The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-05-01

farmer, wheat, was 80 cents per bu-
shel; and It never reached that price
again until the year 1907 despite the
fact that during the ten years that
ensued there was duty of "a cents
bushel on wheat. From 1890 to 1894,
under the high protective Mckinley
bin. wheat fell from SO to 80 cents
per bushel, with the same duty of rs
cents per bushel
And so it Is with other products OF
the farm, the surplus of which the
farmer is compelled to sell in the mai
ket of the world. Corn in 1899 was
worth 30 cents per bushel. In tho
short space OF two years, namely, in
1901, it sold at go cents per bushel.
will some one please explain why
there is such vast change in price
under the operation of the selfsame
bin? If there be any virtue in the
claim of the protectionst. why, then,
does not this tariff keep II at the high
price instead OF in such dangerous
| Inuctuations2 Bvery reasonable per-
son knows that there is but one law
that makes the price of wheat, corn.
and 80 forth. and that. law can neith-
er be repealed. amended, or trified
with by legislators, and that is the
law of supply and demand | reas-
sert the well-lSnown truth that no.
Ithing else affects the price of grains
Except perhaps, q war or some other
dreadful calamity, and these things
can be placed under the head of ac-
cidents.
However before ! leave this sub
ject will add just one more agency
that affects the price Of grains. and
that is the manipulations OF heart
less gamblers who operate on grain
exchanges i'm the great grain center'
of this and other countries. They
frequently extort great fortunes from
the people by devious methods ant
artlfcally affect the price of grain
There should be some law framed tC
lpreyent these gamblers from so man
lpulating the price of grain for theil
selfish ends. My attention has beer
also called TO the fact that In 1895
under the Cleveland administration
corn sold at A5 cents per bushel, an'
during 1900, under the Roosevelt ad
lministration. corn sold at Al cents pc
bushel These examples only serv,
to show the folly OF trying TO prov
by the prices themselves that tn
tariff has anything to do will
the prices of grains; and dull, in
ded, is the person who can be convin
ced that low prices to a high tariff.
he surplus products of the Ameri
can farmer are sold i'm the markets o
the world in competition with simila
products raised by the lowest-price,
labor In the world
But they tell us that the farmer
helped by this duty on farm products
They forget that this can not hel
the farmer so long as he is an export
, er. Particularly does he get no ben
, eft from this sort of legislation be
! cause when he becomes an importer
, that is, when he purchases necessar
I articles-he finds that he is buyin
D articles protected by nearly prob
c bitive, and in many cases by an al
: solutely prohibitive tariff
s Let the farmer take in load {
: grain to market and then If he ha
\ in mind the erection OF new built
ing on the farm, let him invest tn
a proceeds of the sale Of the grain |
n lumber. nails. glass, and so fortl
4 and he will be compelled to owe
: little until he brings in the next loa
: or two, At this time he should begi
e to speculate on the real meaning an
: value to a farmer products.
> II begins to look as though the rev
l. sion of the tariff by the friends OF th
tariff is going to be a joke, a delusio
! and snare so far as the great mas
u of consumers is concerned The n
: vision will be upward instead of dow
ward, and woe he unto the part
;, that foists this bill on the peopl
. for they will rise in their wrath o
election day. Two years thereaft'
!, they will replace President Taft wit
# that other great son of Ohio. Cove
! nor Harmon. (Applause)