The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1873-04-17

merchant of some kind, and then lives of
of the labors of the producers-the farm
ers and the mechanics AS it is by the Ia
bors of the producers that the merchant is
supported, and as it is their business to ex-
change the products of the farmer and me-
chanic for their mutual good, then the mer-
chants are their servants. Then, it surely
is the business of the farmer and mechan-
ic also, to see that they sre not supporting
more than necessary, or that the middlemea
are not growing too fat at their expense.
And while We war with middlemen, we
emphstically do not war with mechanics
and don't know but sewing girls" / be-
lieve Mechanic" is mistaken when he
said that the committee waited upon q
blacksmith, asking lower rates. If they
did, it was without the sanction of the
trustees. A communication was received
from blacksmith, but the trustees, find.
lag what ii was, refused even to have it
read; thus in the most emphatic manner
laying down the principle of not warning
against laboring men. No, We have no
strife with mechanics, and if we could but
welcome thousands of them into our midst
our troubles would be at an end.
Mechanic" says: eff the shipping
price governs the price here, why do you
make so much ado because the grain buy
er fixes the price he can pay for your grain?
Does he fix it or does the demand fix it,"
Let me illustrate how the demand fixes the
prices of our produce. Take pork, for in
stance. Last fall the pork-packers held
national convention at Cincinnati, and ap-
pointed committee to regulate the price
of pork during the season. The State
Conventions-notice how we'll they are
organized against us-ratified this, and d.
vided up their States, giving each pork
packing factory a certain territory, and
each agreeing not to bid against the other
That this national committee has regulated
the prices to suit themselves, no one who
has noticed the changes in the price of
pork this winter will deny. Now, is not
this fixing the price of produce by the
demand, with vengeance
So it is with all our produce, the price
is fixed by rings in some of the large cities
To break up these rings is one of our
great objects. If we could organize 80
largely that we could ship our own pro-
duce, by our own agents under bonds so
that these rings could be broken up, it
would be blessing to the whole country.
Now, if Mechanic" has any of that sound
sense he talks so much about, he can I'M
derstand what we mean when we say that
we will have some voice in what prices we
pay for our produce. Not that we will
ask what prices we please of the buyers in
Oskaloosa, for they are but agents, but we
mean to break up rings that regulate pri-
ces to suit their own pockets.
Mechanic" says: 81 believe, Mr.. Edi-
tor, that time will reveal the fact that the
most prominent men connected with this
movement, each have an ak to grind, while
the less prominent ones will be expected
to turn the grindstone." Now, as one of
those to turn the grindstone, I beg leave
to say, that there may be men in our Or
ganizatioD who have joined it to further
their own ends, either to get our money,
to obtain Office, or to turn the Grange move
ment into kind of exReform party but
deny that the Changers as an organic a.
tior are responsible for them, any more
than the Christian churches are RESPONSE
BILE for the black sheep that we always
find in them. Before we take our obliga-
ton as Grsngers, we are assured that there
is nothing in it that will conflict with our
moral, social, religious or civil duties
And it would most emphatically conflict
with my civil or political duties to be
bound before went to the polls, to vote
for any particular man.
And now, in closing, ask this charity of
the anti-Grange part of the community
don't judge us from few words you may
hear let fall from the lips of individual
members, but judge us by our acts as an
organization, and if we sometimes err, as
the best OF us will, judge US by our gen.
eral line of conduct.
A FARMER