Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1896-09-19
The Robbery.


Mobilier. the Indian ring.the whiskey
ring, the star route ring and scores of
others followed in rapid succession, but
though the farmers murmured they
did not revolt. They overlooked the
fact that parties are composed of men
and therefore subject To change. They
were slow to believe that the grand
old party could contain schemers.
On top of all the rest comes
financial system which has added so
per cent to the value OF money and
deprecated the price of the farmers
products in like proportion, and at
the least signs of revolt ON his part
he is denounced as traitor. Ii is as
sumed rs matter of course that Wall
street should strive for a rise in stocks,
that manufacturers should lobby for a
higher tariff. that the Pacific Railroad
companies should evade payment of
their debt. A II other men can vote and
lobby to raise the price of what they
own and he good Christians, hut at
the bare hint that the farmer is to
vote for restoring silver to get little
better price for his crops, the country
rings with frantic cries OF rage and
denunciation. The farmer has submit.
ed too long. He has lost the respect
o. those who have robbed him, and il
is much to be feared that in great part
he has lost his own self respect. His
poverty has become his reproach.
The Addiction of Abundance.
"But there has been so great an in
crease in production. Now, why should
the farmer complain that prices go
down as the size of the crop goes up?
And how can you prove that elevating
the condition of the farmer will elevate
that Of other labors p
Ii is Impossible to raise the agri-
cultural class of any country without
raising all the other classes who depend
on labor for living. 1t is not absolute
ly impossible to press down the agri-
cultural laborer and yet leave the city
laborer Unaffected, but il is very un-
likely. The farmer, however, does not
complain that he gets less per pound
or per bushel when the crop is big
than when it is small What he does
complain Of, and what he has right
to complain of, is that prices have
fallen so fast that he gets very much
less money for very big crop than
he formerly got for a small one. Thus
the bcunties of Providence are turned
into curses and he is coming to look
upon abundance as an afiiiction. Let
me call your attention to some figures.
In 1881 the farmers produced 49,
4S1 900 bushels of oats and received
therefor 1898, 19s.970; in 1883 they
produced 81, 1902. 400 bushels and
received for 1t s1S7, 040, 264 in 1889
they produced 751, $4,000, bushels
and received sl7l,7Sl ,00S, and so on
down, the amount rising as the money
received for it fell, till 1895, when
they produced S24, AS, 537 bushels of
oats and received therefor s163,655,-
06S. Ard the population has increased
20 per cent. In 1870 we produced
1904 ,225, 900 bushels of corn, worth
1901 ,S39, G30; in 1893 1,619, 1876, 1871
bushels, worth S59l,625, 627, and in
1895 2.l5l,l3S,5S0 bushels, worth
s567 ,509,l06. Overproduction, you
say. but divide the bushels by the
population each year, and you will
find that per capita the increase was
quite small, and in such years as 1890
and 1894, when the crop was very
short and the number of bushels per
capita very much less than the average
of several years ago, the price er
bushel was still low.
The Decline In Value.
Since 1870 the production of hay
in tho United States has increased in
almost exact parallelisn with the in.
crease of population, and yet the aver.
age value per ton has declined from
1882 to SS 80. This last is the farm
price as reported by the agricultural
department for July nevertheless, on
the day write this hay is selling in
New York city by retail at SIS per
ton. which is beautiful illustration
OF how your city consumer profits"
by the loss of the farmer. Wheat is
supposed TO he an exception because
our rivals in other countries are pro.
ducing so much. and yet the figures
are insignificant. In 1881 for instance
$50, $50, 900 bushels were valued at
s456, $50, I27, and in 1898, i67.1O2.
9I7 bushels at 1927 ,93S99S. And vet
the world has not as much wheat rs il
wants, and not much more than halt
as much ms it would buy il it had the
wherewiih. There is evidently some.
thing wrong that cannot he explained
by that handy phrase "overproduci.
ION
Has there been an overproduction
OF fat hogs? Every farmer knows tina
there is just now a great scarcity al.
most hog famine. And yet fat hogs
in the central region of the west are
selling at } cents per pound or less,
but when few years ago they sold at
q. Has there been an overproduciion
in milk cows? The census will show
you they are less numerous in proper
ton to population than they were, and
yet the price Is going steadily down
ward. Is there an overproduction OF
land ? In twothirds of the country east