92 The Tariff and the Farmer. 



expanse of the United States has been opened up for 

 settlement bv the railroads. In that vear there was some- 

 thing over 30,000 miles of roads being operated; nowmore 

 than 200,000 miles. Eight after the Civil War the Home- 

 stead Act, passed in 1862, began to affect the situation. 

 At about the same time the railroad companies began to 

 put land on the market for a few dollars an acre. This 

 is the situation that has faced the eastern farmer for 

 manv vears, anv amount of land in the market that could 

 be obtained for little or nothing. Such a lure caused a 

 tremendous rush of settlers from the East and abroad. 

 In 1860 the number of farms was 2,011,077; in 1900 the 

 number had risen to 5,739,657; an annual average 

 increase of 92,000 farms. The inevitable result was an 

 immense continuous surplus of agricultural products. 

 During the very years when this ever-increasing flood 

 was pouring upon the eastern markets, the doors of most 

 foreign nations were closed against us by retaliatory 

 tariffs. (See chapter III.) 



How have the times been with manufacture? During 

 the above-mentioned forty years the opportunities 

 enjoyed for the gaining of wealth have far surx)assed 

 anything told in history. In addition to legislative 

 favors, which gave manufacturers absolute control of 

 the richest markets of the world, and provided their 

 operatives with the cheax3est food supplies, the opening 

 up of a new country multiplied business enterprises. The 

 population has much more than doubled since 1860, the 

 increase being nearly 15,000,000 of people. Just to clothe, 

 provide shelter and furniture for this great increase in 

 population all these years was a stupendous task. Near- 

 ly 3,000,000 new farms have been equipped with machin- 

 ery. Shops and factories sufficient to give employment 



