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same seed is planted it costs some more real money to cultivate and care 

 for the growing crop until it is ready to harvest, then more real coin to 

 gather and transport the crop to the railroad station and load it into the 

 car. You may not have thought of it, but the railroads require you to 

 pay them some more of the medium of exchange to carry your product 

 to their freight house in the city. You have invested a considerable sum 

 of money in land and farming implements prior to seeding time, and you 

 are still the owner of a perfectly good crop of something which the non-pro- 

 ducing consumer must eventually consume. 



Your crop is now in the city and under the conditions which prevail 

 today you have the choice of seeking a buyer and after making a bargain 

 mutually agreeable, well scarcely, but after agreeing to accept the price 

 he offers, you can deliver the goods to him and apply the proceeds, or 

 you have the alternative of disposing of the crop at the freight house to a 

 commission man or distributor, who is prepared and equipped to deliver it 

 to the consumer. You receive from the commission man or distributor 

 the '^market." The consumer now may deal with the interests which 

 have a "system" for holding and delivering economically. Here is a 

 place in this narrative for you to smile if you are a producer, and think. 

 Think hard, get in touch with other producers and devise ways and means. 

 There is a way. We need the railroads, and every other large industry. 

 We need more railroads and more big industries. We need distributors, 

 but farmers must have a system. Think out a system. Talk it over with 

 everyone who is interested. It will take a long time to remedy these 

 things, but we can do it, don't back down. Farmers are the salt of the 

 earth, the foundation and support of every enterprise of whatever name or 

 nature. Get busy and form local organizations, and work systematically. 

 There is no reason to be discouraged. Call on your boys for assistance 

 in the work of organizing and systematizing your work on the farm. 

 Send them to the Agricultural Schools, where they will learn how to think 

 and plan. Many of your methods are obsolete, and while your experience 

 is of great value, yet the boy, with his enthusiasm and strength of youth, 

 will be able to suggest and assist in carrying out a new and more effective 

 method, when he returns from school. Put the government bulletins and 

 experiment station work in his hands. We have found them of great value 

 in our work on Green River Stock Farm. 



Farmers have, ever since I can remember, been pleased to call them- 

 selves "Independent Farmers," then smite their thigh and look wise. 

 Independent means standing alone, and that is just the reason you are 

 getting pushed and jostled and despoiled today. Other men recognize 

 the value of organized systematic work, hence we have the Board of Trade, 

 Wholesale Dealers' Association, Retail Dealers' Association, Produce 

 Exchange, Bankers' Associations. Every craft worthy the name has an 

 organization which is affiliated with a National Organization, and here 

 are the grand old farmers still plodding along and bearing the burden alone. 



