The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1890-02-13


SENATOR PLUME, Of Kansas, hsv-
ing received the resolutions Of the
KSnaas Farmer Alliance declaring
In favor Of the free coinage Of silver
and the Issue Of Treasury notes In
lieu Of national bank currency aud
the like, replies that he hopes that
sOnethIng may be done In that d.
rection, but points out that the main
difficulty with agricultural interests
r. that the number Of sellers IL 80
numerous and buyers are 20 few, and
in two or three great ImArksts, that
thsy make the prices Of agricultural
products very largely to suit them
selves. He expects that congress
will deal with such Of these parties
a. form trusts or corporations, but
that Il cannet reach individuals. He
points out that one OF the difficulties
Of Kansas people IL that they do not
raise their own food, or, II they do,
they sell Il and then 60 TO Kansas
City and buy It back In the form Of
-four, bacon aad dressed beef. He
expressed the opinion, that II, for
ten years, the farmers Of KaBsas
would kill their own meat and sup
pIy their nsiRhbors, instead 81 sell
lag Il on the hoOf TO those who kill,
pack and cure, the farmers buying Il
back again, a much better state OF
affairs would prevail. The senator
10 right. Such farmers not only sell
At the lowest, but purchase In the
highest markets, and deprive them
selves of the employment aud profits
incident to home production. In
didnopOlis Journal.
There 10 q good deal more truth
than poetry In the above. Kansas
people and money have built up
Kansas City, Mo, and made million
aires Of q number Of men who live
there and In Chicago. Those two
cities thrive In q great measure upon
the proceeds made from handling
Kansas products. The former city
wsuld not be much Of . town but
fer Kansas. As Estimated In the
above article, the products Of Kan
sas farms 20 to that point, are there
manipulated and shipped back to
the producers with heavy expenses
added. IL 10 q condition that has
been In q measure forced upon our
people by unavoidable eircum-
stances. At IeBst II has seemed to
he unavoidable. But II 10 high time
the condition he changed. Whatever
can be made out OF our products
should be made within our borders
and he left with our own people Ia
the shape Of profits. The producers
themselves lsheuld be the profit
shsarers. Also all home merchants
should be sustained aud encouraged,
instead Of the merchants Of Kansas
City, Chicago and other points. Mil
lions Of dollars In profits alone go to
distant msTchants, to residents OF
other states, which should be distri-
buted at home, where Il would he
used In building up our own cities
and increasing tue wealth Of our
own people. II Is case Of home
protection 10 home industry. The
lack Of capital is Of course in meas
ure q hindTance to the immediate
building up Of manufactures in eur
midst, and TO the establishment OF
wholesale houses I'm the state. But
something more might be done than
has been done, even with what
means we have. At least, IL seems
to US that Senator Plumb's sugges-
ton might be considered with care
and much profit made by 1t.
This IL a practical question for all
classes to consider. II comes right
home TO the actualities Of our con-
ditiOn. The number Of sellers can
not he well Iessened. The number
OF buyers might be and ought 10
be increased. Diversity Of industry
and increase Of population, together
with q vigorous warfare upon all
kinds Of nonOpolies, trusts and COM
binations-thess are factors In solv-
ing the problems presented for solu-
tIOn in the state.