The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-08-31
FACTS AND FIGURES.
What the Farmer Pays for Supplies
and Receives for His Products.

To the Editor of the Indianapolis Journal:
statement of a correspondent of one
of the Indianapolis papers from Bethany
Park, under date of Aug. 13, concerning
the Democratic day there. needs particular
notice. The Bryanesque Henry Warrum
is made to say: How about the farmer
who finds the market he sells in increase
10 per cent. and the market he buys in
increase 100 per cent? '' The favorite meth
cd of these Democratic orators is to ask
questions and never answer them, thus
leaving the false impression which they
desire their hearers to receive AS the
question is left thus suspended in the air,
and is probably reverbrating among the
hills around Bethany. / desire a few lines
to answer the question, and as a pre-
liminary remark. merely by way of paren-
thesis, / wish to- say that the impression
sought to be left is absolutely false. 1t
is one of the ideas that have been gen.
Grated by Democratic campaign speakers
on the stump and from drygoods boxes,
that the purchasing price of articles have
gone up higher than ever before, and far
more than the prices of what the ordinary
man has to sell. Even if this were true
it might be answered by the farmers an
swer, made the other day in Noblesville,
in speaking to an assertion of that kind
with reference to the price of binding
twine. The dealer told him, Now, Mr..
Burke, you see what your Republican
policy has brought you TO; see how much
more you have to Ray for your Irvine than
you did in 1867 Mr. Burke answered,
Yes, but the Irvine L am buying now
pay you cash for, and the Irvine | bought
in 1895 is still charged to me on your
books" and that is as good Republican
speech as will be made this year
Now, for some figures from the Senate
report, the bulletins of the Department
of Labor and our old friend Sauerbeck
TO disprove this bold assertion of Mr. War
rum. Sauerbeck Is the same statistician
who was so freely quoted by the Demo-
Gratis I'm 1896 TO prove that the prices of
silver and of wheat were bound together
with hoops OF steel, and he should now
be good authority for them.
The reports take 1860 as the basis, 100, and
express the rise or fall of prices as COM
pared TO that. From these reports we find,
taking first what the farmer has 10 buy,
that, in 1893 (the first year of Glorious
Grover, cloths and clothing, a class,
was 9S.9 Of the standard assumed; 1894, 80:
1895 50: 1896. So; 1884, 50 g. 1898. sos, and 1899.
sal We thus see that cloths and clothing
during Clevelands administration was 9l5,
while under Mckinleys il is only Sl.3. In
house furnishing goods the average price
for CleVeland's late lamented administra-
ton was S3.1, and for Mchinley's first three
years il was 76.1; for drugs and chemicals.
Cleveland administration, SAB. and for
McKinleys. sos; metals and implements.
Cleveland Sill, and Mckinley. 500: fuel and
light Cleveland l02. and Mckinley, 95.4:
lumber and building materials, Cleveland,
300. and Mckinley. Ss.s: food (fifty-three
articies) Cleveland, 49, and Mckinley Sc 2
All articles, Cleveland's administration.
So. and for Mckinleys. 1913. Food from
1870 to 1858 was cheaper than in 1860. but
during Buchanan's early administration II
cost more than in 1861 Cloths and clothing
varied slightly from 1910 to 1860. but every
other article mentioned above was higher
previous 10 1860 than IL was then. From
lseO the articles were nearly every year
above 100 I'D TO 1888. and the average OF all
from lS&0 TO lsSa was never below 100 ex-