Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1892-08-11
Farmers and Protection.

How William Mckinley. in specch ct Beatrice,
Neh., Aug-
Protection is positive benefit to the
farmers of this country. There is no class
of our fellow citizens more eertainly a,lvan-
tagged by the protective tariff than the farm
ers of the nited States 1t makes a home
demand for his products, and home con
sumer> are always better than
foreign consumers because they
are nearer the field of production. They
enable the farmer to dispose of perishable
products at profit, which it wouid he
impracticahle to ship abroad. 1t there
fore increases to that extent the demands
for the products of agriculture, and widens
the uses of the farm. Millions of dol
lars annually of the products of the
farm are sold in our industrial towns
which would not be raised at all but
for the demand which they make. What
the farmers want are consumers. and the
more consumers and fewer competitors he
has the better will be his profits, and he
wants these consumers regular ana steady
and ut all times reliable He has such In
the 65 ,ooo. geo consumers in this country
who are the best and most
profitable consumers to be found
anywhere on the globe. He is
sure of them. while his foreign market Is
htful. far removed. less certain and de-
pendent upon agricultural conditions in
the foreign countries, whether there Is a
short crop or a long crop. There he has
competition. here he has practically the
field, with little or no competition. except
with his own fellow citizens.
As illustrating the difference in value be-
twees the domestic consumer AMI the for
eigu consumer. have but to state that the
workingman in the American shop consumes
more than $50 worth of agricultural pro-
ducts annually of the American farmer.
while the foreign nottingham consumes
less than S. of American agricul-
,urai products annually. The Ameri-
can consumer is, therefore.
Worth II or ~ times more, is /. or 10 times
a better customer of the farmer here than
Is the foreign workingmsn. The Demo
cratic leader nf today seems 10 think there
is some peculiar sanetity about the foreign
consumer that does not attach 10 the domes-
tic. | don't. prefer the domestic con-
sumer because he is the best. He con-
snmes more. and has more money to pay
fer his living than any other consumer m
the wide wide world.
More American Consumers,
The agrieulturists of this country do not
want more farmers. They want more peo-
pie who do not raise their own food. and
whom they can supply. Every farmer
would rather have factory for his neigh
Dor than another farmer. Every factory
that is built mp increases the farmers
customers, the value Of his product
and the salae of his land Every
factory that is broken down iiminsbes the
farmers customers, the value of his pro-
duct and the value of his land, and in
grasses his competitors. Ii the workinymen
of this country cannot get employment in
the factories. they must seek it elsewhere.
They cannot find il in other mechanical
pursuits. so they must 90 10 the land. There
every man can 20 when he eanno, find work
Mt his accustomed occupation. aud when he
goes there he takes out of the ground