Albuquerque evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1911-1914, 1912-01-18
BRING TOGETHER
PRODUCER AND
CONSUMER
Only Solution of High Cost of
Living Outlined BY Mayor
Shanks of Indianapolis,
Indiana.
tBy EVENING nesnld \. y. Leased wIrei


Albany s.. y Jan. iS.--Snmurl
LOWS shank, mayor of indianapolis,
who has gained fame by ais person
alty conducted cut-pricc sales oj poe
taloes. poultry. mincc meat and wal
nuts. in the public market at Indian
apolls rs q "War on me middle man.
delivered an address here tuduN before
tlo Sew York Agricultural society
rba only e1'ution af thr hirh rgs' ~.
utus us.b u ld .us
'ol her 1r .r.Io. .Ua I.
sumor. he had satisfied himself and|
the people or Indianapolis that MsI
municipal purchase and sales agent
idea, when put into operation, was ci-
fcctive In reducing artifcially inflated
prices OF foodstuGs.
Under modern commercial meth
ODDS and tie development OF several
grades OF middlemen," said Mr..
! shank, the law of supply and de-
mand. so far as the consumer is con-
corned, has become more or less a
dead letter. The consumer In largo
| cities finds that large crops Gf fruits
and Vegetables mean little or nothing
| Co him. He used to cheer up when ne
read o. big apple crops, big peach
crops, big potato or cabbage crops for
he knew these products would be
| chap. Now news 81 this kind Is re-
/ ceived with derision.
what difference does Il make II
/ the cranberry crop Is large2 Doesn't
! the price always climb from SO TO
.ISt2 a barrel or 10 90 3 cents quart
by the time the Thanksgiving day
demand comes? DO overloaded peach
trees in Georgia, Florida or Michigan
i mean that the workingman A. goine
20 have cheap jcllios and jams all the
next winter? Not " the market hand
lers OF crops know g. Though the
growers may accept a low price Tor
the peaches rather than have them
rot on the ground the various middle
men see 20 IL that they get the add
vantage of cheap production and not
b the consumer. ~ the law OF supply
and demand gets into operation, you
see IL works almost exclusively 10 IN,
benefit OF the middemen.
"The growers In some states found
this out some time ago ana have taken
F.! protective measures as far as tnea
can by organizing associations. pool
ing their crops and making the mid
dlcmen pay them reasonable prices
I 80 they hope 90 continue In business
, as distributors. But the consumer
% are only now organizing TO lock aftei
p their own Interests IA the food suppl1
question They have for years scei
the distributiye forces putting thoi
. selling agents la the large cities TO SCI
10 lthat the supplies of foodstuns de- no
loyortop tho demand upd thus lowe
prices. 10 rs the business az thes
selling agents 90 see that the fruit
, rot where they grow rather than tina
2 they may crowd the markets am
threaten tho dcthroncment Of higl
= prices.
According 10 reports that have q
Thorn the evidences of truth, 10 for eN
ample. the selling agent In indian
| apDlls for the orange crop sees, alte
, ordering shipments 10 that city ina
the demand has fallen OF az the pre-
. vaiilng prices leaving more stock q"
. | hand than DE- had expected, he see
to Be that the ears ou thrir way ir"n
. y rlda cor california 90 lndianapoN
! are not allowed 10 get there ana Gu
+, tho market but are switched on
other markets where There is mo- dar
= ger of them causing "a reduction
N 'he price.
1T Is snid that the grapo, iemo'
4 strawberry. banana. pineapple melo
land other fruits and vegetable crop
Il. Ianylhlng GOO fact grown outside of th
stute In which ono lives, De- mnrkcto
ir lhi- wny by the various dririhu
/, lg,u.los and 1fd sleaf.} tH i
+. cost af living We even have rolb
4 ln getting the products Of our oW
NJ states az reasonable prices, because
q tho tribute Grst demanded of us con
sumDrs by the middlcmon.
"a "To my mind the greatest gift th'
\ can come Co the American people
~ some permanent plan whereby a
(, consumer can he brought into clos
! touch with the producer When an
'n Il done lower prices of food produc
,s viii prevail. Ia my own way 4 "a
n trying 90 bring about this condiu'
81 of affairs I do not assert my pig
4. ls thc best or that % win he success
Of raj everywhere but one thing !
n know and that rs thar lower prize
IA prevail iu my town I presume pra
ia ucauy an OF you are familiar WI
Inn nav efforts la indianapolis I'm q o.
shell my plan Is to buy from the or