The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1911-02-11
Taft, in Columbus, Defends
the Agreement
IT is NOT, HE DECLARES
Only for the Manufacturer-He Shows
How Farmers Will Be Benefited-They
Will Gain by Closer Relations
With Northern Neighbors.

0DlutlDuss W. GbD. II-~-IhCNlpIOGltN
with Canada viii benefit the entire Unit
ed States, farmer, manufacturer, railroad
company, middeman, warehouseman.
This was the declaration made by
President Taft in an address here yes
terday at the national corn exposition.
While his speech was devoted especial
~ to showing that the farmer had moth
ing to fear, but much to gain, he tried
10 prove also that all the other interests
of the country would be benefited by the
proposed reciprocity.
1--WE have with pioneer energy pushed
on to the Pacific" the president said,
"and taken up all the good land We
are now spending millions to reclaim the
arid and semi-arid lands OF the great
western desert. Should we not by TAX
ing down useless and unnecessary tar
iif wall bring within our agricultural re.
sources the great plains of the North
west, when they can bring to us what
we need and that without hurting any
OF our own people I?
The president expressed the opinion
that in addressing d corn exposition au-
dience it would be particularly appro-
pirate for him to answer the criticism
which had been made of the agreement
Nas an attack upon the farmer by de-
priving him of protection
at is said to be manufacturers
agreement" he continued, "that is, in
the interest of the manufacturing classes
.and adverse to the farmer. How is the
armer to be hurtf"
The president said that Gin respect to
corn, the American farmer is king and
will remain so, reciprocity or no reci-
procity."
As to wheat, he said the domestic price
Is governed by the world price and that
"the sending Of any part of Canada's
surplus through the country instead of
through Canada to be miiled or to be ex-
ported with milling, viii not perceptiblyor
materially affect the price Of wheat for
our farmers"
The value of farm lands, he said Ia
affected by the proximity to market
more than by any other element and he
maintained that the American farmer
would still have the advantage in this
respect He also predicted great in
crease in American milling as a result of
the agreement.
IF the argument as to the disastrous
effect of admitting the crops of the Ca
madam Northwest to our markets upon
the values of our farm land is correct,
then the opening Of lands in Kansas, Ne
braska and the two Dakotas in the two
decades from 1890 to 1910 should have
had a similar effect upon the land of the
older states Now, what was the effect
The land in the lower states became
more devoted to corn and cattle and hogs,
while the wheat and other cereals were
left to the new lands. The effect was
that the values Of the land in the older
farming states were in most cases more
than doubled
"The difference in the value Of the
acre between Manitoba and Minnesota
and Wisconsin is S6 between Wisconsin
and Illinois is $50; between Wisconsin
and Iowa is $40; between Michigan and
Indiana is S3l. These figures show in
eontestably that the fear of reduction
in farm land values of this country
by letting in Ganada's products is wholly
unfounded.
"The United States secured for the
farmers the free listing Of such impor-
tant agricultural products as cottonseed
W.T. dtf MINUS VI IEllttS anu FtRPtaDiest
timothy and clover seeds. eggs aud nu-
merous other products in which the
movement to Canada from the United
States is much greater than from Cam
ada to the United States The remission
of Sl.300000 in duties on rough lumber
imported into the United States bv free
listing it, along with pickets and pal
mgs and the heavy reductions on dressed
lumber. laths and shingles, are all in the
interest of the farmer.
let the agreement be adopted and 90
into operation and in six months the
farmers on the border who now have
fears viii rejoice in this great step taken
toward closer business and social rela.
tions with oW neighbors The whole
country farmer, manufacturer railroad
company, middleman. warehouseman--
all viii be the gamer"