FARMERS. 



Twenty years ago, the numerical strength of the Agri 

 cultural, compared with all other of the producing, classes 

 in this country, was as three and a half to one. The rela 

 tive difference in the number of farmers and that of the ag 

 gregate of mechanics and manufacturers was as five to one. 

 The preponderance of the farmer over the so-called &quot; learned 

 professions &quot; was in the proportion of fifty-six to one ; and 

 of all the producing classes over all the learned professions, 

 as seventy-two to one. 



Thus it will be seen that, over the whole country, it then 

 took one individual out of seventy-three to bleed and blister, 

 preach to, and plead for, the people of the United States. 

 Nearly seven-eighths of the legislation of the country, how 

 ever, has always been performed by one of these professions, 

 namely, the law. 



At the present time (using the latest tabulated statement 

 which I have seen) the adult population of the United 

 States is divided, as to occupations, as mentioned in the first 

 table on the page following. 



A glance at the second table reveals the fact that nearly 

 one-half of the total earnings of the country are composed 

 of the earnings of the agriculturist. But it will be ob 

 served that this sum, immense as it is, represents less than 

 five hundred dollars per caput, per annum, for those actually 

 engaged therein. 



