The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1911-03-24
SOME VIEWS ON RECIPROCITY
Opinions on the Proposed Treaty Advanced by Different
Residents of This County.

pictured by some OF the writers for the
press is an irideseent dream scarcely ever
realized in practice. II is notorious TACT
that while there is considerable gam IN
population in most of the large villages OF
the state during the last decade, nearly, all
the smaller agricultural towns have lost
population. also the slight rise of the av.,
erage valuation OF farm lands is confined
almost wholly to farms contiguous to VII
lagos and farms of large timber resources
| The back to the farm movement ls
mostly hot air. How many OF the well PAID
employees of our quarries and INDUSTRIAL
enterprises of Vermont are exchanging the
short hours, high wages, and EDUCATIONAL
and social advantages of village lie Tor
the hard work. long days and weather and
crop uncertainties of farm HE! lie VINO
by the pillow would thrive himself must
either hold or drive" He must both hold
and drive and meanwhile do some careful
thinking. The farm laborer gets the low,
est wages in the labor market, yet some OF
our best farmers find that it takes the net
income of the farm to pay him. The
r. f. ID. and the telephone have, greatly
uplifted rural conditions, and doubtless
there is a future on the land for those
who know how to achieve it and try hard
enough. Automobile roads, higher wages
for teachers, and longer terms OF school
are very desirable, and in many cases town
bonded Indebtedness in aid of railroads
and other improvements have lifted the
tax rate in all towns and In some almost
to confscation of property, and the brunt
of it falls on the working farmer. Farm
robbing has exploited the older FIELDS TO
that extent that farm building with chemi-
Gals and phosphate has become neces.
sity. Competition with the cheap and
eift-free virgin lands and cheaper labor and
taxes of Canada will lower the prices OF
farm products, or 1t will not. If it does
YOU diminish to that extent the prices
realized by the home farmers, who bear the
burdens Of the town, state and nation But
the most intolerable injustice in the system
is the unfairness of retaining the tariff on
flour, beef, and manufactured articles to
help the millionaire millers, and the beet
barons, while alleged natural productions
are admitted free. As lifelong farmer and
protectionist, | resent this bogus reciproc-
ity. Protection, if genuine, will protect the
men who raise the nations food, and
paw the taxes, who filled the ranks OF the
blue and whose sons and daughters, with
wholesome farm training, are the hope
and stay of the Republic In spite of pref
erential duties favoring England our
trade with Canada under. present condi-
tions is constantly increasing and the
source of considerable revenue. There Is
something in the word RECIPROCITY that
is very attractive and liable to be very
deceptive. The reciprocity advocated by
Blaine and Mckinley promoted trade re-
lations with countries that economically.
produce what we cannot, with mutual
benefit to all classes of Americans and IN
jury to none. ;, .,
Reciprocity with Canada on the false
assumption that potatoes, maple sugar, but
ter, beef, and barley are natural products
thew lust grow while you sleep-meanss
opening our markets to the free trade. OF
our northern competitors, and protection
to such infant industries as the 1nterna-
tional Harvester company. ct al. Where
does the American farmer come in? The
improved prices obtained for farm prod
ucts during the past few. years have en-
abled the farmer to purchase needed fer
tili7ers and machinery and to adopt more
progressive ideas. which tend to improve
the quality and lower the prices of food
products. This is especially shown in the
low prices of potatoes during the past two
years. It is proposed to take off the "
cents per bushel tariff and face the com
petition of New Brunswick and Prince
Edwards Island, with cheap water trans