244 KENDALL COUNTY, ILLINOIS. 



the conclusion, that with land at $50 and upward per acre, and 

 only moderate buildings, the taxes we pay, the cost of labor and 

 the varying seasons, wheat can not be raised on small farms 

 of 100 to 200 acres short of $1.00 to $1.25 per bushel, corn 50 

 to 60 cents, oats 40 to 45 cents ; and consequently hogs must 

 bring 6 to 7 cents to allow the farmer anything, above tlie corn 

 they eat, for pasturage and the care of feedhig, bedding, pump- 

 ing water, etc., things not always taken into account by most 

 of us. 



All of these things must be taken into the account, or we 

 are doing injustice to ourselves. \Vc should have interest on 

 the money invested in lands, teams, liarness, farm implements, 

 stock, a certain percentage for wear and tear and insurance, 

 and reasonable wages for all in the house, as well as in the 

 field. 



Agricultural societies used to try to arrive at these results, 

 and our farm journals published their conclusions, but I have 

 nQt seen this attempted for several years. 



^ THE MIDDLE MEN FIX OUR PRICES. 



We practically have nothing to say about it. We go to our 

 market town and simply ask. What are you giving for wheat, 

 oats, corn, cattle, hogs, potatoes, apples ? — anything we have. 

 They state the price. We take it, and go back and seek, by 

 good cultivation and harder work, to get or grow from our 

 soil, or additional acres, one-quarter, one-half or double what 

 we raised the previous year, for the same number of persons to 

 consume, and then, after all, have to be content with a still 

 less price for having produced the more. 



