The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1906-02-24
GARDENERS. after | |
!. COMMON COUNCIL
Oppose Licensing Of Gardeners
by City Councils; Want Them
Restricted by State.
Minneapolis Gardeners Associ.
alton Want Constitutional
Amendment Referred.

The Minnesota Gardners. Association
Is going into politics. Its members
propose to support no man for pub
lie office unless he pledges himself to
support a proposed amendment to the
constitution Of the state which is in
tended to prevent any city from pass
ing an ordinance to license any per-
son in the peddling Of his own farm
and garden products.
In the circular sent out to the news
papers Of the state the association
says:
The amendment is for the purpose
Of preventing any municipal corpor-
alton imposing any license or fee on
any farmer or gardener selling pro-
duce grown on land occupied, and cul-
tivated by himself, and sold or peddled
directly to the consumer. The sup
RENE court Of the state has held that a
license imposed by any municipality
on peddling, covers the farmers or pro-
ducers, as well as the man who buys
his stuff to sell again. The Grocers'
Association of the different cities in the
state, have taken advantage of this
state of affairs, and caused the arrest
of several farmers and gardeners, with
the result that they were found guilty,
and fined for the crime of selling pro-
duce grown by themselves directly to
the consumer, without first obtaining
license therefore. In some of the
cities the license has ben doubled in
the last two or three years. In the
Twin Cities it is now Fifty Dollars
($5O.0O) per year. An ordinance
passed by the village Of Degraff, in
Swift county, imposes license Of Ten
Dollars (s10.00) day for selling
dressed meats, which any one can see
is prohibitive. The arrests made In the
Twin Cities were for the offence Of
selling vegetables and fruits, but If
the movement is not checked it will
soon cover every articles produced on
farm or garden, as the grocers wish
all such produce to pass through their
hands before it reaches the consumer
Anyone can see what a nice thing it
will be for them to set the price at
both ends Of a. deal, so much to the
producer and SO much to the consum-
err Sounds good deal like Stand
ard OIL, don't it? All consumers are
as much interested in this amendment
as any one unless they want to pay
higher prices for what they eat It
is also poor advertisement to send
out to the rest of the world, inviting
them to take up land and open farms
IN this state, and then make them paw
a license to sell their stuff unless they
sell to a dealer. Lots of encourage
ment to diversified farming in that
There is nothing in the proposed am
endment preventing the licensing of
dealers or peddlers, other than the &C
tual producers and growers
The proposed amendment is as fol-
lows:
Section 1. The following amend
ment to article one O, of the consti-
tuition Of the state of Minnesota Is
hereby proposed to'the legal voters of
said state for their approval or re1ec-
ton, which amendment when SO ap-
proved shall be known as section eight
cen (18), of said article one (1), and
Shall read as follows:
Section Is. Any person may sell or
peddle the products of the farm or
garden occupied and cultivated by him
without obtaining a license therefor