FARMERS' ELEl/ATORS IN THE WEST. 
How a Nebraska Outfit Is Managed. 
Have the farmers in your vicinity been able to do 
anything practical in the way of handling their own 
grain? Yes, at only a few points in this State. In the 
Fall of 1.91 the local elevators were paying 25 cents 
per bushel for corn, while other large buyers in Chi¬ 
cago and other places offered us 33 cents on track. 
We thought it was time to do something, so we 
formed a company and sold stock at $10 per share; 10 
shares was the limit sold to any member. We sold 
about $3,000 worth of stock, and put up a small ele¬ 
vator which has served us well, capacity about 7,000 
bushels. This elevator would handle all the grain at 
this great corn¬ 
growing point if 
the railroad 
would furnish 
the cars when 
needed. We buy 
grain of outild- 
ers as well M 
m e m b e rs, and 
have handled 
more than two- 
thirds of the 
grain at this 
point. Our com¬ 
pany has worked 
on very small 
margins, as we 
had strong com- 
p e t i t i on, with 
many threats to 
run us out of 
b u s i ness. The 
loyalty of o u» 
members to sell 
to us for what 
the market 
would afford has 
saved us. Many 
outsiders have 
helped us; sorry 
to say that an 
occasional mem¬ 
ber would he 
small enough to 
sell to our oppo¬ 
nents for an ad- 
V a n c e of oae- 
fourth cent per 
bushel. Some 
years our com¬ 
pany has made 
money; some 
years we have 
come out behind. 
Two things have 
hurt us; buying 
on a falling market, and then failing to get cars to 
deliver grain already sold. We feel that we are not 
on equal terms with the big grain companies who 
have lots of elevators, neither in cars nor rates, al¬ 
though such an accusation is quite vehemently denied 
by those who claim to be in authority. For success 
one of the important things is to have the right man¬ 
ager to handle the business. We got the third one be¬ 
fore we got the right man. Our manager being well- 
known had the confidence of the people to start with, 
being one of those calm souls whom you cannot ruffle. 
We have no secrets; everything is open, everybody is 
welcome to see what we are doing and how we are 
handling our business. 
We pay our manager $60 per month if the Income 
will allow it. If the income is less then he takes 
whatever it is. If the income is greater than $60 i)er 
month the manager and the company divide equally 
all the extra above that. Our manager, furnishes llu' 
capital to do the business. I do not suppose that any 
other elevator company does business as we do. After 
some ups and down we just drifted into this method. 
Our manager has added a side issue; he is selling im¬ 
plements and coal. His work in the elevator is a hug'! 
advertisement to his implement business, and he sells 
an immense amount of goods. We have never de¬ 
clared but one dividend and that was to pay delin¬ 
quent taxes. We have a little company money ahead. 
Altogether we call the thing a success. We believe we 
get what the market affords. Our merchants have 
some of the stock; they think a good competitive mar¬ 
ket helps their trade. This is a little railroad town 
on the Burlington & Missouri Railroad in southeast¬ 
ern Nebraska, 48 miles north of the Kansas line and 
30 miles west of the Missouri River. 
Farmers’ elevator companies have a great deal of 
trouble to get sites. We had; they told us there were 
already enough elevators. Some elevator companies 
have built on their own sites just outside the right of 
way; then the trouble was to get a side track laid to 
their elevators. There is always a fuss, and some¬ 
times a lawsuit. We have a statute governing sites, 
but it is a lame statute, intended to be lame. The 
statute was written by the railroad lobby at the same 
time this law was introduced in the Legislature. There 
was a meritorious bill In the Senate which covered 
the ground, but that was a Populist bill. ‘ Oh no,” 
the railroads said, ‘‘we won’t have that,” and they 
didn’t. The railroads choose the high officials of this 
State, and then these poor farmers who have trouble 
to get elevator sites go and vote for the railroad’s 
choice. You may call this politics, but it is true, nev¬ 
ertheless. All farmers’ elevator companies expect to 
have trouble to get sites. We believe the railroads 
play into the hands of the big grain companies. 
Otoe Co., Neb. _ wm. young. 
WHY I AM A FARMER. 
We read of the many farmers who leave the farm 
and go to tbe city. Various reasons are given. Many 
say that farmers are not paid well enough for their 
work. We are well satisfied with the prices received 
for the past few 
years, during 
which time most 
of this m i g r a- 
tion to the city 
has taken place. 
I well remember 
the time when 
I wanted to go 
to the city, one 
reason was in 
not being s u p- 
plied with the 
proper r e a ding 
matter. I n o w 
have two dozen 
papers and mag¬ 
azines coming to 
the mail box, 
and rarely a day 
passes but some 
reading m at ter 
is waiting till 
the chores are 
done. I have 
taught school— 
taugnt for nine 
years—at $1.40 
per day; carpen¬ 
ter work at $2. 
and then at 
from $3 to $4 per 
day, being from 
home 10 hours 
or more part of 
the year. The 
present y e a r I 
stayed by the 
by the farm and 
the farm stayed 
by me and the 
family to the 
amount of 
$ 9 5 3.7 3, and 
three weeks till 
the year is up. 
We have 50 acres in the home farm and 30 acres three 
miles from home, made up as follows; 10 acres wild- 
duck pasture, 16 acres woodland, 18 acres permanent 
pasture, three acres orchard, lawn, etc., 33 acres plow 
land. This Income may not seem large but there was 
little paid out for hired help; most of it for digging 
ditch, only $8 for actual farm work, the writer with 
his wife and children doing the work. The oldest, a 
girl of nine and a boy of six, planted the onion sets 
and did all of the weeding necessary in the whole 
garden, a generous-sized one. We have not put in as 
many hours on an average for the year as the city 
man. We have had no fears of running out of work. 
I contend that the $3 a day for the family has brought 
us more health and comfort, with a few luxuries, than 
the $2 a day I could command in the city. 
