106 PRINCIPLES OF RURAL ECONOMICS 



highly skilled European producers. Add to this the fact that 

 butter is a more homogeneous product than cheese, and that in 

 Europe each country or even each locality has its own special 

 taste in that article of consumption, and we have additional rea- 

 sons why there is no great demand for the American cheese in 

 Europe. Another important factor in the centralization of butter 

 production in the Western grain states is the introduction of the 

 silo. By means of the silo Indian corn can be utilized to furnish 

 succulent food for dairy cows throughout the winter. In northern 

 Europe, where corn does not flourish, this has to be supplied by 

 root crops such as turnips, beets, etc. But corn silage is a much 

 cheaper and an equally good ration for dairy cows, and enables 

 the American farmer to produce butter fat at a lower cost, prob- 

 ably, than any of his European rivals. Corn silage is cheaper 

 than root crops, first, because the yield of feed per acre is some- 

 what larger, but mainly because it requires less labor. 



Reorganization of the cotton industry. The most violent agri- 

 cultural change which took place during the period we are now 

 considering was in the cotton-growing industry of the South. 

 The Civil War' had emancipated the slaves and involved in 

 financial ruin most of the cotton planters. This necessitated a 

 complete reorganization of the cotton industry. The stagnation 

 which took place during and immediately following that great 

 cataclysm produced abnormally high prices for cotton. Some- 

 thing like a cotton famine had been felt in England during the 

 war, because of the blockading of the Southern ports, and this 

 famine could not be immediately alleviated after the restoration 

 of peace, because of the disorganization of industry which fol- 

 lowed emancipation. Cotton sold for 43 cents per pound in 1865 

 and 30 cents in 1866. Under the stimulus of these high prices 

 many of the Southern planters undertook cotton growing on a 

 large scale with hired negro labor and on borrowed capital. This 

 brought down the price of cotton and at the same time brought 



