The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1906-10-17
REPUBLICAN, COUNTY TICKET.
TENNEARS AGO AND NOW.

ltNUI f.ANS ANO AND 1NON.
The old saying hal experience i.
the best teacher''Iis worthy of consid.
Grafton at this stage OF the political
campaign. AT the approaching gen
eral electioniMontana voters will ex.
press themselves asifavoring the poll.
cies and endorsing the record of one
or the other OF the political parties,
and before rendering their verdict it
woald be we'll to review the conditions
OF ten years ago,l compare them with
conditions existing today, and decide
the politicalIcontest strictly upon the
merits Of the case.
Most of the voters will have per.
sonal recollection of the business pa.
ralysis Of 1896, the last year Of the
Grover Cleveland administration,
during whichithe party had control OF
both housesiof congress- and succeeded
in passingfthe infamousnWilson bill.
The business stagnation and disaster
which followed! that legislation will
not beiforgotten by the American peo-
pie for many years to come-citizens
Of Montana havingI special cause to
remember what happened to them.
selves. That experience should be a
lifelong lesson.
There.lare many voters, however,
upon whoseimemory the conditions Of
ten years ago are not SO indelibly i'm
pressed, for the reason that they had
no personal experience of the ruinous
result Of he::.democratic legislation
that had recently gone into effect.
For thee benefit of such voters, and as
q reminder to:others, a brief reference
to business conditions in northern
Montana Gin October, 1896, may be
presented.
The files Off the River Press show
that ten years ago the beef market
vas Improbable to Montana shippers.
The toplprice Of the season for north.
ern Montana beef was 81. LOO, while as
high as 1913 has been paid this sea.
son.
The prices paidl for northern Mon.
tana wool in 1896 ranged from 6 to %
cents, very few'eclips selling higher
than s cents. 1.-The general range Of
wool prices in!northern Montana mar.
kets the past season was Ii to 23 cents.
In October. 1896, shipments of north.
ern Montanaa mutton sold in the the
Chicagolmarket at $40 to $3.50 per
cwt., while shipments made this season
have commandedlprices ranging from
$40 to s.. 80 per cwt. Local items in
the River PressUof ten years ago re-
port sales of .th%ree-year-old wethers
at $l.6 Q toQ$l.75, and OF lambs at s.
cents to $l.o25 per head.
Another news item Of ten year ago
states that Tom Mel ague, OF Deer
Lodge, purchased seventy head of
horses, many weighing l,225O pounds,
at less than $500 per head. Similar
stock commands ten times that price
today.
An item reprinted from the Bozemau
Chronicle in: October, 1896. reported
the following prices for Gallatiu val.
ley farm products: Oats "a to 20
cents: wheat 10 to 53 cents: barley %
20 81 cents: potatoes 35 cents: eggs Il
cents: butter ~ cents.
In presenting this comparison be.
tween the conditions of ten years ago
and now, it is not the intention of this
newspaper TO claim that all the i'm.
provement that has taken place is
due to republican policies aud legisla.
ton. 1t is submitted, however, ,ha,
at least q part Of it should be credited
to that cause. Ten years ago the
earth yielded bountiful crops, equal ir
many instances to the production O,
the present season, but consumer.
were unable to pay prices that were
profitable to the producers. Tn.
docks and herds of Montana stockmer
produced wool, mutton and beef of +;
quality fully equal to that of the pres
ent time, but their market value wa.
affected by the lack of purchasin.
power among the people.
The encouragement of American en-
terprise and industry by republica,