The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1890-04-11

IL OOH11l Oo-
distinct firms of accountants, and
they made oath to a profit OF 30 per
cent. And to put on capsheaf. the
spokesman of their "Granaries Com
pany" told his London stockholders
that in one elevator 1.-THE statement
is not at hand, but this is our recol-
lection) last year they made 500, 900
4, BY MIXING GRADEs!1
To Illustrate: q country elevator
may cost $1,000. It may handle
$50, 900 worth of grain at net prof.
it of 50, 500 per year. 1t might be
stated that the elevator had paid SO
per cent profit, as it had only cost
IS, 900 and the profits had been 3d.
500 But the 81, 500 supposed prof
it's not only represent the profits on
the elevator building but includes
the profits on all the money used to
handle the wheat and on all the
business done. Again man might
occupy store which cost but $500
and he might sell 500, 900 worth OF
goods in it. Now if he got reason
able profit on the goods, it might in
the same way be made to show he
has made several hundred per cent
on the store building. Figures when
not properly explained are often
very misleading.
! I'VE trust that this explanation is
not designed for the editorl Because
well it is SO reasonable, to a certain
extent. And yet, after all, where a
man can sell wheat before he buys it
he doesn't need much capital to run
the business. Even an outsider can
go on the Board and buy wheat for
one cent bushel. One hundred dol
lars buys 10000 bushels.1
| Next, give it as my honest opin-
ion, that the merchant millers in this
state have not as a whole, made
two and one-half per cent net profit
on the amount OF business they have
done during the past three years,
and that the most prosperous OF
them have not made five per cent net
profit on their business during the
same time.
In making the above statement l
except the local merchant millers,
who sell their -four largely to the To-
cal trade, and grist mills.
| You will have great difficulty in
finding believers in this extraordina-
ry statement.
If this is the case how much more
could they have offered to pay the
farmer for their wheat.
honestly believe that the mer-
chant millers of this state have been
OF great value to the farmers, and
vice versa, that. they could not have
made their salt except for the wheat
raisers of Minnesota and Dakota.
Therefore their interests are mutual
Each one should rejoice in the pros
perity OF the other, whenever there is
a chance to rejoice, and when either
farmer or miller is not prosperous,
all hands should unite in removing
any obstacle in the way of either. If
the farmer is receiving too little for
his wheat, and the elevator man or
miller is getting too much profit out
OF it, the matter should be remedied
for one believe the cases where the
elevator man or miller has been get
ting too large profits, are exception
al and not general. Of course all
such exceptional cases should be
remedied if possible. l also believe
that the elevator man or miller can
never make good profits, as a gener-
al thing, while prices of wheat are
anywhere near as low as at the pres
ent time. believe the legitimate
situation calls for much higher
prices than wheat has been selling at
during the last three years; that
there is, and has been, no over pro-
duction for the last five years, but
on the contrary there has been an
actual under-production of wheat. "A
is proven by the fact that the visible
and invisible stocks of -four and
wheat have been steadily growing
less during this time. Miliers and
flour dealers the world over used to
carry large stocks of wheat and
flour. Now it is very rare to find
one OF either, who has the courage
or money to do it, and still the
stocks in sight in this country and
Europe are generally lower than was
ever known at this season of the
year. l think this proves pretty
clearly that it is not over production
that is the cause of the present low
price of wheat. l believe that wheat
gambling in the way of short SELLING
is the chief cause of the great de,
preston in prices Since the estah-
lishment OF boards of trade, their
quotations have fixed the value Of
the worlds crop. Most of the wheat