The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-01-26

''vindictive,' for instance. for an ae-
countant to show that Kelly ''accommo-
dated" one Of his newspaper organs with
state money, contrary TO law. and that
ne committed eubezzlement in financ-
ing the Comanche county bond deal
ssss
RECIPROCITY FOR THE FARMER.
There is food for a large amount Of
good hard thinking for Kansas farmers
in the interview of ex-senator Harry
Mcmillan of Ottawa county. that ap-
peared in the State Journal Wednesday.
especially in that part Of the interview
pertaining to the action of Germany in
shutting out American farm products
from that country and the growth of
the Argentine Republic.
The German tariff against America
viii soon go into effect, giving Argen-
tine the advantage Of us in that great
market for Kansas wheat and -four.
And why? Because the United States
at the demand Of the trusts, persists
in a high protective tariff on steel
and similar articles which shuts Ger
many out of marketing that class of
goods in this country.
Advantageous reciprocal arrangements
could be made for the admission of
if we would lower our tariff on certain
lines of manufactured goods controlled
by trusts in this country. But no. The
steel trust and the other countries in
sist on a stand pat policy-and con-
gress stands pat.
The Kansas farmer is caught going
and coming. Here is the way it works:
The steel trust charges American rail-
4-noTe roy, for rails that it
ships to Europe and sells for $50 ton.
Some of the steel trust magnates are
also railroad magnates. SO it makes no
difference to them, but it does make a
difference to the small investor in rail-
road stocks. The railroads must
charge higher freight rates to pay for
these rails, and the farmer pays the
freight.
The steel trust, through the harvester
trust, gets another whack at the farm
er on his implements. The same i'm
plements are shipped to other coun-
tries and compete with German ma
chinery, but the trusts protective"
tariff keeps all German machinery out
Of this country and enables the steel
and harvester trusts to charge the farm
er exorbitant prices.
The exorbitant prices paid by the
American farmer enable the harvester
trust to ship its machines to Argentine
and underseH German machinery
there. The Argentine farmer takes his
harvester from the American harvester
trust, which the American farmer has
partly paid for in the excessive price the
trust charged him, and the Argentine
farmer is thereby able to raise more
wheat and become a greater cOmpeu-
tor of the American farmer.
It works beautifully the trust
The tariff issue is no longer a partisan
issue. There are a great many Repub-
leans who believe in tariff revision.
President Mckinley advocated recip-
rocluy IN the last speech he ever made.
But the trusts are against it except
when they viii be the gamers. There
fore the trust-owned United States SEN
ate viii not ratify a reciprocity treaty,
and a lot of moss backed, old-fogy Re
publicans in the lower house-Democrats
nave no corner on the moss market
these moss backed Republicans shy at
the very idea OF lowering the tariff and
yell, STAND pat!' whenever tariff re-
vision is mentioned.
How long is the farmer going to stand
ito