The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-05-09
MANAGER WILSON
ON SEED GRAIN
The County's Side of the Seed
Grain Discussion.
Miller, S D.. MAY

the mistakes made by your cores
pondent, o. R. Webb in last weeks
issue. As agent for the County
Commissioners in seed distribution
| take this opportunity of replying
to Mr. Webb and at the same time
some of our curb stone critics.
A writer once said that monev
was the root of all evil, .but | would
make an amendment to this by say
ing a disordered liver is the root of
many evils, and it is scarcely fair
for Mr. Webb to charge the state of
his liver up to the County Commits
sioners.
Mr. Webb surely is very migrate
full in his charges against the Coun-
tv Commissioners when he stops to
think that it is quite possible that
they and | may have waited for his
arrival in the late spring to show u
not only how to farm but also how
70 run the County in general. There
are a lot of facts that Mr. Webb has
forgotten to state, and, wonderful
to say, some things that he does not
seem to know.
AS you pointed out the Commits
sioners did not guarantee the purity
of seed, but agreed to use diligence
in providing good wheat.
This they certainly did. As to
cost, MIR Webb is entirely wrong in
Saying the grain cost over Mime
apolis price. Mr. Webb does not
know what price this grain would
bring on the market, as it vas not
ordinary merchandise wheat. AL
most AL of the wheat was
1910 wheat, guaranteed 95 to 100 p.
C. to grow, and if Mr. Webb knows
anything of business he knows that
no elevator Co. could afford to pay
interest, insurance, etc, and carry
wheat over for Is months and sell
it at price of wheat unfit for seed.
This class of wheat is not quoted in
ordinary market and the price is
regulated by the demand and the
demand this year was, to quote a
Minneapolis grain house. terrific"
Mr. Webb does not know that the
Commissioners were warned by
Mimi. College and South Dakota
College not to purchase wheat on
the Minneapolis market as it was in
a large measure impregrated with
rust germs for which there has as
vet been found no successful treat
ment. If we had bought on the
Minneapolis market and the wheat
did not grow we would have had
absolutely no recourse and the far
mers would have lost. The wheat
distributed as all guanteed as to
terminating properties and was all
tested wheat, showing from 95 to
100 terminating properties.
Mr. Webb knows nothing of the
cleaning facilities In our Dakota
elevators, when he talks of their be-
ing able to clean it. Almost none
of the elevators have cleaning facil-
ties. Mr. Webb, though he is going
to show how to farm. evidently does
not know very much about our farm
ers when he thinks they have no
facilities for the cleaning of grain.
Most Of our good farmers have fan
ming machines, or are in good
enough standing to borrow their
neighbours. AS a matter of fact
half of the farmers preferred the
uncleaned seed, with the dockage.
to the cleaned seed, as they figured
they could clean it cheaper than
paying for elevators to do it. AS
to foul seeds. Mr. Webb need not
worry. as there was no foul seed
shipped in that has not been in here
for years and years. Some more
things Mr. Webb does not know or
forgets to mention. That he thank
ed me for furnishing him such good
seed; that out of courtesy | allowed
his order to be changed after it was
out in; that he was so pleased with
his seed that instead of hauling it at
once. as others did, he took his share
out of the a and put it in an eleva-
tor, paying two cents so as to ensure
his getting this particular seed
which his liver now condemns.
For MI Webb's information | may
state that Hand county ordered
some of its seed the day the Rail-
road Company made their offer of
free rate; that the:-e was no chance