The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1911-02-22
Protection and Cost


Admitting for arguments sake that
protection on natural products add to
the selling price. when consumption
and production are about equal. Is
there any reason why this condition
is wrong or unfair? If we as farmers
stand for protection for the manu-
facturer, keeping out foreign COM
petition on the theory that such pro-
lection insures and justifies higher
wages to the employed. why in all
sense and fairness should not the con-
sumer of food products pay a little
more to the producers of such pro-
ducts? Should the benefits of protec-
tion be mutual? If not mutual be-
tween ourselves 1t is too early for re-
ciprocity with Canada or any other
country. for reciprocity means mutu-
ality. Let us stand for fair dealing at
home before generosity to a foreign
country. But they admit taking some
thing from. the American farmer. They
say they are giving him something oi
equal value in exchange. Let me give
you the proposed free list. You can
figure what you can get out Of it.
Free. going either way: Live stock,
poultry, rye, oats. barley. buckwheat,
pease, beans. corn. hay, straw, COW
pease. all vegetables, all fresh fruit,
Except citrus fruits and pine appels)
all dried fruits, all dairy products
eggs, honey, cotton seed oil (Which is
now free fax seed, all other seeds
all grass seeds. garden seeds (when in
packages Of one pound or more) not
including flower seeds. Farmers don't
raise flower seeds. Do you find any
thing that you raise has been over
looked on this free list and how much
Of 1t. If any. do you ever expect to
send to Canada? With the exception
Of larger market for fruit raised on
the Pacific coast. little possible de-
mand for corn, and temporary mar
ket for horses. isn't it all against the
farmers of the United States? But
wait bit: we are going to get some
things free from Canada. Let ne give
you the list and you pick out the good
things in It for you: Fish, all kinds
salt. mineral water, timber, hewed
sided or squared, otherwise than by
planks, deals, and other lumber moi
further advanced than sawed. paving
blocks, posts. ties, wooden slaves. pick
cts and pailings. gypsum crude, mica
crude, Felspear crude. asbestos crude
fiourspear crude. glycerine crude
chalk ground, sulphate of soda, soda
ash, extract of hemlock, carbon cleo
trodes. brass in bars, cream separa.
tors, rolled iron or sheet steel, steel
wire. galvanized wire. type casting
and type setting machinery, barb wire
coke. pulp wood. and print paper.
don't know how much benefit ad-
mittinE these things free will be to
you. For myself the deal looks like
this: The market Canada gets for
her food products to be sold in COM
petetion with our products. What we
get seems to be some free commodi-
ties for our manufacturers. Dividing
into two classes, I would be helped
possibly on horse values. Fish, con-
sumo, say 200 pounds year, about
$500. Salt. consume say 1900
pounds. about $10.50. Lumber. an
nual consumption, about $4,000 feet,
$3.50. Plaster at 80 cents q pound
possibly 2 cents. Mica, at cents q
pound, possibly one cent. Total $24.03
These figures are on the theory that
the removal Of the present tarif
would be all saved to me. The other
side. I farm, approximately 5000
acres. To pay expense of production
taxes, allowing six per cent as reason
able interest on investment, figuring
my personal efforts against my living
expenses, my lands must turn off at
least an equivalent Of $4,000 per an
mum, figured all as wheat at present
average prices, 10000 bushels above
seed and feed. If the horse market
of Canada is made to be worth 500
per year to me, the other reduction as
above indicated. $24.03, or in all $144.-
03 would represent the presumable di-
rect benefit to me as farmer. To
this could be added the reduced cost
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