Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-01-28

probably One-half the minnesota crop at
much less than its real value. But they
are not yet satisfied. They know per-
fectly we'll that the worlds shortage of
wheat must soon put up the price of that
cereal; the vast home consumption is
rapidly eating up the crop, and what is
left to be yet marketed will certainly be-
tween now and July command much
higher prices. Knowing all this, these
conspirators proceeded the other day to
Milwaukee, and bought up million
bushels of wheat, possibly more, to be de-
lIXered during April next--this means
any time before the end of April; its
trans-shipment would bring it to Mime
apolis about the middle of
May. The period of storage in the
elevators of Minnesota generally expires
the LIST Of June; so that when the bulk
of the wheat yet on hand is thrown upon
the market, in the last week of May next.
the Minneapolis millers will have wheat
enough on hand, bought at compare
lively low price, to refuse to take the
farmers wheat unless it is sold at sac
rifice. They are complete masters of the
market in two-thirds of the state and
can dictate what price they please, while
their action will have an influence
upon the price of every busnel sold IN the
state.
Consider the magnitude Of the robbery
they are inficting upon the people Of Min
nesotal They require twenty million
bushels of wheat annually for their
mills; stealage Of ten cents
per bushel on this quantity amounts
to two million dollars onnually-nearly
four times the total amount of taxes lev
led each year for the support of the state
government But this is not all-the
price of every other bushel of wheat
raised IN the state is reduced at the like
rate If we raise 100000 900 bushels the
stealage is equal to $4,000, 900. And we
are confident that ten cents per bushel
does not begin to represent the amount of
the robbery. The ring reduce every
bushel at least one grade, sometimes two,
representing difference of fifteen to
twenty cents per bushel in price. They
deduct from two to ten pounds per bushel
for dirt in the wheat, while at the same
time they do not give the farmers the
grade which the wheat would really be,
after the dirt is taken out of it; they cheat
outrageously in weights, weighing down
the wheat received from the elevators
and compelling the elevators in turn
to cheat the farmers for their
own protection and to make up
their losses; and to crown all, they
drive competition out Of the market and
give the farmers just what price they
think fit, and the entire purpose and OBJ
ject of their whole combination is to get
wheat at the lowest possible price.
If no one suffered by this but the farm
ers, the state might look on with COM
parative indifference, for they, represent
ing the bulk of the votes of the State,
have long had the remedy in their own
hands and refused to use it; and, in some
sense deserve their sufferings. But every
business in the State suffers equally with
the farmers Can the merchants
of the state afford to stand by and see
the money, which ought to 60 to pay the
debts of the farmers to the merchants,
turned aside. by "a gigantic conspiracy into
the pockets of score or two of men in
Minneapolis, while the farmers are left
proportionately poorer, unable to buy
goods in the future, and the whole COM
munity instead of being prosperous and
happy1s reduced to the condition of a
stinted, half-clothed, under-fed peas
antry.
The whole people of the whole state
must rouse themselves to avert these
evils. Let the farmers organize and let
the merchants aid them; let them take
bodily possession of the next legislature,
and pass laws that will open the doors of
the penitentiary for all men who conspire
to rob the producers of the state; fix a
proper system for grading wheat; fix Sc
we're penalties for the use of false weights
and scales; and above all, abolish once
and forever the abominable "brass ket-
tie, "the little JOKER" "the Stacy vii
lainy," which robs the farmer of grade
every time it is used