The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1911-05-22

another 20 to 40 per cent AT most,
the grapes should not be marked to
exceed 10 cents What unseen hand
had juggled prices up to 40 cents--75
per cent too high for the man who
eats; 1000 per cent. too low for the
man who growsY
Why, he could have afforded to pay
the freight, to pay the New York end
of handling, to pay 4 man TO look after
the sales, and still have put 80 per
cent profit on his grapes
Paying the New York extartion
ground floor rents-the big grocery
where the ex.farmer made his first in
quiry was on Broadway and paid a
rental of $4,000 year And then over
and beyond these preliminary charges
against the grapes, paying clear diyi-
dend Of, about 800 per cent each to
commission man, wholesaler, retailer.
Non wonder the wealth Of the nation
centered in the cities No wonder the
boys and girls broke away from the farm
to pursue that wealth! his sort Of game
made the farmers nine bilon-a-year
crop sort of sluice box for depositing
gold in city vaults. When the farmer,
however wanted loan, he had to come
on his knees to those bank vaults for
ii
But, perhaps, the grapes were an ex-
ception owing to their perishable ma
ture Your ex-farmer continued his
frst-hand Investigations of the things
he used to grow for the city man TO
eat. The more he investigated, the
halter he grew He found such extra
ordinary conditions as these:
Potatoes--Price paid the farmer, 35c;
cost to the city man $l.50; advance 800
per cent, of which only 80 per cent
went for freight and handling in the
cae he investigated
Milk Price paid the farmer 4c; cost
TO the city man sci advance 1000 per
cent
Pork Price paid the former &c to &c;
cost to the city man zoe to Soc; adj
vance 80 per cent
Wood, SO cord; city price IS; cost
OF cutting 50; advance 100 per cent.
Eggs Country price zoe 10 4Sc dozen,
or &c to &c an egg; cost in hotels 3Oc
70 two or l5c an egg; advance 400 to
500 per cent
Cabbage Price paid farmer 81 per SO
cabbages, or &c each; cost to city man
l0c each; advance 500 per cent
Beef, per steer $50 to $50 to the
farmer; cost to city man figured out on
the basis Of prices paid in the Senate
restaurant $2,0O0i advance 5000 per
cent
Wheat 81 per 90 pounds; breakfast
cereal l5c a pound, or 50 per 60 pounds.
Bread Sc to Zoe per pound; advance
500 to 1000 per cent
Now our Zimmerman had not gone
far in his Investigations before he be-
came convinced of several things. Rail-
way charges did not account for the
difference between the price on the field
and the price on the city market The
farmer alone created the wealth; but
he didn't create it for himself; and he
didn't create il for the consumer. He
created it for the man who came be.
tween the producer and the consumer;
ID word, the middleman A sort OF |
or giant, that middleman APP
ocared. as you thought about him, with |
1ne hand picking the farmers pocket I
and the other hand digging into the I
,ity mans coat tails; with one foot out /
IN the farmers back and the other foot
iolidly planted the consumers stom-
lch
Politicians and political economists
ire in doubt as to what causes the
present high cost Of living The Tech
lical World Magazine for June gives
lirectIy and to the point, what no
,ther publication has vet printed the
cal reason for boosted prices and the
emedy.