Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1873-05-29
(From the Western Farmer)
McCormick's idea Of Selling Farm
Machinery.

This is the caption of an article in
the Western Farmer of Nay Sd, and
as the editors made no comments on
the same either approving or disap-
proving, and as think Mccormick s
article is insulting and impudent in
its tone towards farmers, l as q
farmer feel like giving my opinion
of the manner of selling agricultural
implements by such a man as Nc
Cormiek, who has become one of the
richest men in Chicago by the sale
of reapers to farmers at from three
to four times higher than the cost of
manufacturing the same. He has
been one of the men who has had a
patent right, to rob the farmers for
the last quarter of century. How
we'll he has succeeded in filching
money out of farmers, may be judg-
cd by his immense income, which l
have seen stated in the papers, as
returned to the Internal Revenue as
SCISSOR, at s225,OO0 a year, which
was the largest yearly income at
that time of any man in Chicago.
Farmers object to be skinned any
longer by this man, and his special
agents and modestly ask the great
reaper King, to permit US to appoint
one of our number to buy reapers
for US, to act as our agent (not AS
McCormick's agenD to buy reapers
for us at the Factory where made,
at the same price that he sells to
other agents. We do not ask any
favors we only ask that our agent
shall have machinery at the same
price that he sells to others who buy
wholesale of him. Is this asking too
much ? In reply to this request Nc
Cormick says that they must beper-
mitted to engage for agents such
men as they deem best. This is just
the privilege we ask. That we
must be permitted to appoint our
own agents, to buy for us at head
quarters, and at the lowest prices.
l want to know what right McCor-
mick has to appoint special agents
for a County or State; and then say
to farmers "you must buy of my
agents Gf you want my reapers,
and pay them $40 or $50 dollars
more than the machine cost them
for l will not sell to you or your
agent at my factory at the same
price | do to the special agents, l
will charge you the same that the
special agents charge, for if | sell to
you at the same price that sell to
special agents, all the farmers would
order direct from the factory, and
thus destroy the business of special
agents" That is just what the
farmers want. We want to do away
with special agents, as we think thoy
are an expensive luxury. We have
no objections to Mccormick appoint
ing an agent in every town, if he
does not ask the farmer to pay the
bill. Bnt as we have to pay his
agents, and as we think we can APP
point mon who will do the work
cheaper, and pay Mccormick as
much for hfs reapers as his appoints
ees do, we think we have q right to
do so. Special agents are monopo-
lies whfst' every farmer ought to re-
sist, and use his influence to put
down, and allow every man to buy
and sell freely.
Why should the sale of farm ma
ohinery be continued by monopolies
any more than the sale of boots and
shoes, or dry goods, or groceries, or
any thing else Z? But Mccormick
says that whenever they are debarr-
ed Of this course, farmers will fail to
find the Mccormick reaper in mar
ket; (How cruel can purse proud
aristocrat bo). Don't, o, don't be
so cruel, Nc, implore you, do not
scare the poor, innocent, ignorant
farmers in that way. Don't with
draw your reapers from market. or
it might seem to innocent farmers
like cutting off your nose to spite
your face. Consider before you
withdraw who would lose the most
by such rash act. You who sell
an advance reaper at over $4,000,
| see stated in the papers. actually
costs you to manufacture S45 00-or
the farmer who buys it,
Advance is the most appropriate
name l have yet seen for q reaper.
OF course the name indicates the adj
vance in price from an old style Nc
Cormick reaper, which was sold for
about $4,000. to the price of the
present Mccormick reaper, which is
sold for about double that sum.
Prices are things that regulate them
selves and cannot be changed by all
the societies in creation, says King
Nc. That's whopper. You ought
TO be ashamed of yourself for max
ing such statement. Do not the
manufacturers OF reapers hold their
secret meetings, and fix the price
that they will sell at Z? Did they not
meet in Cleveland, Ohio, last winter
and among other resolutions pass
one to punish severely any one cut
ting under in prices Did not the
manufacturers OF threshing machines
meet last winter and agree 20 ad-
vance the price Is to 20 per cent
In olden times when business was
carried on honestly, supply and de-
mand had something to do with reg.
ulating prices, but now where every
thing is regulated by rings, from the
United Government down to Town
meetings, from great Trunk lines of
railways to the manufacture and
sale of sewing machines-would not
the sharpers who are members of
the Chicago Board of Trade laugh
in your face and take you for
greeny, if you was to tell them that
supply and demand regulated prices
there How is it with the provis.
ion market OF present. Does supply
and demand require that $500 be
paid for q barrel of pork, when the
hog crop last season was the largest
auar thara ha.rr. con