Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-07-20
FARMERS UNION
POINTED To AS
HOPE Of SOUTH
Charles S. Barrett and L. NJ.
Rhodes, Of Tennessee, Organ
ling Planters Of State.
BRING MESSAGE OF CHEER
Speakers Declare Organization Is
Only Way to Cut Present
High Cost Of Living.

L NJ. Rhodes, president Of the Ten
nSssee division and chairman OF th'
national board OF directors OF the
Farmers Union, has just finished a
flying trip through Georgia In COM
pany Of Charles s Barrett. national
president Of the Farmers Union, and
J. J. Brown, former Commissioner OF
Agriculture OF Georgia. The follow
ing message to the farmers as deliv-
Sred BY Mr. Rhodes abounds IN such
truth and fact not generally known:
Agriculture Is basic. Upon IL rests
CiteG, commerce and civilization. The
people OF the earth consume 10000
900 tons OF food annually, Five hum
dred and eighty-twO million tons OF It
come from the farm. Human beings
are clothed in the products Of the
farm from the time they are born un-
I'll they embark for eternity. Yet ever
since Grandfather Adam made the
mistake that caused him 10 lose the
family estate the farmer has been a
failure IN business
Farmer Behind in Business,
'Tn business development Of the
United States In the last century the
farmer has fallen behind In the pro-
cession Of modern business methods
he has followed where he should have
led
Twelve men control one-third OF
our wealth, and one man controls
nearly oue-tenth OF the wealth Of this
the richest country in the world. At
the rate we are going capital viii own
practically all our wealth In another
generation.
Sixty three land companies and
rich individuals own an area equal
20 Tennessee, Mississippi Alabama
and North and South Carolina
Liberty can not long exist in a
country where tho tendency is to
confine the wealth to a few hands, for
he who controls a nations money
controls its people
Union ls Educational.
knowing that our liberty was
bought with holy blood and sacred
tears, and seeing that we must or
ganize and change our present meth
DDS or surrender, we organized the
Farmers Educational and Co-Opera-
tive Union OF America Believing that
a lack OF practical knowledge is mans
greatest enemy. we placed 'eduCa-
ton as the first word in our name.
And knowing that a people are never
strong when they are wrong. we Sc
lected as our motto: Equity. Justice
and the Golden Rule Our organiza-
tion has steadily grown. until now II
reaches from coast TO coast, and
north, south. east and west are
terms OF direction to indicate It's
magnitude. In one decade II has
grown until II IL winged by Canada
and Mexico, baCkgrounded by the At
lantic and footliEhted by the Pacific.
The real reason of the high cost OF
living Is not because the farmer pro-
duces an inadequate amount Of prod
ucts or gets too much for what he
grows, but It IS that there are too
many toll gates between the field of
production and the table OF consump-
ton.
AS long as we continue our pres
ent methods we win build up the
towns and cities at the expense of
the rural districts. The consuming
public pays $4,000, 600 600 for what
the farmer parts with for SO. 00O. 00O.-
900, The farmer gets A cents and
the distributor gets 90 cents Of each
dollar. II there is a practical work
able way 10 stop this plundering OF
the producing and consuming masses,
and do away with this stupendous
waste, II should be done Surely no
one would oppose the change except
those who think the jeweled hand OF
freed should be licensed to pick the
threadbare pockets Of those who toll
within the next decade the farm
ers OF this country VIII produce
enough TO load 6O.0O0, 900 freight
cars, and its value will approximate
800 000 100000. II properly HANDLED,
this should double the farmers
wealth. But producing IS { all IF
farming We cannot prosper unless
we cam control prices. we cannot
control prices unless We Cooperate.
we cannot cooperate unless We or
ganize. The farmer must keep his
pace with the organized industri $
Of the age. or verify he viii have his
reward"
Mr. Rhodes then spoke I'm detail v
the work the Farmers Union had
done. its aims, its objects. It's hone >
and the effect was SO marked that
there were responses on every hand
by farmers who heard him. and the
beginning OF tho $4,000 membership
in Georgia was inaugurate6. and the
elimination will be a certainty II
President Barrett and Mr. Rhodes
put In d few weeks Of organization.