St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-10-13

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its investment. In order that such
amount may be earned, some one must
be wronged, and it is not difficult to
point out the interest that has sustained
this wrong.
The minority report of Mr.. Moore, a
member of the famous wheat inveSti-
eating committee. claims to have dis
covered over 10000 bushels of average,
AS it may be termed. accruing to the
interest of one line of elevators in this
state. Certainly this cannot be eX-
planned by the existence of the Chicago
board of trade. If by means of the
manner in which these elevators are
operated three-quarters of million
bushels of wheat are unjuStly taken
from the producers of the Northwest,
that one fact is sufficient to condemn
the system that admits of such results.
1t is apparent from this report, as we'll
as from the testimony from other
sources, that
The Producer rs Suffering
under another effect of this combina-
ton. You may take the total amount
of No. hard wheat produced in the
Northwest, and it is any easy matter for
this combination to control that amount
OF wheat They use what they wish
Tor their own mills, producing there
from superior grade of flour, rich in
gluten. They take what may remain-of
the wheat, and through the operation of
their terminal elevators, they mix it
with greater or less percent of an in
ferior soft wheat. The article SC mixed
goes into the markets of the world as
No. l hard. When purchased as such
it is sold on its merits. The miller who
grlnds it finds it does not produce flour
10
more for it than it is actu-
ally worth. What is the result?
Ii it were No. l hard. such
as the millers of Minnesota belonging
10 the combination make into flour. it
might bring S1.20 in the outside market,
but, debauched as it is by the admxture
OF soft wheat. they canuot afford to pay
mores than sl.l0. The result is that
No. hard wheat is quoted in the mar
kets as bringing S1.10. 1t is the stand
ard by which the price Of other wheat
Is made. The combination goes into
the markets of the Northwest. and fix
ing their price by the price of foreign
wheat which they have themselves de-
graded, they buy the wheat of the
Northwest at 10 cents per bushel less
than it is worth Oh every bushel of No.
hard; and the same rule applies to
other grades.
How Prices Are Fixed.
AS to the manner in which the price
OF wheat is fixed, it was determined by
investigation before the wheat commit
tee. and the result of Mr.. Moore may
be confirmed by the personal expert
ence OF every farmer in the Northwest.
We no lOnger have an open market
One man, obeying the dictation of the
combine, sends the price every morning
along the line of the various elevators
belonging 10 the combination. Persons
in charge of the elevators can pay no
more. The farmer is without redress.
He must accept the price made, store
his wheat when the storage charges will
eat up his profits, or haul his wheat
home.
Now, according to the statement of
the Pioneer Press, the paper which has
charged itself with the task of defend
Ing this combination. we find that the Sc
elevators charge from five to seven cents
per buShel for handling the produce of
the farmer between TWO points where
the railroad company only charges 1917
cents bushel for transporting it, This
service cOuld be performed, and per-
formed at profit, for
Two Cents Per Bushel.
and large dividends would then be de-
ciared upon the stock. This is virtually
taking from the farmer without any
compensation from three to five cents
on every bushel of wheat he hauis to
the elevator.
And now, it may be asked, what is
the remedy for these evils? 1t is USE
less to talk about passing laws reQuir-
Ing the railroad corporations to furnish
cars to the farmer to transport his
wheat to the market. In the first place,
the farmer is not in position to COM
mand fair price for his wheat at the
terminal elevators or the terminal sta
tons under the present system. The
combination could reach him there just
as effectually as it does at the door of
the local elevator.
Again. it is impracticabe. The bo-
nanZa farmer. shipping his teas of
thousands of bushels, can protect him.
self. for his interests are so large that
he can personally superintend the ship
ment. The question is, what is to be-
come of the farmer who raises from 500
to 1000 or 5000 bushels of wheat? They
are the men who need the protection of
the law; the capitalist can always pro-
tect himself.
This talk of furnishing cars to the
farmer is simply device to divert his
attention from the remedy that should
be applied to these evils. A farmer, for
instance, has 400 bushels of wheat: he
has one team-he is fortunate if he has
that under the present system. He can
not haul more than forty bushels at
load. Living from six to eight
miles from the elevator, two loads
a day is the best he can do. The result
is, it would take him five days to load
his crop into the car. The railroad
company cannot be required to held
car indefinitely for him. Again. the
farmer may want to market his crop a
little at time, as he goes into his trad
ing station from day to day, and not
throw it all into the market atonce. To
the ordinary farmer this device of fur
niShing cars is worse than useless-it
to absolutely nothing. What
the farmer wants is a chance to sell his
wheat
In an Open Market,
where the price is determined by that
which the surplus wheat of this country
brings i'll the markets of the world, and
not fixed by combination established
to control the market. How can this be
The Democracy proposes that the rail-
roads should resume their functions as
carriers, and receive the wheat
of the farmer in their elevator and for
ward it as other merchandise to the
place to which it is shipped, subject to
the rules and regulations of common
There may be some question
raised as to whether the railroad COM
panies cannot require all freight offered
them to be put in suitable packages ana
whether they can be compelled to re-
ceive wheat in bulk. But, waving that
70
as follows:
The law already provides that rail
road companies shall give place on their
right of way for warehouses or elevators
Of certain capacity. Having availed
themselves of this provision of the law.
and being, as already stated, charged
with a public duty, because their