The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1906-11-02
TARIFF AND WltEAT
TRUTH THAT FARMERS SEEM
SLOW TO REALIZE.
Surplus Products OF Agriculture Solo
in Competition with Other coun.
tries, But Trusts Are
Amply Protected.

| ganiZing combine TO hold their
wheat until the price advances. a
dispatch from Kansas City reports
| the price of wheat MS so cents a bush.
ell less at the interior markets in
Kansas. There Is loss in growing
wheat at that price, with all the
farmer buys at the present high
prices. The tariff-protected trusts
have advanced the prices of nearly
everything the farmer buys over 45
per cont. since the present high tarif
law was passed. so that prosperity
for the wheat farmer is myth, al
though Secretary Wilson. who being
secretary Of agriculture. should know
better, declares the farmers were
never so prosperous. Secretary Shaw
Is making equally presposterous state.
mcnts, and states ia the speeches he
is making on his partisan stumpins
tour that the tariff makes the farmers
prosperous because II protects the
home market from foreign impOrta
lions. hut facts belle their words. for
wheat is protected in the tariff by a
duty Of % cents a bushcl but that
does not prevent the price from de.
prcclating until in Kansas, as noted
above. It Is so cents hushel.
1t Is strange that Republican farm.
rrs swallow such Republican state
ments and vote to continue that party
in power, which protects every trust
that produces what the farmer must
buy and only prctcnds to protect the
farm products. The tariff includes
duties on wheat, corn. oats, barley,
cattle. hogs and other agricultural
products, but the price Of those farm
products Is settled by the law Of sup
ply and demand. II there Is surplus
Of wheat and other farm products 1t
has to be exported and sold in the
worlds markets in competition with
the surplus OF other countries, and
that fixes the price here The tariff
duty Inipht be doubled and 1t would
have no effect on the price. or II
might be abolished and the price
would not be affected There Is no
tariff duty on cotton, that product be
ing on the free list, yet the price OF
cotton is advancing, while the protect.
cd wheat has declined.
No farmers trust or farmers union
can control the price of wheat unless
the combination is complete enough
TO prevent wheat being sold to the
mills which supply the -four that the
American people require. II the
wheat growers could prevent enough
wheat being marketed to supply the
mills, the milling combine at the great
flour milling ccntcrs, such as Mime.
arolis, would probably bid up the
price enough to induce the farmers
20 sell until the price was too high 10
manufacture and ship the -four abroad
al n profit When that limit was
reached you may be sure the mills
would be shut down rather than run
them at n loss TO prevent the mills
shutting down in the spring of 1908.
when there was a shortage OF wheat,
the administration allowed Canadian
wheat to be imported In bond, with.
out the payment of the duty Of -
cents bushcl. and ground IN the
mills at Minneapolis, and exported
rs -four. That was the Republican
way Of protecting the farmers when
they had very short crop and an op.
portunity Of averaging up the prices
with the years like the present one,
when a large surplus has been raised
and the price is low.
The fact Is that the farmers have
has increased the price of about all
they buy through the protection the
trusts and combines enjoy. Tho good
or poor crops are not the result Of the
tariff. but good crops are due TO the
bounty Of nature when the season Is
proptious, and the poor crops when
nature frowns and Is unlavorablc. The
ideal for the farmer Is to he allowed
to buy In the cheapest market without
any more tariff restriction than is
necessary TO produce enough revenue
for the government, honestly and eco.
nomicaly administered and 10 sell
in the dearest market that his prod.
ucc can reach, The Republican poll
cy, miscalled protection. compels the
farmer, and everyone else for that
matter TO pay not only the tariff tax
% the government, which averaged
on all imports for last year 1854 per
cent, but the still greater tax which
the tariff allows the trusts to collect
by increasing their prices, which nv.
eragcs on trust products much
greater percentage than the govern
ment collects. Not content with this
trust plundcring the tariff law pre-.
tends to provide protection on the
farmers wheat and other cereals, the
price Of which no law can govern, be-
cause the surplus crop, after our own
people arc supplied, must be sold In
the omen markets Of the world after
paying The railroads and shipping
combines all they demand.
That Is Republican protectionism,
which would not stand minute II
Republican farmers would join their
Democratic neighbors in electins tar.