The Wahpeton times., 1905-09-28

interest Of politicians. then the history Of
raiIroad rates In this country as COM
n The world. and the history Of rate re-
stttute sufficient contradiction.
Mileage T0fl9.
The government cannot discriminate
between ty ports or places. 1t must dea! ga,
land With s Therefore sesa aha Il would 10
Obliged. sooner or later. to ordain strict
distance stance: tariff; .ha. is. the charge for or
apportioned to the number OF miles in
the haul. The low charge for the long
haul would disappear. and freight would would
would make little difference; but you
here in Minnesota. in the center Of the
continent. distant from LOO ITO 200. 200,
whom a big circle might be described and
have its circumference sweep along .a., the
COASTS % of the Atlantic and the paciiic tl.:
the most heavily tarilfed people in the
world. When men ask for your support
or . demand your praise on any ~. sucm ,cm
grounds as these. 1t will he we'll Tor you
facts and of common sense.
| Then. as TO the markets In which YOU
buy. How are you situated there. anu
what advantage do YOU. owe to those VIII, who
have settled your conditions? It would
seem evident to most people that syS.
tenn which permits the same article that
you must have for your household or
Your farm TO be carried abroad over
thousands of miles Of ocean and sold IN
firm ) to 10 20 per cent less than the price
| that is charged to you is not In your in-
terest. 1t is because of that system thas
we pay annually an unknown amount OF
unearned profit on a total of some tWeh-
ty-iive billions of dollars which Is the
estimated volume of our domestic trao":
fSs hn I,,.S- -ts1tr and col
on among ourselves. 1t is because OF
that and in order that it may not be
changed by the fraction Of a hair that
now to reach $5OOOO.UNO annually. and to
require the imposition OF other taxes.
such as you have never heretofore con,
| scnted to pay save in time OF war ana
as part of the sacrifices that II I'M
poses. Is this to your satisfaction. and is
this. the form of service that Will call
| forth your gratitude and receive your
continuing Endorsement?
Panama Canal.
length. He argued that it could not be
relied f,,n r, on to supply new markets He cited
Boce of the treasury department. who
had written an elaborate article taking
the the same view, His argument was forti-
amount of our products the South Ameri--
can states could possibly use. He quoted
| Mr.. BOiCe as saying that II we could Sc
,raffic in one year Would Would pay the cost Of
the the &c, canal and leave a balance of $3O0.-
WnlO. lie expected the canal would be
! suits.
He considered the growing scaacity OF
agricultural lands and the defects in our
land laws which allowed spectators and
great combinations to secure millions OF
Acres; Acres. o to the exclusion Of farmers. He
highly commended the national irrigation
movement. saying the work now under
way would redeem 6O.OOO.OOO acres, and
he had no doubt in the end many times
that amount.
The final question of all was securing
Our exports of Commodities M the he ~ product
of, agriculture for the year 1904 were
Valued sai d. at $s5s643,o7 and were 5a.4s per
~ ilt'.4lo,921. or 3l.5o per cent of the whole.
me. me ratio ,,, Is very nearly two TO one. More
increase while the latter decreases In
The commercial war upon us which has al
ready heard the firing of the first gun, it
! IS the manufactured article that will be
banned by the severest prohibition. But
upon all that We have to sell the disad-
santage va ,het WI VIII & fal: Our statesmen assum-
tariff to advantage. overlooking the very
simple process of other nations meeting
I Been se psen res St 's il
has taken no notice until we began TO be
thought Of not exactly as dangerous
one. Then il took counsel. and the new
German tariff is the first step in a league
going to do about it: Where 'sn. are we we soz we
Ing to f,l fine our 3n markets ma and especially
our soil that will continue to be our main
resource and dependence
Of a5s n ss;s people within direct
annual wheat crop il each person con-
,,n.s3 snmed only n;. the tritiinE amount Of two
helped to build it up, and put millions Of
none money into into M the greatest steamships that
sSere sIls ,hr the m seas osas to serve it, We did
able L" make rate under which this
Oriental trade could live. For these peo-
arsss p sn"n they H M bny mEh IN
market; and YOU cannot send wheat from
the interior Of the United States across
half the continent and the whole breadth
OF the Pacific ocean if you have a big or
even a reasonable mileage charge.
Well, We have met with obstacles at
every step: nor the obstacles that busy
men have right TO expect and know
how to meet. such as the shrewdness Of
competi,ors or The difficulty of conquerinx
Hat'till tHHiSS. Dut interference with
plans and regulations and rules and Or
dcrS that can serve no purpose except to
make impossible The maintenance of this
new market. Thexe customers are out
ragged by a policy that insults their ma
tional dignity and their personal self
respect until >they determine to buy no
more of us. These ships instead of meet
ing with reasonable encouragement, are
hammered and tied down by regulations
which make it as costly as possible Ia,
operate them. These rates. which are
the essential parts of the whole affair
ar" destroyed by laws that put us at the
mercy of every foreign tramp that floats
the seas. And this. mind YOU not in be-
half of any honc interest that might suf-
| fer. for these ocean rates do NOT concern
the domestic producer more than they
| must be low enough to admit him to ont
sid" markets. but only to the annovance
and detrlment and dscouragement of
| American foreign trade in the great
staples that YOU help to produce and that
| our dra lings with other peoples. The to-
tai foreign commerce of Japan and chin.
amounts to $7:N.OONOOO a year in roma
| numbers. 1t is destined to increase and
! multiply at rate that will astonish il,s
| world. and We might have the lion $ share
| of it IL We only exercised common snmse
| and business prudence and patriotic fore,
| sight.