St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-02-10
COMPETITION STRONG.
Line Elevator Forced to Pay Good
Rates.

Special to the Globe.
ST. HILAIRE, Feb. 9.-The wheat
market here has been fair nearly all
the time during the season of 1896.
Ihere is only one line house, the st.
Anthony & Dakota, which has a ca
pacity Of $4,000 bushels, while the indie
pendent houses have capacity Of
10000 bushels. These are owned by E.
j. Holmes, 10000 bushels, and Johnson
& Marshall, millers, of Red Lake Falls,
10000. There are two roller mills at
Red Lake Falls, twelve miles south
Of here, and they have materially as
sisted the farmer in obtaining a fair
price for his wheat. Then the compe-
titfon has been strong and the line
house has been compelled to do bust
ness on a legitimate basis. Added to
this has been the shipment from track
and one-fourth of the wheat marketed
here has been shipped direct by the
producers or sold through track buy
ers. The wheat began to move early
in October, but during that month
practically no cars were available
and only thirteen carloads Of wheat
were shipped from this station. In
November there were As carloads
shipped and of these II were loaded on
track; in December, q of the 104 cars
loaded here were track shipments and
in January, 16 of the 81 carloads
shipped were loaded on track by the
producers. The gain by the farmers
when they shipped direct, was not more
than two cents a bushel on an aver
age, amounting to little more than the
handling charges That the margin was
so close is due largely to the compe-
tition from the mills at Red Lake
Falls and the independent buyers here
Wheat that was shipped to the ter
minal markets at Duluth and Mime
apolis did not net the independent and
track buyers more than a fair margin
and that bought by the mill company's
elevator was for grinding, and not for
selling, so it was bought on its merits.
The line company, being, in the minor
ity, could neither dictate nor control
the grades and prices.
In former years the ST. Anthony &,
Dakota, then the Red River Valley
Elevator company, had it all their own
way and the farmers suffered because
there was no competition in the mar
ket. Not only did the elevator COM
pany fix the grades and prices, but the
farmers were squeezed to the last ex-
tremity on dockage. When the indie
pendent buyers first came here there
was great strife for the wheat and
neither side made much money, but
the farmers were well pleased, for they
sold their wheat for within twelve
and Duluth. There has been no let up
in the competition since that time and
the market has been, in the main, fair
This season the average dockage has
been less than one pound per bushel
and the margin between local and ter
minal markets has not averaged more
than II cents a bushel, which, after
deducting freight, commissions, in
spection, ETC., leaves margin Of about
IL cents. Some of the farmers who
shipped direct made money by the
operation, while others only came out
about even.
E. J. Holmes, who owns and operates
the Independent house here, has not
much time for the state inspection, for
he believes 1t to be an unwarranted and
useless tax upon the producer. He be-
lieves it would be better for all con-
cerned If the wheat could be sold on
It's merits without the Intervention of
state inspection. On his purchases of
wheat before jan 1 great proportion
Of the cars shipped failed to hold out