The Columbus journal. (Columbus, Neb.) 1874-1911, 1911-05-10
LOWER PRICES FOR THEIR
PRODUCTS.

farmers of Iowa and Of the West to
which they ought and, We believe they
will, give thoughtful consideration.
In a leading editorial under the cap
ton, Farmers Should Unite Against
One-Sided Reciprocity" this great ag'
ricultural journal gives careful ana
lysis of the PROF osed reciprocity treaty,
and makes it very plain that the poll
tico- statesmen who are saying that
competition with the Canadian farmer
is an open market will not injure the
Western farmer, are taking very
superficial view of the matter. The
Homestead states its own position in
the matter in the following paragraph:
The Homestead believes that the
farmers interests are at stake in this
matter more seriously than they have
been for many years, for the reason
that farm products are the only ones
placed on the Free List. 1t believes
that the proposed agreement will benc'
fit Canada and the Canadian farmer
at the expense Of the United States
and the American farmer. That this
is SO apparent from number ofrecent
happenings. Hardly had the reciprO'
city agreement come up for discussion
in the last Congress before the Cana
dian magazines bore large and flsring
advertisements Offering land bargains
and stating that the imminence Of re.
ciProcity with the United States was
already increasing land values. I'm.
der date of March II one of the Con.
sentative members of the Canadian
Parliament from the province of AL.
lrrta is quoted IN the daily papers as
saying: The agreement will give the
Canadian farmer a wide market, there
fore, am favorabIy disposed toward
the pact" The member did not add
that the markc: would be in the United
States and at the expense Of the Ameri.
can farmer. On January %, after
the country had had report Of the
likelihood of Congress passing the
agreement, wheat went up one and
one-half cents in Winnipeg and went
down five cents in Minneapolis, max.
ing difference of about six and one
half cents a bushel, resulting from the
possibility Of opening the American
market to the Canadian wheat grower.
The effect on the price of barley was
even more noticeable. Owing to the
very light crop raised last years bar
ley, up until the announcement of the
proposed reciprocity treaty, advanced
steadily, selling at 81 per bushel in
Milwaukee,. Chicago and Buffalo and
50 cents in Minneapolis. Today there
is practically IL" harley market anil
barley is almost unstable, at a decline
of anywhere from twelve to twenty
cents per bushel. The president Of
one of the leading commission COM
panies of Milwaukee calls attention to
the fact that BARLEY is in no sense a
food product and there can he no ex.
cuse for putting this on the Free List
if the only objects in this reciprocity
treaty are to cheaper the cost Of liv-
ing and to broaden our trade with
Canada" The key TO the situation is
this: This barley imported is used in
the manufacturing Of matted liquors
and not in the manufacture of food
products, so that the removal of the
duty is simply to the benefit of the
brewery interests Of the country and
not in any manner to the interests of
the food consumers.
For at least a dozen years the farm.
ers Of Iowa have been seeing or hear.
ing assaults upon the Protective Tariff
system. In the high tide Of their own
prosperity, good markets, vanishing
farm mortgages, growing bank &C.
counts and increased comforts and
Of rural farm life, they
have listenetrto the glib tongued re.
former who has told them about the
markets of the world and of how "the
interests" have been robbing them
that all the while an insidi-
Gus effort was being made to under
mine the foundation of their own
prosperity.
Indications are that the farmers of
the West may see few beautiful
theories given practical illustration. |
With Democratic Congress brought |
into being as the result Of the noisy |
dissemination Of this kind of sentiment,
about the only thing left for the most |
effective means which they can think |
Of in letting Washington know where |