The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1908-03-26

men into selling him million bushels
for two cents less per bushel than he
sold for yesterday. He has made some
money, but he is not satisfied. He in
vestigates and finds that instead Of
the crop in the Argentine country BE-
ing big one, it is small and he pub
fishes the result Of his research. Nat
urally the price would go up. but arti-
ficially, no. Pillsbury wants to buy
wheat as cheap'y as possible. SO do
a hundred other millers. and they pro
coed to sell wheat on the board of
trade. Jones is ready to bank on his
knowledge of natural conditions and
he gathers around him bunch Of men
who think they can bet on his juds'
ment. He proceeds to buy. or to take
all the bets offered by Pillsbury and
his crowd, and runs the price up two
cents per bushel more.
He would buy at ten cents more and
take the real thing If it were not for
the board of trade and the Pillsburys.
AS it is they are able to beat him to q
standstill and he loses. Every wheat
raiser also loses the difference be.
tween what the natural supply and de-
mand price would be and the artificial
price fixed by the bears.
If it were not for the board of trade
and the system Jones could have
bought real wheat at ten cents more
per bushel than he offered and shipped
it to Europe at profit. AS it Is, the
Pillsbury crowd can buy at their own
price and make that much profit them
selves. The producer Is robbed of
that much, and every business man IN
his neighborhood is robbed OF the
benefit of his trade to that extent. At
the price he got, the farmer can mere
ly meet his expenses. Ten cents more
bushel would have given him money
to spend for clothes, food, machinery,
comforts and luxuries.
The gambling in grain robs the
farmers and the local business men
of the United States Of millions of dol
lars every year. It keeps all manu-
facturers of articles used by the farm
ing class from getting the money that
would naturally come to them thru
the prosperity of the farmer. If
farmers do not get within ten cents
per bushel OF the supply and demand
price, they lose each year just 100000
900. There is no doubt that we are
taxed much more than that by the
gamblers in grain.
away with this national curse and they
will kill, politically, every representa-
tive of the grain gamblers in congress
or in any other Office that they can
reach.
The time is at hand when every
community should look after the selec-
ton of their representatives, or the
farmers will wake up in the morning
to find a law passed that it shall be
unlawful for the farmers to combine
to hold their wheat for a fixed price.
Besides they should at this time select
representatives who will work to re-
lieve the farmer from paying taxes on
his Indebtedness.
Also to do away with the law that
compels a farmer to give the assessor
his statistics, which only benefits the
wheat gambler. These statistics
should be given to the American Socie-
ty Of Equity from there given to the
government the next spring when he
crop has been marketed.
Every one should understand that a
fixed price on wheat for the farmer
does not mean, that the laborer or
mechanic would pay more for the flour
but it does mean that the wheat
gambler will be put down and out; and
that the farmer will get just and
equitable price for his wheat and that
the consumer will get his flour at a
lower or less price than at present.
I verify believe that the time Is
near when every shipping point viii
have large farmers elevators and foul
mills combined and instead Of paying
these high freight rates for shipping
bran and shorts, we need here so bad
" for diversified farming and paying
freight on the screenings and dirt be
: sides taking chances on getting No
3 for No. wheat, they will ship tn
-four only. Thus helping to develop
J the manufacturing interests Of TIL
! state, and bringing in skilled mechan
: les and other laborers, to consume tn
, PRODUCTS OF the farmers and help u
pay our taxes.
2 Father Burned to Death.
!, r. T. Frost received q Telegram
. from his old home at Oskaloosa, low,
a informing him that his father wa