The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1900-10-17


emit amount 81 hand. the state VIM now
lose over $4,000 this year, to say nothing
about the losses that may come In BY the
non-collection OF large amount Of out
standing notes.
Now, let us see what the situation was
two years ago. We were unable to fur
nish the required number Of pounds of
twine, and we turned back .during that
season orders for more than four million
pounds-cash orders-that we were unable
to FILL Every pound that was manufac-
tured was disposed of to thefarmer three
or four months in advance. This year
the farmers of the state did the same
thing that they had been doing before.
sent in their orders early, expecting that
they were going to get about as good
bargain as they had been in the habit OF
getting for the last four or five years on
this Irvine. The consequence Is that we
sold within million and a half pounds
Of what we had bought, because the farm
ers believed that they were going to get
the same kind Of Irvine thatthey had been
getting, but at two or three cents less
than the cost of the commercial tw:nc.
They did not know but what they were
going to get just as good Irvine as they
had always got. But the fact of the busl-
ness was that. when they came to ex-
anime the Irvine. they found they had got
something that was not as good as they
had been in the habit of getting. i am
not going to say it was worthless, because
it was not You could use it, but 1t was
the
Poorest Irvine Ever Made I'm Still
since the plant was established; ana
when the farmers saw what kind OF Irvine
they began to get, the orders ceased 10
come in and hence the management has
been unable to dispose of all of its tW1ne
this year.
But that it not all. The farmers
found. when they came to get this
Irvine and compare it with other com
mercial Irvine, that they were not get
ting it as cheap as they could get it
from their local dealers. When thes
came to compare the quality of the
Irvine with that they were getting
from the penitentiary with the quality
of the twine that they We're getting
from the commercial dealers, they
found that it was more expensive.
Hence there was great deal of dissat-
isfaction, and no one this year has
heard of a second order being sent by
the same farmers to saltwater for
Irvine. It was not the same kind of
Irvine that they had been able to get
before under the old administration.
Now, we have at the present time
dead loss to the state of from $4,000 to
$40 900, but what will be the conse-
quences next year? What is the seri-
Gus question in regard to this Irvine
plant? Why, we must dispose of the
manufactured Irvine every year or 1t
| will result in
AID >ad Loss to the state.
And 1 want to say right here that the
Irvine plant has got a great many
enemies in this state. Not only amongst
| the Irvine manufacturers of the United
| States, but the wholesale dealers IN
Irvine in this state, and they are a
| powerful factor. Then there is another
class of people that do not look upon
| the success of this Irvine plant with
! any degree of kindness and that is
| the local dealers in this article Let it
| be known in this state that the Irvine
| plant is not able to carry it's own
weight and you will hear a howl go
up from all over the state, and from
| the laboring men of the city; for the
| latter class of people do not look with
any degree of kindness on this plant
because they say it comes in competi-
| ton with their affairs, and the only
| reason why we have been able to make
appropriations and carry this plan on
| successfully is because we could show
| to an absolute certainty the falsity Of
| the arguments made again5t it and
say. "See what a grand success we
| have made out of it, 1t was not only
! manufacturing the Irvine at prices from
| 3 to 5 cents below other commercial
! Irvine, but it was actually better than
| that and making large clear profit to
| the state every year.
Better and Cheaper Irvine and
| Profit to the State.
Now, Warden Wolfer, when he was
| before the Investigating committee two
years ago. which was appointed by
| the legislature to investigate the
charges that Gov. Lind and others
| made, testified under oath that the
| Irvine plant had made in 1897 clear
| profit above all expenses of over $4,000
I want to say, also, that the prison
labor is charged up to the Irvine at 50
cents a day. The farmer who gets the
| twine pays for that, and The wear and
| tear of the machinery is taken out and
! considered in making these figures;
| but when you take all this out we had
| made clear profit in 1897 of over
| $4,000. "a
In 1898 we manufactured about
| 100000 pounds of Irvine, paid the
| prison institution so cents a day for
| the days employed in making that
! Irvine, and paid for the wear and tear
| Of the machinery and cleared and put
| into the state treasury over So, 600 in
| clean, cold cash. So, in two years-I
| cannot trace the whole history, because
| 1t would be too lengthy--in two years
we had made twine in the State Of Min
nesota and sold it to the farmers at
| from to 4 and even cents a pound
less than the commercial twinc was
sold for and cleared for the state more
than $4,000, and in the time since the
plant was organized and established
| we have made over $500, 900 in cold cash
! that was not in the treasury on the