Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-06-02
PRODUCTS IN PAWN
Carlisle's View of the Farmers
Warehouse Idea.
DECLARED A PAWN BROKERS' PLAN

Arguments That the Kentucky Statesman
Considers Sufficient to Condemn the
Measure-The Census Enumeration VIII
Call ON You soon-work Begun To-day
with Regard to the Obnoxious Oues-
tions-The President at Home Again
Miscellaneous Capital News.
WASHINGTON CITY, June 2-To B. T.
Howard, of Tuskegee, Ala, Senator Car
Isle has written letter in response TO Mr..
Towards request for the senator's views
government warehouses for farm products,
upon which products treasury notes may
be issued. After declaring that the trouble
with the farmers is referable to the tariff,
Carlisle rehearses the features of the pro-
posed sub-treasury plan, and notes the
facts that the farmers themselves will pay
more than their fair share of the cost of
ficers connected with them will be partis-
ans of the administration in power.
Only Rich Counties Benefited.
Carlisle then says: There are more
than 2, 500 counties in the United States.
But not more than one-third of them (if
that many produce and sell annually
more than $500, 600 worth of wheat. corn,
not more than one-third of them could
possibly avail themselves of this plan if it
were adopted, for the bill provides that a
county in order TO secure a warehouse
must produce and sell annually farm
products valued at $500, 900 II will be
seen, therefore, at the very outset that it is
plan to compel the government to issue
and distribute money for the benefit of the
people living in the rich and productive
counties at the expense of the people liv-
ing in the poorer and less productive ones
Would be Pie for Spectators.
Moreover. it is plan to enable I'M
scrupulous spectators to take advantage
of the farmers pecuniary necessities and
extort exorbitant prices for food from peo-
pie who reside in the cities, towns
and villages and from people who
reside in the country but do not
own these particular agricultural prod
ucts. 1t Is evident that no farmer will
subject himself to the labor and expense
of transporting his property TO the public
warehouse and to all other charges which
he must pay for storage, for handling, and
for taking care of them while there, when
he has barns and granaries at home, unless
he is in debt and absolutely needs the
money which the government is to adj
vance, and if he is in that unfortunate
condition from what source Is he after
wards TO acquire the means to redeem the
products by returning the money and in
terest and paying the warehouse CHI arges?
How 1t Would All End.
in a great majority of cases he will
never be able 10 redeem them but will be
forced TO lose the remaining ~ per cent of
the value of his products or sell his ware
house receipts for whatever he can get for
them, which will be very little; for it must
be remembered that after he gets his
warehouse receipts he has remaining in
terest of only 20 per cent less charges for
interest, storage, etc, and this is all he can
dispose of. He will find the time rapidly
approaching when he must have money to
redeem his products, or sell his small re
naming interest in them or allow them to
be sold at public auction by the govern
ment; and this will be the golden oppor.
tunity OF the spectators, whose agents
will swarm all over the country. ready to
take the warehouse receipts from the en-
barrassed owners for a merely nominal
sum.
Only a Pawn Brokers Ticket
"The receipt is simply privilege of re-
demption, like pawn brokers' ticket, and
the farmer, being himself unable to re-
deem, will be forced ultimately to dispose
of it at any price offered / do not think
that any considerable number of inteIli-
gent people in this country will unite in
asking the government to establish sys-
tenn which will compel them in large
number of cases TO sacrifice the products
of their labor.
General Effect of the Scheme.
Carlisle argues at some length to show
that the plan proposed would produce an
annual expansion and contraction OF he
currency which would result in abso-
lutely destroying the market upon which
the farmer must depend for the sale of his
crops, and that the cotton farmers who
are supporting the scheme would be
special sufferers because the plan, in the
writer's estimation, would close every
cotton factory in the country. No such
facilities as this project will afford for con-
trolling the markets for purely specula-
tive purposes have ever existed in this or
any other country, and no more perfect
system for the oppression of the poor
could be devised
Wouldn't Support 1t, Anyhow.
Il have thus given you, as briefly as the
nature of the subject would permit, some
Of the reasons why think the proposed
plan for the relief of the farmers would be
instead of beneficial, not only to
hem, but to all other people of the coun-
Try. But it would be uncandid not to say
distinctly before closing this communica.
ion that even if it could be conclusively
shown that this or any similar scheme
would be peculiarly beneficial TO any par
ocular class of our people 1 would still be
opposed TO its adoption, be-
cause, in my opinion, it would be but an
other wide and dangerous departure from
the principles upon which our political in
are founded