Arizona republican., 1908-06-10

lcontrasts-the contrasts OF methods
and fruits of the harvests-and also by
accounts OF the fetes that In some
lands follow the harvest.
In the fields of France the husband
men-and husbandwomen-are singing
the wheat song that has this refrain:
| Work on, work ever,
Oh, peasant poor!
Let slothfulness never
Stop thy endeavor-
| Or thy ruins sure.
When the harvest is done, the song
will cease and the harvest fete Will
begin with dancing and drinking. with
lpicnics and frolics.
Australia, New Zealand and Chill
reap their wheat crops with sickle in
January. The beturbaned, swarthy
Egyptians NOW down the wheat with
iron scythes in February. In India, the
harvest is in March, with the scythe
and sickle as a thousand years ago
The Mexican and Cuban reaps in
April. The states Of Texas and Flori-
da clear their fields with modern reap
ers and barvesters late in May. POrtu-
gal, France and California follow. and
in Austria, Hungary, south of Russia,
Canada, Sweden, Norway and the great
winter and spring wheat regions of the
United States the harvest Is in July,
August and September. The women
| in northern Russia, with the all OF
scythe and sickle, harvest their wheat
in october, Peru and South Africa in
November, Argentine, the young, Wig
orous and alert sister republic of ours,
comes last on the list and harvesJs its
wheat crop in December.
This implies that while wheat is
sprouting in the fields of the United
States, the crop is being harvested in
India: that while the American crop
is rasslrg through midwintsr III der
snow covering, the agriculturist in Ar
gentlna is preparing to reap the ripened
grain in the fields; that when the cul-
tivators OF Austria and Hungary are
gathering grain, their brothers in Aus
tralia and New Zealand are engaged
in sowing
This also means that somewhere in
the world, during all months of the
year, wheat and other staple grains
are approaching the marketing stage,
to enter into competition with the grain
grown in our own country. Not all
the foreign farmers are able to realize
the full value Tor their crops. Through
one reason or Mother, some are obliged
TO sell for less than its actual value,
and such transactions not only hurt
them, but thurt the pocketbooks of ag-
riculturistssof die United States. The
back whiehsthe farmer receives in
distant India, Russia or Argentina, In
a measure tells on the agriculturist in
the United States: for farmers of all
these different countries send their
quota to the worlds markets.
From the sacts in the department Of
agriculture 1t is evident that the farm
ers of some countries are left half
starved even at harvest time. In the
United States, Canada and many of
the continental countries. the agricul-
tural community is prosperous; but
in a number ot Asiatic lands and in
Russia the lot of the agriculturist is
hard-he is virtually living year in and
year out on the verge of starvation,
because, in the grip Of the money
lender, who forces him to sell his crop
in many cases while 1t is standing on
the land. In Russia and India. for in
stance, the farmer is so indebted to
the money-lender that he never is able
to get the real equity for his work in
the field. The grain secured from
these furnishing farmers at cut-throat
prices when exported, tends to lower
the prices Of wheat and staples grown
by agriculturists in the other countries
who supply the markets of the world
with their products.
In the more prosperous countries,
either governmental or private enter
prise has established grain exchanges,
which act as hoppers for the grain
grown, and in due course spout it to
various parts OF the world. They en-
able the producers to sell during the
entire year and thus prevent monopoly
of information and the formation of
buyers' trusts. By protecting the
farmers from the tolls of the usurer
and guaranteeing to them a free play
of the battle of supply and demand.
the cut-throat buying is not possible.
BY their system of future contracts and
deliveries they prevent the slaughter
of prices at harvesting times. espe-
cially during good seasons. If there is
crop shortage at home or abroad the
exchanges gather the facts and public
buying in view of higher prices months
later gives the American grain raiser
the benefit Of a strong advance just
when his grain leaves the thresher.
1t frequently happens also that strong
financial interests connected with the
exchanges carry the load during peri
DDS of financial disturbances enabling
producers to go on marketing without
any serious decline in prices. This
was the case during the fall marketing
period OF 1907.
The republic of Argentina, which
started to raise wheat in a systematic
manner only eighteen years ago. and
now raises more wheat than does Ger