The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1900-01-18
AN IMPORTANT ADDRESS
By James j. Hill, Before the State
Agricultural Society, Jan.
D, 1900.
Opening Up the Oriental Markets to
the Products of American Farms.
(From the St. Paul GlObe.)


(From the St. Paul Globe.)
SIT will bring national scandal and
disgrace If under the name of helping
the agricultural classes law is passed
which will pay $450,O00 in subsidies to
fast Atlantic passenger boats to carry
our wealthy Americans to Europe to
spend the money they have made here
Perhaps some day we will be rich
enough so that we can afford to do that
but let us first raise the price of wheat
above so cents per bushel."
Ringing applause answered these last
sentences of James ]. Hills address be-
fore the state agricultural society yes
terday afternoon on Enlarged Mar
kets," and in moment the veteran
Patrick H. Rahilly, of Lake City was on
his feet with a motion to appoint COM
mittee of five to draft resolutions di-
recting the representatives Of Mime
sofa in congress to fight or amend the
Hanna-Payne subsidy bill, which he
stigmatized as fraud from beginning
to end. He hoped, too, that Mr.. Hill
would arrange for the full publication
of his address and it's general distribu-
tion to the farmers of this and adjoin-
ing states.
1t was pointed out to Mr.. Rahilly,
however, that the subject would proper
ly come within the scope of the commit
<oo horofnfnro onnOinfo6
and he withdrew his motion under that
view of the case.
Mr.. Hills address on Enlarged Mar
kets" was listened to by the agricultur-
lists present with rapt attention, and in
terrupted occasionally with applause.
He pointed out that the population of
the United States was doubling itself
practically every 80 years, so that in
1880 there would be here between $780,,
100000, and 150,000,0O0 people. This
expansion had been continual, and
there was no prospect that it would
cease Yet these men must all be at
work. He said:
About half the people of this country
al OAA OSIAy CA6o6Ou III o6A ASUAeuA al PuA
suits, and half the wealth of the United
States, too, is in agricultural property.
A considerable percentage of this was
in wheat. Only about one-third of the
worlds population were consumers of
wheaton flour; the other two-thirds
were rice-eaters. Worlds total produc-
tion of wheat annually was about $780,
OO0, 900 bushels. Yet when there was
shortage in this production in one year
of 100000, in 1897, the price of
wheat went up Is to 20 cents, far more
than the value at previous figures of
the 70,00O,O0O bushels that were short.
The average consumption of flour is
about one barrel per capita. In Ameri-
ca we eat 51s bushels of wheat annually
per capita; in Great Britain, AZ BUSH
els, in France and Germany less.
Great Britain can raise enough grain
to feed her people but 13 weeks out of
So. She must get the rest from some
where else. In Germany we are not so
welcome. They legislate against our
meat on one pretext or another France
discriminates against us, too, by hos
tile legislation, probably because it's
people are so largely engaged in agri-
cultural pursuits that it's lawmakers feel
constrained to protect them by legisla-
ton.
America has expanded in population.
But what has been done to expand our
bot Cir o:x,:1
ample? have looked into the subject
with some interest, but have been un-
able to find an intelligent sentence
written by anyone for the enlargement
of our market for agricultural products.
We have fostered our industries because
of our home market It may be right
for us to continue. We have reached
that point where we export $4,000, 900
In iron and STEEL but that is only lit
tie over half our wheat exports and a
! small percentage of the exports of all
our agricultural products.
The cheapest steel produced in Great
Britain is probably in the Middlebury
district, and before the recent advances
HI LAC price Ol lTOu duU steel, IL cost
1915 to produce a ton of Bessemer pig
iron. In this country, with Pittsburg
COAL cheaply mined and handled, and
high grade Lake Superior ores taken to
convenient points to be assembled
with West Virginia or PENNSYLVANIA
coke, we can make as good pig $3.50 per
ton less than in Great Britain. So we
are now furnishing pig iron, steel billets
and even plates and rails i'm, manufac-
tured form to Great Britain, and a large
amount to Italy, Austria and Germany.
They can make it in this country and
furnish it, owing to natural conditions
for less than they can make it in those
countries themselves, with the supply of
coal in Britain growing less making
greater the demand for coal from
Africa, and it's cost constantly growing
greater.
NEED OF A MARKET.
With our growth and population, we
must figure how these people must be
se 49,