Centre Hall reporter. [volume] (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1868-1871, 1871-03-03
A Better Market System.

Utica, hast fall, this subject was handled
for an hour or more and among tht
suggestions was recommendation thai
committee be appointed 90 look int
+ the mischieis of the New York system
and 10 recommend measures 10y which
the farmer will get better prices, and the
+ consumers may purchase better food al
morc reasonable rates, In considering
the topic in hand, your committee have
found two classes OF traders In the sur,
plus Of farms-the produce and commits
sion merchant, and the middle-man. In
the criticisms We may make on the mid
dle-man, We wish at the outset 20 dis
enminate sharply between these two.
One is necessary. the other Is not ont
I in important the other is An imperti-
nence The fair and honorable produce
merchant is as useful 20 the farmer as
I the depot that shelters his wagon load the
+ freight line that takes il 10 Underwater, on
/ the bottom in which il il waited oven
seas. OF course there must be cheese
merchants, and wheat dealers, and wool
Z houses, and these traders must haze their
margins and win their gains, for they
+ have disasters To survive and losses %
pay. For the honorable, hlgh-mlnded
men who conduct the great exchanges OF
+ the world, We have no feeling but that oi
admiration, and no words that are not
words OF approval Our criticism falls
mainly ON a class of men that 1--we 10y
their wits, that impede distribution rath-
er than aid il, who work for selfish ends,
and generally 10y unfair means.
WHO Is THE AnDDLE-NANg
In general, he is a person who acts be-
tween farmer and a consumer, and like
the monkey dividing cheese between the
cats, his policy is 90 blte from one and
gnaw little from the other. till he gets
more cheese than either Of the eats
There are those who say that middle
men are great benefit 20 the farmer,
aud The more of them there are the bet
ter prices the producer Will receive. Let
us examine that proposition little, aud
see II il viii hold water. There are per
haps million OF men who own land and
produce from il more than they con-
sumo at home, and who look 10 New
York as their best market. Grant that
500 men are needed in New York 30 de-
liver that surplus 90 the consumers, and
who must receive their pay from Il mod
crate commission for handling. Now
double the number. and let 1000 men
push each other, and iostle. and trick,
and lie, and swear as they do, IN order
that each may have handling in part
Of that surplus. To the farmer this
eagerness may seem like an active de-
mand. and he may believe that Il indi-
Gates good prices, and that the l,O00
jostling middle-men have by their enter
prise and thrift made his market Is not
the truth Just here that the extra 500,
who are no; really needed 10 handle this
surplus must live, and that living must
come from the consumer and the farmer;
sometimes more from one, often mainly
from the other. and IN the end the work
or in the city and the worker in the conn
try have that 500 to support, and often
to support all their extravagance 70 pay
their losses, 20 foot the bills for drink and
tobacco. sometimes 10 give them greedy
profit and enable them 10 retire from the
wharves and give place to others as eager
and as unscrupulous.
Why cannot the farmer do his own
marketing. and thus save what goes 90 the
middls-man As business is arranged
at present in the metropolis, this would
be impmcticable, and We give some
reasons
1.-Two OF the great railroads that
bring supplies into New York, the canal
and It's continuation the Hudson, run
for nearly 200 miles through q country
that gives but little surplus. There is
some strong productive land on the Hud-
son, but the local population, largely
non-producing, consume the bulk 81 IT,.
On the Erie. one reaches Binghampton.
and on the Central Schenectady, before
coming into country that yields large
surplus Probably the County of Or
ange, in the matter of milk and butter,
should be mentioned rs an exception,
Thus the farmers OF Central and Western
New York are divided by half days car
travel and a fare Of at least 81, aud often
IS each way, from the people 10 whom
he would sell his grain, veal, cheese,
apples, butter, honey. poultry, eggs,
feathers, beans, and potatoes. He can.
not afford 10 spend from $40 10 $40 in
going TO market with q lot OF produce
which may be worth all told not over
500 This is the difficulty number one,
and il is unsurmountable.
New York has regulated and estab-
lished customs. all in the interest Of the
city and It's middle-men, and adverse 70
the farmer. For instance, suppose far
mer in Green County has aiine new
mich COW TO sell, he reads in his news
paper - that prime milk cows nre
bringing from $40 10 $50. and some ms
high Us Sl0O and Sl20. He puts her on
the boat and goes down with her soon
after as he passes Spuyten Duyyil, a
person steps aboard and comes up with
the air Of man of business, and praises
the COW, and says, Il want that animal
for my family use. She is gentle?''
40, yes" How old is her calf p
-Four weeks" " All right ! will 60
right up 10 the house and send my man
down To the boat for her" How
much did you say ?" Zone hun
dred dollars" "All light good
COW is worth 500 in any family" The
farmer is elated he has sold his COW be-
fore the boat has her lines out, at the high
est price his fancy painted. He waits an
hOur-no man. Another hour-nothing
from the nice gentleman that wanted
family COW. Soon the mate tells him
the COW must leave the boat. He takes
her ont on the wharf and stands there
till afternoon, holding her, tired, and
worried, and fretted, aud hungry-both
man and beast--till at last another man
comes up and asks il that COW is sold.
The farmer tells his story man asks
him to describe the gentleman who was
such an early purchaser. ." Oh, he is a
dead beat You will never see him
agnin. I'll tell you what / will do. ]
win give you S75 for that COW. II you
don't sell her tonight, it will cost you
SO or S15 10 hold her another day $40
IL all you can make on her above expens-
es, If you should sell for Sl00 to.
morrow. Poor worried farmer Both
jaws of the trap take him at the ankle,
and these two men work together inst rs
even and venomous M the boys Of any
steeltrap, that ever stripped off the leg
OF woodchuck.
This is only one instance in n thou
sand, and il is part Of great system foi
discouraging and overreaching farmers.
REMEDY SUGGESTED.
He who discusses q wrong should urge
I something by war Of righting il. Your
committee do not suppose that any one
enactment viii efiectually cure the mis-
chief. The farmer, acting alone, can dc
much toward better state of things
the farmers acting i,a concert, can accom-
plish much in that direction and little