The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1911-02-15
JUTE Mill IS
RUN At A LOSS
Declares E. D. Cowan in Minority
Report Submitted to Governor
--Other Members of Committee
Deny Deficit, But Agree That
Reform Is Needed.

mittee appointed by Governor M, E.
Hay to investigate the condition I'M
der which the jute mill at the state
penitentiary at Wa.la Walla is oper-
ated, the minority report by E. D.
Cowan of the state board of control
being to the effect that the mill since
its establishment in 1892 has been
operated at a loss. while the ma
jority report. signed by H. N. Han
sen of Touchet and M. A. REYNOLDS
of Walla Walla, figures 1t has been
run at profit, or at least not at a
loss to the state. Mr.. Cowan in his
report declares that the plant can
be operated at a profit by revolu-
ttonizing the methods under which
jute is purchased and the bags sold
and the minority report embodies
this feature of Mr. Cowan's report,
says the Tacoma Ledger.
Following that feature Of their
report the majority conclude:
We recommend that some gem
eral plan as outlined be adopted and
that at least two years be given to
demonstrate whether the jute mill
can be operated with sufficient
profit to justify its continuance"
Improbable and Unhealthy.
Mr.. Cowan. after outlining how
Minnesota has made success of its
Irvine plant by having a jute buyer
In Calcutta take advantage of low
prices and inferior grades of the
raw product, and setting forth a por-
ton of the report of the California
state board of charities and correc-
tons In speaking of the experience
of that state, says: "The commits
sion affirms that the cost of board
ing and clothing prisoners last year
at San Quentin was 32.c cents per
day each, or more than twice the
cost of labor in India which Is 16
cents per day.
The commission concludes that
while the industry cannot be made
profitable, it is also unhealthy and
has in it no educational value"
Mr.. Cowan, in his report declares
that the farmers union of Washing
ton, Oregon and Idaho have it in
their power to put the price of sacks
down and control their market value
by elm mating the middleman and
buying up the supply of sacks ship
ped from the Orient. instead of let
ting them fan into the hands of the
dealers. He quotes figures to show
tfat since 1892 the jute mill has
been operated at loss, figuring that
the site has invested in the plant
and materials $2,261.916 while the
cash receipts and assets total ST.
S92,SS5. leaving loss on "actuai
cost of operation during the IS years,
disregarding interest on investment
and subsistt nee of free employees, Of
$369,021.
Farmers Should Be Own Brokers.
To quote Mr.. Cowan on the solu-
ton, he says:
ut is easily within the power of
the farmers union to accomplish
this end by becoming their own
brokers. The simple requirement is
that they pay cash and do their
own warehousing Under corpor-
ate management the loans necessary
for the transaction of the business,
secured as they would be by crops,
could be readily obtained at a low
commercial rate of interest.
For example. during the shipping
season of 1910, 25,000,000 sacks were
imported to the brokers of Port
land and Puget Sound parts, to fiji
the anticipated orders of 1911. The
board of control was notified by the
San Francisco agents for the pro-
ducers that these deliveries were
contracted at an average of $3.50
per 100 sacks. If the tri-state farm
ers' union had gone into the money
market last summer with the i'm
mensely superior assets they repre-
sent. they could now have been I'm
possession OF all the sacks stored
at the northern ports This would
mean an adjustment of price on the
basis of five and three tenth cents
per sack, with the trining addition
Of interest charge on Investment and
the cost of warehousing
Brokers Would Rais<. Prices.
He further points out that now If
the jute mill was closed there is no
doubt but that the brokers would
be quick to take advantage of the
situation as they control the 25,OOO,-
600 sacks. He adds that the exist
ence of the jutc mill is precarious at
best in view of the stubborn move
ment for tariff reform. He says all
that justlffes the operation of the
lutte mill Is the $3.50 per 10000 tar
if schedule on sacks, saying that If
this Is eliminated that the Compel
tive manufacture of sacks at Walla
WaIla ia mathematical. He believes