The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-11-18
POLITICS HAS NOT
SENT PRICES Down
Continued From Page One.


The cost of living issue is marching
on"
Elsewhere in the same article the
World says that the beef trust does
not dream dreams and see visions to
no purpose, and it predicts that before
long there will be reductions in arti
cles controlled BY the rubber trust,
the cotton goods trust, the wooden
goods trust, the sugar trust, the steel
trust, and a few others that the ne
cessity for extortion has passed. To
sin against the Tight is grievous
thing, and there is no mistaking the
fact that the privileged plutocracy
have seen an exceedingly great light
during the last few days"
So much for the partizan explana-
tion Of the fact that the prices of meat
have fallen in Kansas City, Boston and
other places.
Politics as Reason Secuted.
The government scientists in this
city, who make a speciality of food
prices and related questions, do not
agree with this partizan interpreta-
ton, but insist that the lower prices
for certain commodities in this coun
try, recently announced, are directly
and wholly due to the unfailing law Of
supply and demand, operating in all
countries which raise food for export.
Prices say these experts, are drop
ping not only in the United States,
but the world over, and the law of
supply and demand is once more on
the side of the ultimate consumer.
Secretary Wilson of the department of
agriculture and Ogden Armour, the
latter speaking for the great packers,
agree that the falling prices are due to
the harvesting of Americas bumper
crop of 1910, and of similar crops else
where in the world. 1t has been an
unusually good crop year everywhere,
with the result that there is stock
of food products everywhere available
such as the world has not had for a
number of years.
All of the other agricultural coun-
tries, it is pointed out, are successfully
meeting the competition of the United
States in the world markets. In this
connection attention is called to the
fact that while the price of wheat has
materially fallen, as compared with a
year ago, very little American wheat
is being exported. Russia, Hungary
India, Argentine and Australia, which
with the United States and Canada,
are the wheat growing countries of
the world, are selling their surplus
due to a good crop year, at prices
which we have been unable to meet
wherefore our wheat stays at home,
for the most part affecting prices in
the home market. 1t is only when
these wheat rivals of the United
States have had a succession of good
crop years that the present condition
prevails, or can prevail. There has
been an unusually large yield. all over
the world of cereals generally, and this
situation, obviously, has affected the
price of meats. So say Uncle Sans
experts.
Resist Tendency to Export.
In part the failure of this country to
take the foreign markets away from
the other exporting nations is said to
be due to the stubborn resistance of
American farmers and middlemen
who desire to get the highest prices
and resist the tendency to export
foodstuffs at time when the market
is falling. They are financially able
to hold off in the hope that the glut
OF grain abroad will soon be absorbed,
and prices rally in consequence.
A year ago, it is pointed out, the
same thing was done, when prices were
abnormally high, in anticipation of
light yield this session. 1t was be
lieved that there had been so many
successive good crop years all over the
world that 1910 must show a trend
in the opposite direction. But it didn't
and as a result the policy of refusing
to sell when the prices were abnormal
ly high, in 1909, proved a rather dis
astrous piece of business. But thu
losers were willing to run the risk
again. fortified as they were with ths
alternative of feeding the holdove-
stuff to livestock, If the experiment
should again be unsuccessful. This, O.
course, means larger and cheape
meat supply for next year, and it is
upon this line of reasoning that Sec
rotary Wilson and Mr.. Armour bas
their predictions of drop in the pric
of living all along the line.
1t Is likely that the same fore
which opens the doors OF storag
BraQerIeS VIII aHSCJ sCOlu SUI eAS
plants and at the same time the US.
ual tricks of the trade, whose name !
legion, automatically break down II
the face of falling market.
1t therefore isn't politics in am
sense, but the simple and inexorabiG
working of the old law of supply and
demand which is working reductions
In prices of foodstuffs, and which, it Is
said. will work still others during the
winter and early spring. The demo-
Gratis, as matter of course, will try
to make good the position taken BY the
New York World, that fear Of q gen
eral democratic victory In 1912, with
attendant Investigations, etc, has
! brought about the change, but the