The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1906-11-02
TAKlEr AIvD HA-Al
TRUTH THAT rARMECS SEN
SLOW TO REALIZE.
Surplus Products q Agrle.iltgre So!s
in Competition with Other coun-
tries, Bot Trusts Are
Amply Protected.

One can hardly blame the farmers
In the whea, growing regions for or
eanizing a combine to hold their
wheat until the price advances. A
dispatch from Kansas City reports
the price of wheat as so cents a bush
ell less at the interior markets IN
Kansas. There is loss IN growing
wheat at that price. with all thu
farmer buys az the present high
prices. The tarin-protected trusts
have advanced the prices of nearly
everything the farmer buys over 45
per cent. since the present high tariff
law was passed. so that prosperity
for the wheat farmer is a myth. a.
though Secretary Wilson, who. being
! secretary OF agriculture, should know
better. declares rhe farmers were
never so prosperous Secretary Shaw
is making equally presposterous state
ments. and states ia the speeches he
is making on his partisan stumping
tour that the tariff makes the farmers
prosperous because It protects the
home market from foreign importa
ions But facts belle their words. for
wheat is protected in the tariff by
duty OF % cents bushel, but that
does not prevent the price from de-
preciating until in Kansas. as noted
above. it is so cents a bushel.
IL is strange that Republican farm
ers swallow such Republican state
ments and vote 10 continue that party
in power. which protects every trust
that produces what the farmer must
buy and only pretends 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 a surplus
OF wheat and other farm products it
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 rsirht be doubled and It would
have no effect on the price. or it
might be abolished and the price
would not be affected There is no
tariff duty on cotton. that product be-
I ing on the free list. yet the price Of
cotton is advancing. while the protect
ed wheat has declined.
No farmers trust or farmers union
can control the price of wheat unless
the combination is complete enough
70 prevent wheat being sold to the
mills which supply the -four that the
/ American people require. If the
wheat growers could prevent enough
wheat being marketed to supply the
mills. the milling combine at the great
4 -four milling centers. such as Mime
arolis. would probably bid up the
price enough TO induce the farmers
"a sell until the price was too high to
manufacture and ship the -four abroad
AZ a profit When that limit was
reached you may be sure the mills
would be shut down rather than run
them al a loss. To prevent the mills
shutting down in the spring of 1905.
when there was a shortage Of wheat
the administration allowed Canadian
wheat to be imported in bond. with
out he gayment of the duty Of %
cents a bushel. and ground in the
mills at Minneapolis. and exported
as flour That was the Republican
way OF protecting the farmers when
they had very short crop and an or
portunity OF averaging up the prices
with the years Ike the present one.
when a large surplus has been raised
and the price is low.
The fact IS that the farmers have
prospercd in spite Of the tariff. which
has increased the price OF about all
they buy through the protection the
trusts and combines enjoy. The good
or poor crops are not the result OF the
tarid. but good crops are due TO the
bounty OF nature when the season is
nropitious and the poor crops when
nature frowns and is unfavorable. The
ideal for the farmer Is TO be allowed
10 buy in the cheapest market without
any more tariff restriction than is
necessary TO produce enough revenue
FOR the government honestly and eco
nomically administered. and TO sell
In the dearest market that his prod
uce 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 59.Si per
cent. but the still greater tax which
the tariff allows the trusts 10 collect
by increasing their prices. which av-
erages on trust products much
greater percentage than the govern
ment collects Not content with this
trust plundering 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
psople are 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.