The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-09-03

a tentative suggestion that this
~paternal feature might be avoided if
the government were to tax corn
growers one cent a bushel on their
crop and use the fund thus accruing'
for the building of grain warehouses
and for making limited advances, at
a low rate of interest, On the crop.
This, must confess, was an ofhand
opinion which attracted much more
widespread attention than / desired
and to which an undue weight of
Importance was attached. Without
careful reflection and analysis it
seemed TO me, at the moment, that
this plan would do away with any
real ground for the charge that, un-
der the government warehouse
scheme proposed, "all classes should
be taxed for the benefit of the few"
Mature consideration, however,
has convinced me that this plan
would not be entirely feasible for
the reason that it would imply a tax
upon some farmers, no matter how
small the number, who would not
subscribe to the wisdom of such
taxation, or who, on account of their
own prosperous financial condition,
would not need such assistance. This
would be in violation of the spirit of
the American people and of the fun
damental principles of Dur govern
ment. In these days the men who
get ahead are those who do things
for themselves. Therefore I am
compelled to believe that, az a. sub
stitute for all paternal propositions
by which the government or a large
part of the people would be made to
contribute to the benefit of a single
class, the only wise and feasible plan
is to induce that class to work out
it's own salvation through combina
ton and cooperation.
PLANS FOR A GIGANTIC CORN TRUST.
The central thread about which
such combination must crystalize is,
in my opinion, a farmers banking
institution, with sufficient capital
to finance that portion of the corn
crop which, under present conditions,
is marketed as soon after harvest as
it is in condition to be moved. My
offhand suggestion TO the farmers of
Minneapolis was that this institution
should be capitalized for $50, 100000.
More careful investation, however,
convinces me that less than half this
capital would be required to accom-
plish the purpose with ease and
safety. The reasons which have led
to this conclusion are briefly these {:
AS only twenty five per cent. of any
corn crop passes outside the limits of
the county in which it is grown, it
follows that this bank would be called
upon to finance only about 400, 000,-
900 bushels a year, after making
proper allowances for that class of
producers not needing to avail them
selves of loan facilities.
The stock of this bank should be
distributed to the producers of corn
only and on the basis of one cent a
bushel of the crop of that year-no
stock to be placed in a less amount
than ten dollars because of the cost
of the clerical labor involved. This
plan would produce a capitalization,
in round numbers, of $40, 900, 900,
which, as 1 have already indicated,
would appear sufficient to take care
of 400, 900, 900 bushels of corn a year,
or all that would need to be financed.
Before dismissing this feature of
the plan it should be said that no
where, save in America, is there q
line of industrial or agricultural pro-
duction aggregating a total of $780,
600, 900 to $500, 600, 900 a year, with so
small a proportion of the whole re-
curing 80 be financed in the process
of marketing. Hence, I repeat that,
On this account a capital of 500, 900,
600 seems amply Sufficient to provide
for the equitable distribution, during
the whole year, of the surplus corn
that leaves the farm.
The farmer who feeds his CORN 10
cattle and hogs, and TINS markets it
on the hoOf, always receives for it a
return we'll above the current mar
ket price. He is not, therefore, in
terested in securing an advance on
his crop, except for the, reason that
it would materially tend to keep the
price of hogs and cattle high. Well.
TODD farmers, already independent