The Saint Paul globe., 1900-02-07
sumers? Geography answers the ques-
ton. China is

sumers? Geography answers the ques-
ton. China is
OUR NATURAL CUSTOMER.
She is nearer to US than to England.
ers of the present and the future. They
have moved nearer to China by secur-
Ing permanent bases on her borders. The
philippines give us a base at the door of
our ports to the Orient and Australia:
from the Isthmian canal to Asia; from all
Oriental ports to Australia, converge at
are Tine
fleet, permanently anchored at spot Sc
lected by the strategy Of Providence,
commanding the Pacific.
In conclusion, l sincerely hope that be-
fore your association adjourns you will
pass a set of resolutions in no unmstak-
able language and present them to the
present congress. Remember, politicians
dread your votes.
I have read with a great deal of in
terest the circular letter prepared by
James j. Hill, president of the Great
congressman. Time will not permit me
to read it here. 1 have no hesitation in
pronouncing II one of the clearest expo
sitions of the fraud attempted, In the
and gallant defense of the producing
classes of this continent. 1t certainly is
the production of a wonderful brain and
of a man who has the interests of our
country at heart. 1 believe he is the first
and only great man at the head of a
great corporation who, in our day, has
brain power and his capital to seek Gus
toners for our produce we never had in
the Orient country. And as one who
spent a lifetime cultivating the soil, and
great man of any calling, my most ar
dent desire is that when Mr.. Hill will be
no more and has retired to his celestial
home, tn. great army of the producing
monument to his memory In ST. Paul. as
a manS of their appreciation for his ef-
forts in the interests Of humanity
FREE MAIL DELIVERY.
Another important matter I desire to
call your attention to is the free mail de-
ers, in the days of our fathers, were
considered by the professionals as some
thing like his steers and sheep. as some
thing to be devoured, and the indigna-
OF today Is really merchant, and he
must of necessity come in closer contact
with the markets Of the world. This can
be done by receiving the newspapers
which give the market quotations and as
sist the farmer in disposing Of his prod
uct. In my opinion the farmer Is more
brother in the city. because it means so
much more for him to drive eight or ten
miles to the postoffice. The city man
could get his mail at the postoff1ce, II the
much easier and with less expenditure
than the man in the country.
This Is a high tribute to the advanced
position of the farmer of today but 1t Is
perity Of the country begins and ends
with the farmer. He is the grand sup
port and anchor Of all other classes.
Something like $500, 600 900 are paid out
each year to support the government.
Directly the farmer gets the least Of any
Of the Industries and enterprises. Rural
free mail Is great assistance to MIN,
bringing his letters and newspapers to
his door every day. Whereas he was once
an isolated creature. he is brought into
immediate and constant touch with the
government and everything else.
Enlightenment Is the key stone in the
national arch. The farmer, as mer-
chant, will not by any means be out OF
place.
POWER OF FARMERS.
What can farmers do as a class for
good can be secured by organization and
Cooperation. There Is no such proper
tion of the population engaged In single
calling as there Is in this. BY organiza-
tion, local and general, the farmers
should put in the state and national leg
islatures men who would represent their
interests. And in doing this they would
advance in the interests of the people.
BY organization and cooperation farm
ers could regulate local taxation, i'm
prove their schools, keep and extend free
rural mail delivery. buy lower ana sell
higher, improve their business methods;
and by discussing among themselves i'm
prove their ability to take part In pub
lie affairs; q great need. They should
lay hold of the market end of their bus1-
ness, study its demands and cater to
them in order to obtain larger profits.
To do this it would not be necessary to
enhance the price to the consumer SO
much, but to get the product to him,
without passing through SO many hands.
and in a better condition. Consumers
interests call for their cooperation In this
matter. He is the producer OF every dol
lar of the worlds ordinary wealth that
is not dug from the mine or is OF spon-
taneous growth: He feeds and clothes
the world. while the non-producer abb
serbs his earnings and speculates on
and grows rich out Of his labor. Let him
cease his toll for a single year and
every railroad will suspend, every fac.
stalking the earth, Will lay Its whitening
touch upon the heads of millions. Strong
men will yield to hunger; helpless wom-
the wayside. and famishing babes. tug
ging at withered and empty breasts. Will
sink into dreamless sleep.
He feeds the world and clothes the
world. He constitutes about one-half
the worlds population, and yet he Is the
plaything of politicians. and the prey Of
greedy Shylocks. the slave of every pass
ing ism, who mas not yet shown the
opportunity for self-emancipation that is
and has all along, at least in the United
States. been within his easy grasp. He
and drawer of water-the bearer of the
worlds burdens for those who neither
toll nor spin.
Producing more than half OF all the
worlds wealth and making possible the
production of the balance, does 1t not
seem to fair-minded mind that he
should be the owner Of at least one-haf
of that which he produces? And yet in
~ IYp{fn r6nllbltC4n
form of government, where his condition
should be best and his opportunities
greatest, he is the real owner of less
than per cent of the country's wealth.
SOME FARM STATISTICS.
There Is a business cause for the farm
er's lack of prosperity that Is deserving
of more of his attention and careful
scrutiny than all Of the political bug
bears that have ever been invented to
frighten him into the support of the diff
ferent political parties and blind him to
his true condition. 1t is my. purpose to
call your attention to one phase OF this
cause of his business depression.
In 1850 the total. value of all the farms
of the United States was estlmated @ Oy
the census of that year TO Pc So'zaz, lse, lsV,
and the total value of the farm products
by the same census was estimated to be
81. .46O, ,107, ,454 If the farmer had been 1ree
from debt and been the owner of the soil
he cultivated that year his total wealth
would have been s.. S.692, 1884. The total
railroads, 5telegraphs. factories, mines.
gold and silver coin and bullion. and
every other species of wealth, was $780,
O37. .09I 49, of which amount 1t can read
ily be seen the farmer would have owned
a little less than one-eighth. But the
same census shows that the real estate
mortgages of the country aggregated
then Sc, ,o19, 6I9.eS5. If one-half of this
amount was on the farms. the wealth of
the farmer would be reduced to $685.
453, ,652. Now, further reduce this by the
vast sum covered by chattel mortgages,
and take into further consideration the
fact that a large per cent of the farms