Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1891-03-14

a combination or agreement to advance
price and restrict producrion,-A TRUST.
Now the farmer may be looked at i'm
the light OF corn producer, and every
other farmer as his competitor. If there
is surplus Of corn inevitably the price
will be forced by competition among
the farmers below the cost of produc.
ton.
An agreement among farmers to hold
for a certain price and restrict produc-
ton, like the agreement that the sugar
reiiners made with each other. would
certainly raise the price of corn; but
while combination of dozen rich
sugar retiners is easily made, combna.
ton Of such a nature between a million
farmers is out Of the realms of posi-
bihty.
at is clear that the farmer is simply
beng ruined, and that his capltal-his
lands being virtually confscated by
overproductiOn. AL the remedies brought
forward to help him, not recognizing
this fact, are at best but palliative. For
instance, to 90 to the extreme, suppose
railway freights were put at cost; sup.
pose his land were made tax free and he
|
that more corn would be produced.
creating a larger surplus, and in turn
knocking the price of corn to such a
ridiculously low figure that, with all the
assumed advantages, the farmer would
soon be again producing corn at less
than cost.
That any decrease in cost of produc-
ton simply means lower prices is seen
by rejecting that all the inventions in
agricultural machinery have never bene-
fitted the farmer; in fact each one seems
to make him that much poorer by low.
erng the price of his product.
eve NatiOnalsts say that trusts
among manufacturers, and pools among
the railroads, are the inevitable result of
the present terceness of the war of COM
! petition and that Senator Sherman and
Senator Reagan will have no more effect
with their absurd antitrust bills than
! dogs baying at the moon.
THE economic tendency to the con-
centration of capital is simply ire
sistible, and those who attempt resist
ance but more clearly indicate the swift
ness of the current. To day 81 900 peo-
pie own three-ffths of the total wealth
demonstrated to a mathematical GER
tainty that the remaining two tifths will
go into the hands of the $1,000 inside of
twenty years, and that not one of that
plutocratic oligarchy will be a farmer.
"Now for the remedy. We farmers
here in California are coming to one
opinion on the subject. We say that
but one solution is offered, uiz., the
Naturalization of Industry Let the
Government own al monopolies land
nearly all business to-day is necessarily
a monopoly"
We pubieh, without comment, the
following reply from United States
Senator James H. Kyle:
UNITED STATES SENATE,
WASHINGTON, d. c.. March 7, 81.
H. G. Wilshire, Esq.,, Ne,c York.
DEAR SIR:-As to the final solution of
our economic condition your view is
correct.
TRUSTS, corporations, etc, are here
to stay. Capital will not unlearn the
lesson that combination gives more
thorough workmanship, better facilities
and cheaper product.
"A blind prophet cannot fail to fore
see that the era of combination has but
just been entered upon and that we
must adapt ourselves to the situation.
3-This being true, the American
question "What are you going to do
about lty' stares us in the face.
4--The answer is found in this, Uiz. 1t
is for us to decide whether the people
shall operate the combination or whether
We shall submit to being tleeced by a
corporate number of selfish Shylocks.
5-For the present we must unite in
the demand that those interests known
to be for the general good, shall be
owned and operated by the govern.
ment
These are my views, given as briefly
as possible, and think they are in &C
cord with your own.
Sincerely yours.
JAMES H. KYLE.
~ s. Senator from Sollth Dakota !