The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-01-04
Is With THE FARMERS
PRESIDENT HILL READY TO CO.
OPERATE WITH THEIR INTEL.
LIGENT EFFORTS
FRIENDLY TALK TO ALLIANCE

FRIENDLY TALK TO ALLIANCE
Advises Them of the Difficulties of
Getting the Grain Growers Of the
State to Work Together - How
They Would Profit by Having
Small, Inexpensive Grain Houses
Trade Across the Pacific.
Mr. j. J. Hfll. president of the Great
Northern road. delivered the address
before the Farmers Alliance yester-
day afternoon He said:
Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen: I am
always glad to meet the farmers and
their representatives at any time. The
reason for that Is the farmers Of Min
nesota and of the Northwest constitute
the corner stone-the foundation broad
ana deep OF all the prosperity of all
commonwealth. am. therefore. always
ready to raise my voice in behalf Of
what believe to be for the interests
OF the farmers Of Minnesota.
The gentleman who just sat down
tMr. Donnelly) spoke Of the grain grow
ers' association. The business Of rails
Ing grain Is the initial occupation of
the farmers Of Minnesota The first
work they are required to do In the
cultivation of their land is to raise
grain. It is usually the first crop.
Anything that will help that interest
along; that will make 1t stronger; that
will make it more certain by engraft
ing support into law so that they will
get what rightfully belongs to them
should receive the support Of every
business interest Of the state.
A few years ago 1t looked as if wheat
raising in Minnesota was approaching
a point at which 1t might be well to
consider whether the farmers Of the
state could go on raising wheat at for
ty-five or fifty cents bushel. But
there are some conditions-and I will
take occasion to speak of them In pass
ing = under which every individual
farmer will find difficulty in realizing
in such manner as will bring him the
best results for that which he has
labored.
After the grain Is cut many Of our
farmers feel that they cannot afford
the expense of stacking, and they want
to thresh it from the shock and rush 1t
to the market. It is not difficult
matter for one man, possibly, to hold
his grain and market 1t later, but when
you attempt to get the grain growers
Of the state to work together you will
find difficulties arising on every hand.
IF you will make a review Of the mar
ket for the past three, four or five
years you will find that the lowest
prices have always been during the
period when the receipts at the termi-
nal points were the heaviest. The rea-
son for this Is found in the existence
of the law Of supply and demand.
RECEIPTS AFFECT PRICES.
| prices downward. The man who Is
buying wheat. or who wants to buy.
looks to the volume Of the receipts.
| 1t may be that he finds that at Mime
apolis or at Duluth there are three or
four times as many cars received per
day as are received in Chicago. and IN
stead Of giving his order to buy today
or tomorrow he decides to wait another
day, and still another day, until the
price begins TO sag. The grain repre-
senting the larger receipts comes into
the market in due course OF time ana
he buys at one cent or two cents lower
than he would have been required to
pay if the grain had not been rushed
| into the market.
Notwithstanding the fact that the
great waterways over which a large
proportion of Northwestern grain ad-
vances to the larger markets are clos
ed; and the additional fact that the
| grain has been carried. meanwhile, in
| the elevators, at high prices for stor-
age the enormous receipts are reduc-
| ed, and the prices begin to advance.
Now the remedy for that. as far as
| I can Judge, would be for the farmers
| to be prepared to hold their own wheat
| and market it at their leisure. and in
| their own time. and not all rush 1t TO
| market within. say sixty days. The
receipts of our road, alone. at country
stations, frequently exceed five hundred
| thousand bushels a day. NOW II our
road carried one-third Of all the wheat
shipped on a given day this woulo rep
| resent northwestern receipts - on the
| basis Of 100000 bushels a day. The
men who are buying wheat know this.
| They are daily informed Of the fact,
| and they know that with the enormous
receipts they
CAN WIDEN THE PRICES
between those ruling at terminal points
and those which exist in the country.
| They margin the elevator charge In
| the country accordingly. and that
charge is three OF four times the ele-
| vator charge at the terminals; and l
| do not tnlnk I1dl LII lliCSC ioh sc civ
| yators. Notwithstanding the price is
lower than it was four years ago. the
| rate has gone from one and a quarter
| cents to one and half cents bushei.
| These terminal elevators are not get
| ting DOOR, They do not go out or pus,-
| ness.
If the farmers had small. inexpensive
| grain houses Of their own and Woulo
] clean their grain at home. saving tne
screenings that are row selling a. %
! per ton or forty cents per one nundreo
| pounds-a bushel Of screenings at nifty
rounds to the bushel would be worth
| twenty cents, which is the price OF
oats man would not think OF haul
| ing his oats mixed with his wheat and
| not know that this reduces the Valus
| Of his grain. He would not give MS
| oats away or give his screenings away
| and send them to market at MS own
J expense, then to be charged with the
| dockage for cleaning his grain tnal ne
| could clean at home. Inc screeuinSs
| fed to his own live stock, his own
| sheen his own cattle, his own hoss
| would enable him to add at least Two
! ond one-half cents bushel to the
price Of his grain. - tbo
This is q. little depression. but at the
| same time it is in line with WnaI YOU
are considering, so hope you WIN AZ
| cept it as the best Judgment can give
SrnI, raised some wheat in Mime
sota 7 have a farm in the western end
of the Red River valley. 1 remember
/ that In 1878 wheat was selling at the
tarminals at 80 and 81 cents; at that
time the receipts were large. Every
body was marketing his grain and the
price was down.1iI saw q NUMBER y.
them that IL Tpublicly advised them to
hold their grain they would probably