The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1899-03-22

Many q good old farmer remembered the
| twino deal about the time he cast his bal
lot at the late election, and this is as it
should be. There will be very little danger
that we will suffer any more from that
| source In the near future. I would not
drag our organization into partisan poll
tics, but would have it stand ready to
rebuke any and all such conduct as the
prison management has been guilty of in
the matter OF Irvine: and we should stand
ready as an organization to rebuke and re-
pudiate all such misconduct, regardless Of
what party or what individual is concerned.
When We hold ourselves in readiness to do
this as an organized body, all politicians
and all political parties will be at our ser
vice. Shall we have such an organization?
1t may be said that we already have it,
but 1t Is as yet too weak and facilitating.
too scattered and inefficient to be Of prac-
tical advantage
Ihe 1act is very apparent that the farm
ing community must have some well-de-
nned line Of organization, or we shall find
ourselves in the predicament of being
brought face to face with organization in
every other branch of industry, while
suffer the consequence of our own duplicity
or 1nadvertence. We shall find ourselves
IN the condition Of disorganized army
contending with great discipline in the
ranks Of the opposing forces. We must
suner the inevitable we must in the end
come to grief. Every trust and combina-
ton formed has for its object from first to
finish the enhancement of the value Of it's
product or the commodity that it traf1ics
IN; and let me say that trusts are yet
only in their crude inception. A few years
hence they will be the most formidable
power in the world, and will bear down on
and excoriate the common people.
Therefore, the necessity of organization
IN self-defense. We must take the market
Ing OF all our products into our own hands.
instead of marketing shares with the
line elevators and the millers ring. We
must have an outlet for our products at
the head Of navigation, and this must be
done by securing in some way large stor-
age facility at the outlet of navigation.
and we shall have opportunity to
whether the present legislature will offer
any assistance or encouragement in this
matter. If the fact develops that this stor-
age facility at Duluth cannot be obtained
by legislation, why, then it must be had
through co-operation-that is to say, by an
organization of all the farmers elevators
In the state. This can easily be done if
effort is made Our cooperative elevators
are numerous enough to do this without
taxing them too heavily.
There is one fact in connection with the
wheat business that farmers generally are
not we'll acquainted with. That is the fact
that here is a gross profit of 20 to 30 cents
bushel in the milling of wheat, and the
profit is more or less according to the
pacity Of mill, facility for handling, and
cessful milling business requires sufficient
capital to begin the season, with consider
able old wheat in store. to mix with the
new crop. This must be done in order to
secure a good grade of -four. Therefore.
the only objection to cooperative milling
is the large amount Of capital required to
operate successfully with. When | make
the statement that there is a gross profit
wheat, l merely state what any school boy
can prove by figures in five minutes. 1t
takes from four to four and half bush
els of wheat to make a barrel of flour 1t
costs about $3.50, and sells for about 81. IS.
making, as | have said about % cents
gross profit. But gross profit must not be
confused with net profit. by any means.
We know very well that it costs but a
small part of % cents to grind buShel
of wheat. where it is done large scale
-proba bly, not more than two to five cents
per bushel where large mills run cOntinu
ously. Where the mill is smaller and
only run part Of the time. the cost is very
materially increased. matter of fact.
This brings us to point where those of
us who have had the management of
operative elevators have learned some cold
facts. An elevator cannot buy wheat in
competition with the local mill. because
the mill gets the benefit of the profit in
grinding and pay several cents per
bushel more than the elevator and then
have good profit left. Thus we see that
the farmers elevator can scarcely live in
districts where wheat is the exclusive crop
for the mill will bid high enough to draw
most Of the trade from the elevator OF
course some will patronize the elevator
even at a loss for a while but they will
tire OF doing that in time, and then down
goes the cooperative elevator. In locali-
ties where considerable coarse grains are
raised. the situation is somewhat differ
ent, because all are on an equal footing
III the handling of coarse grain for the
very good reason that in handling coarse
grain there is no profit in grinding Rea-
soning from the standpoint of an unbiased
that we must adopt a plan of cooperative
milling unless we afforded some re-
dress by an available outlet at the head
Of navigation.
Permit me to say in conclusion as | have
said throughout that the preservation of
our own best interests lies in organized
cooperation Of the farmers of the whole
state. AS to the best plan of organizing
l am not quite clear, but it must be done
in such a way that little if any expense
will be attached to membership. 1t seems
to me that we should have an official or
gan to be published monthly and mailed
to every farmer in the state, such organ
to be strictly non-partisan and confined ex-
clusively to the interests of our organiza-
ton. The patronage that such paper
would receive in advertising would prob
ably pay for its publication. I do not mean
to say that politics should be disregarded
entirely, either by the proposed party or
ty our organiza ton, but that we should
avoid the mire of partisanship and be in a
position to ask redress from any and all
political parties. If we do this we may
receive fair treatment at the hands of all
political parties, without in the least dab
bling in party politics. And Furthermore
1t is the only way to build up great
farmers organization. for the moment an