The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1891-08-28
HIGH PRICES FOR GRAIN.

HIGH PRICES FOR GRAIN.
The Farmer Ready 70 Sell at . Reason.
abl Observation-Disclosures Spectators.
Nothing il creating moro interest now
than the grain crops. Everybody Is
looking with surprise on the great yield
of cereals in this country and Che accom-
panying increase of price. A short time
ago the Reform Press Bureau issued q
circular letter giving the condition Of
the worlds crops Of breadstufs, and
stating that the conditions were favor.
able to an advance in price of grain.
Those conditions have proved true, and
the advance In grain has taken place.
The whole surplus crop of America will
not be sufficient to supply the demand
from other countries on account of the
failure Of the crops in those countries.
The car Of Russia has already pro-
hibited sending rye out Of that country
in order thatthe people may not suffer
deadly famine, and other countries are
alarmed at the conditions confronting
them. All these things were foretold by
the "wheat circular" hundreds of thou
sands Of which were distributed among
the farmers all over the country. II
was suggested in the circular that who
ever held back wheat for awhile would
get the benefit Of increased price.
Now, the information thus dissem.
mated was carefully considered by tho
farmers, and there was evidently q senti-
ment among those who could do 20 to
hold their wheat until they could secure
a price which would remunerate them
for its production. Later on they will
be accused Of having held back the
bread Of life for the purpose Of exacting
ex%tortionate prices. This will not bs
true. They had nothing to do with Gre
ating the conditions which caused the
rise, and they only acted on the informa-
ton telling them about the conditions.
Farmers are always ready to sell the
products at a reasonable price. But as
a rule, grain goes through the hands of
spectators, no matter what the price
may be which the farmer gets. If he
should insist on getting as much as $1.15
pei bushel, and would not part with it
for less than that price, the speculator
would take it; and after getting into the
hands Of the Spectator, there's no tell
ing where the price will go.
The great London papers have recent
ly said that the American farmers were
masters of the food situation, and one of
these papers expressed the hope that the
farmers would use their power merciful-
ly. The same paper said that the prac-
tice of cornering breadstuffs was never
laudable, and in the present crisis would
be little short of hendish. Now, the
European people need have no fear of
extortion " fiendishness from the Amer
lean farmer. He will sell at a reasonable
rate. But the people Of Europe whose
crops have failed may find their enemy
in the Spectator. 1t has not been long
since a character known as stOld Hutch
succeeded in cornering the wheat crop
and put it up to two dollars per bushel.
There was not a farmer in this country
who got a price approximating that
amount for the wheat which the famous
old Spectator cornered.
=
1t is evident from correspondence from
all over the country that such farmers
as can will hold their wheat until they
can get a reasonable price for 1t. All
ances and other farmers organizations
all over the country are acting on the
matter, and many Of them are sending
| the result of their action to the Reform
Press Bureau. The following is Q fair
sample of the resolutions being sent in
from all over the country:
Whereas, During the last three years the
crops of foreign wheat producing countries
have fallen far below the actual requirements
of the people, thereby causing q steady de-
crease Of the reserves which, In accordance
with the law Of supply and demand, should
have resulted In tho farmers of this country
obtaining a correspondingly higher price for
their grain, but through tho influence Of un-
just and unlawful speculation the price of
wheat has been depressed, thereby robbing the
farmers during this period Of $4,000 ,COO; and
Whereas. 1t is known that foreign countries
have this year experienced the most disas-
trous crop failure that has occurred in years;
that the reserves are all exhausted and that
the world is looking to the United States for its
supply of wheat, and for these reasons tho true
value Of wheat 10 greater than ever before;
therefore, be 1t
Resolved (by Grand Island Farmers AL.
lance and Industrial union, California;, That
we express our entire confidence In the advice
and instructions furnished by the National
Alliance Press Bureau Of Information, and
would urge upon the members Of the organize
ton and farmers generally throughout the
state the advisability Of not being in too great
q hurry to market their grain, firmly bcliev-
ing that a little ~baokwardness on the part Of
the farmers in disposing Of their crops will
speedily result in an advance in prices: and b
it further
Resolved, That In advising farmers to hold
their wheat it is not our desire. object or inten-
ton to advance the price to an unreasonable
or fictitious value; but knowing full well the
true condition Of tho wheat situation through.
out the world, and that prices are bound to Be
raise the wheat-the wealth producers of the
country-and not tho spectators should fos
once reap the benefit.
The above resolutions fairly express
the sentiment Of the farmers on the
wheat situation. They will not resort
to extortion-will not make an effort to
effort from those who are in need OF
bread; but will sell at a reasonable price.
The best way for the European buyer
to protect himself is to have his agents
buy directly from the farmers who have
the wheat, and not through channels
which will certainly make a business OF
putting up the price to acruel height
under the present conditions.
q. w. AVER.
Not So Strange, After All.
Briggs-Just think Of it! Mggars
and his wife have not spoken q word
to each other for three years.
Braggs-How on earth can they en-
dure such a state of a~ffairsP
Briggs-Oh, easy enough. They
! are Observation-Disclosures Journal.