The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1900-10-19

| ent amount on hand the state win now
i 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
Irvine, 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 the farmer 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 that they had been
getting, but at two or three cents less
than the cost of the commercial tw.ne.
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. l am
not going to say it was worthless, because
it was not. You could use it, but it was
the
Poorest Irvine Ever Made in Still
water
since the plant was established: and
when the farmers saw what kind of Irvine
they began to get, the orders ceased to
come in, and hence the management has
been unable to dispose Of all of its Irvine
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 1t
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 Irvine that they were getting
from the commercial dealers, they
found that it was more expensive.
Hence there was a 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 1t 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 it
will result in
AD.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 again3t it and
say, "See what a grand success we
have made out of it," 1t was not only
manufacturing the Irvine at prices from
to 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 $4S, 900.
I want to say, Also that the prison
labor is charged up to the Irvine at so
CCllo d udy. 1uC ldI lhSI WIN s5clS the
Irvine 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
$48, 900.
In 1898 we manufactured about
10000 900 pounds of Irvine, paid the
prison institution so cents a J. 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 $4,000 in
clean, cold cash. So, in two years.
cannot trace the whole history, because
it would be too lengthy--in two years
we had made Irvine in the State of Min
nesota and sold it to the farmers at
from 3 to and even 5 cents a pound
less than the commercial Irvine 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 $4,000 in cold cash
that was not in the treasury on the
first day of August one year ago.
POor Quality, High Price and Loss
to the State.
Now, what is the condition at this
time under the Democratic and new ad-
ministration that told the farmers that
if Gov. Lind was elected they should
have their Irvine for cost, intimating
that they were not getting it as cheaply