The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-01-26
THREsHERMEy ARE PUZZLED.

There are a lot of fellows in this
state marveling at the inconsistency
of a number of editors of Republican
papers, and wondering why the sauce
that is good for the goose is not just
as good for the gander. They are the
men who own and operate threshing
machines during the season Of activity
for their vocation. They, like the men
who made the machines and men who
make other things that are essential to
the comfort convenience or sustenance
of their fellow mOrtals, have felt the
cruel thrusts of competition, that foe
CT society, that disturber of harmony
and that fell destroyer of the best-Iaid
plans Of men for turning an honest
penny. They have been somewhat dila-
tory in catching on" to the proper
remedy, considering the numerous eX-
amples set before them in this and the
preceding decade, and especially when
We consider how laboriously a great
political party has striven to convince
the tradesmen of this country that
competition, when it comes across the
lines that separate this from other
countries, is the death instead of the
life of trade
Anyway, the threshermen have at
last caught the prevailing notion and
are forming, or want to form, an or
ganization, and to that end have in
vited the co-opera ton of country pa
pers to the extent of publishing the
circular the promoters have prepared
in which are set forth the object and
methods of the movement. In all trust
ful simplicity they have sent these cir
cGlars to the editors of papers which
give support to the doctrine of the sin
fuiness of competition, with a modest
request that they help this branch of
the gOod cause along by printing it in
their papers. And here is where the
cause for their marveling comes in
and where their wonder rises at the
singular Inconsistency of these editors.
We have found in several of them ac-
acknowledgement of the receipt of the cir
cular and refusal to print it, because
it would hurt the farmers Saws one
of them, and others say substantially
the same: In fact, we do not believe
the farmers of this county or any other
county would be very deeply interested
in its contents, as it speaks favorably
Of an organization formed chiefly for
the purpose of putting up and main
tanning the higher prices per busheI for
threshing- Another one of the same
kidney declines because farmers were
satisfied that they were paying enough
now for such work" These extracts
suffice to give the reasons generally as
signed. Now, no one who has ever
worked around threshing machine
when it was taking grain out of the
chaff and straw will fer a moment con-
tend that threshing is not an industry.
1t is in fact, the most industrious Of
industries. There are no eight or ten
hour days, but work begins at sun-up
or sooner, and ends when darkness
shuts work off.
Being one of our Industries, 1t de-
serves fostering, if any do If, through
Inadvertence, Messieurs Mckinley and
Oingley omitted to include it among
The fostered, it is none the less a fact
that it should be encouraged, slim
ulated, built up, and this circular plain
ly indicates the threshermen's convic-
ton that this is the case. Left out in
the cold, it is but natural that they
should themselves make efforts to get
fostered; and, the principal of fostering
being universal and sound, they had a
right to expect that editors who SUD-
port the principle would sustain it's ap-
plicatiOn. Nor will they accept the rea-
Eon assigned fer declining as good or
consistent. OF course it would increase
the price of threshing, but what of
that? Does not fostering always do
that? Weren't the lumbermen fostered.
and did they not increase prices to en-
brace all the protection, and do not
these scif-same farmers pay more for
their lumber for it? And do not these
Eelf-Same editors look on the rise of
lumber prices and say it is good? And
way should they be so solicitous lest
The price of threshing be advanced to
the hurt of the farmer, and so positive
that the advance of lumber prices is
just what the farmer needs to make
lin prosperous? We do not wonder