Wichita eagle., 1890-02-04


proitably feed corn at % cents bushel
and sell hogs at present price per pound
ne ought to double his profit feeding the
present corn to hogs; hence it seems to
me that we have not too much corn but
too few hogs.
Its alleged that hog cholera makes
hog raising hazardous. Ii this is an
| established fact the real cause OF our
present frenzied financial condition Is
not due to too much low priced corn
but to hog cholera, and our real disease
IS hog cnolera, the curing OF which at
| once places US on our feet, removes the
| cause OF our weakness and does away
with demand for ''cut rate" on corn
| and restores our future prosperity.
In the matter of the hog cholera l
note that in the year 1888 there Were two
| billion bushels of corn raised, and the hog
production packed and marketed for the
year ending March /, 1889. amounted to
fifteen millions of hogs. Hence we are
led to belive that Kansas can profitably
raise hogs On corn at IA cent per bushel,
ana that our greatest misfortune IS the
| homeopathic supply of hogs, and if we
had hogs In allopathic quantities we
would not need an emergency rate" on
corn.
In connection with the emergency
rate l have not considered things that
may be factors in inducing the railroads
to grant the rate:
flrst-The railroads are not full
handed enough at present to equip all
the new non-paying lines with cars with
out taking cars from the old lines III
other states. The construction of at
least 1900 miles Of railroad that is not
paying fixed charges" to say nothing
of dividends, has made the railroads
''hard up" and we doubt if the railroads
can furnish much better facilities than
now offered to shippers, and for some
time the cry has been that none of the
railroads furnished cars enough to haul
the corn delivered at stations.
Second-The interstate railroad law
might cause general row IN Missouri,
Iowa, and other states In the event of "a
cut rate" being granted to Kansas. (This,
however. is a railroad problem concern
ing which [ have no opinion).
10 conclude this paper, the disease Of
Kansas will not be cured by an 'emer-
gency rate" Temporary expedients are
but postponements of a day of judgment
which will surely follow-quack reme-
dies for states distress. Let us remove
the cause and our abundant crops will
be blessings, not misforLunes. Let's
bring capital to Kansas: add wealth,
people, power and strength; to the end
that we may market the finished produc-
tions of our soil and not be forced to
market the raw productions. When we
can do this we need have no fear from the
consequences of an immense com crop.
Until we reach this stage of progress we
will be free from demanding an
''emergency-rate" on corn.
The unexampled area of universal
credit that swept over the west, seduc-
ing men to neglect the source of our
wealth, Turing men to abandon the legiti-
mate avenues of trade and business and
buy town and city lots, destroy farms
with parks, streets, avenues and alleys,
create debts without thought in the vain
idea that all could be rich without effort
is the cause of demand for an ''emerg-
ency-rate," and the real disease that has
produced the consequences from
which we are now suffering,
and we will not regain
health, strength and prosperity until we
cover the prairies with farming class
that can feed stock, raise hogs, and carry
surplus corn over at least one year. We
need people and capital, and if we are
wise we will unite and obtain the one
and bring the other, and 'cut-rates" will
not be thought of.
AS stated in the beginning I may be
wrong, but my deliberate opinion is that
if our farmers were full handed enough
to carry this corn crop and feed it to
hogs we would not be in any distress.
The disease is not too much low-priced
corn, but too few hogs and too little
capital to handle our crop.
'sKANZAN,"