The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1897-01-20
CHANGED CONDITIONS.

Dr. Christian Johnson, in the Will
mar Tribune, notes some peculiar
changes in relations of the farmer to
the mercantile community. We copy
| a few extracts
A few years ago almost all of our
| farmers were doing more or less of
buying on credit. The stores in the
different towns were vieing with
each other in selling goods, asking no
ques tions as to the time of payment
Of any ordinary reputable farmer.
The hard times Of 1892 and later on
| brought this easy go-as-you-please
trade condition to sudden halt. The
| utter collapse Of prices OF agricultural
staples left the farmer unable to pay
| his store bills, and many merchant
between the devil and the deep sea of
| financial insolvency.
| The farmer as the neither milestone
felt the effect Of the panic most
| severely. For him there was only one
thing to do, and that was to econom-
ize. Necessity almost forced him onto
Cash basis for groceries and ordinary
necessaries of life. But in being COM
| PEELED to pay cash for what he buys, he
| also began to inquire sharply for
| prices.
simultaneously with the above pro-
| cess in the country, wonderful
change of business relation was also
going on in the cities. A new factor
the department store, now appeared
| on the scene. At first these Depart
| ment stores drove almost all stores
out of existence in their immediate
| vicinity. Then they flooded the coun-
| try with enormous catalogues, Offering
goods Of all kinds for retail at whole
sale prices. The consequences is that
local storekeepers are now really in
competition with these big esta blist-
ments, and no moro big profit, as of
! old, is possible. This feature prevents
local dealers from running credit ac-
counts. The merchant who does
credit business must charge more
| profit, Of course, or go under. All
these things combined renders it
pretty certain that hereafter the bulk
| of the business will be done on cash
| basis.
The stablishment Of creameries,
especially, help the farmers to adapt
| themselves to this change. With fair
| wheat prices, for some time, at least,
| we think the farmers are going to re-
cover, slowly, no doubt. but Still re-
cover. in a measure, from the present
depression. We believe the farmers
| nave seen Uue WOrSU OF JlllS squeeze.
| But when we look at the cite; and
| industrial centres it is quite another
| feature. The number Of business
| failures in the cities is on the in
crease, and the bottom has not been
| touc he'd yet by any means. The re-
cent bank failures are but another
proof of this fact. In fact, all small
business houses in the cities are
doomed to extinction. The depart
| ment stores are driving out the small
stores. The Zig manufacturing plants
are driving out their small COMPETE
tors. The big banks likewise squeeze
| out the small ones. The farmers were
| the calamity howlers three or four
years ago. But they are pretty near
| over it. Hereafter the calamity howl
| will come from the cities.
There is a great deal Of truth and
force in all this. If the farmers and
the workers Of the cities can now ex.
change their products, the need for
money will be greatly diminished: and
the men who have been cornering the
money OF the country will find that
the producers have slipped between
their fingers.