New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-09-03
SELECTIONS FROM THE MAIL
COMPETITION IN TRANSFORMING.
AMERICAN FARMERS THREATENED by THE VAST
FIELDS AND CHEAP LABOR OF EASTERN
EURoPE-DANGER OF A FARM
Frs COMBINATION.

Frs COMBINATION.
To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir: Having been Identified with ONO asr'ou'-
tural interests all my lie, and having seen the IN
evitable in the production OF wheat and It's safe III
both hemispheres l want TO commend an editori",
saw in your issue OF the 9th inst. that iouhd
in Geneva yesterday. For the farmers OF 'ne
United States to combine to fix a price on "heal
Is simply agricultural suicide. 1t Is just VIVA.
the wheat growers this side desire. lhey "oo''
increase their grain area and then uhoerse" '',0
combine Ii would be of a piece and on a par WIN
the General Warner school OF 10 to sh'er'.ss' VINO
preach TO the farmers OF America thd' Tue p''e
OF silver fixes the price OF wheat
Let the farmers OF America know ana uhoer-
stand that different conditions than ever peiore eN
listing now regulate the price OF gram nave re-
Gently travelled fully 2coo miles In the great graz"
belt OF the Eastern Hemisphere. entered II OH
the route from ST. Petersburg at or near Tvar' on
the Voga and while | have crossed and reerossen
the great grain belt in my country, II Is snah
I'm comparison to the area in western Asia anu
Eastern Europe. The latter reaches uo"n W NV
Black Sea and from a point more thah hitee" nu"
dred miles east OF Mini or Novgorod wes'"aiu !"
and across the German border and up TO the very
suburbs OF Berlin. This whole area as ! pass.u
through 1t in July an endless, oounaiess ielu
of grain and by the recent building of railroads IL
has been opened up Americas competitor IN
the raising OF grain
This Is not the only element that American
farmers have 10 contend with. for there is added
the other element OF cheap labor. These gram
fields are full OF women from o'clock In the morn
ing until 10 o'clock at night; for the whoie hs"'
there Is twilight. Mrs. Alexander ana myse" oe
neye from repeated countings day after day tha'
fully three -fourths OF the work Is done by women
Now considering that a mechanic (brcklayers' tol
Instance as | saw them being paid al the emu Vi d
weeks labor In Moscow or ST. petersburg se.s
rlble for his labor from a. m 10 p. M 81. Teen
null hours this rube being worth ~ cents oI
American money. what do the women get IN lne
fields? As they are largely OF the liberated SER
class their pay is from ~ TO u cents per Gay
What have American grain growers 70 nope Ior
under these conditions when this gram ~ sroMn
nearer the market than In our North"estelh
States? ould a combine OF American farmers
do away with this underpald competition IL Is
simple folly. -, -. ,,,,,.
Republic OF South America. They have bound
European markets Let the farmers OF Amerlca
turn their attention to other crops. For instance
the United States paid Germany over sSocv,vp last
wear for beet sugar. every pound or when couIa
be better produced in America. / passed through
vast fields OF beets to-day grown on poorer SOL
and under greater disadvantage than would be met
i'm America and under no obligation III
recipocal trade with this Nation, as Germany eS-
Guides American beef and all other American prod
lcts she can Let Americans take care or thefn-
selves first last and all the time -.>.,r,,
Strasburg, Germany Aug. 2, 1885