The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-02-16
HIGH COST OF LIVING
BLAMEDON SCIENCE
Kansas Defends Farmers.
Urged Union of Capital
and Agriculture
rom the Chicago Record-Herald.

From the Chicago Record-Herald.
Science. which has labored for CEN
turtles to prolong the life of man, finally
has found slight reward for its service
by being held responsible for the high
cost of living.
Broad tracks, leading from the seat of
the high cost of living. have been fol-
lowed by Dr. II. J. Waters, president of
the Kansas State Agricultural college,
and found to lead in a most convincing
manner to the haunts of science.
The chief count in the Indictment
against science is that it went ahead
and, with malice aforethought, increased
the life of the average member of the
present generation five years. Since the
world must feed, clothe and coddle every
member of the present generation five
years longer, DR.. Waters says that the
cost of living must be increased in just
exactly that proportion.
The agricultural instructor made
known his discovery for the. first time
at the annual banquet of the Kansas So
icetv of Chicago, which was held at the
Auditorium hotel. So gratihed were the
members of the society at the accom-
pIshment of their member that they
adopted resolutions in which they called
upon President Wilson to make him his
head of the department of agriculture.
Dr. Waters also announced his opinion
that farmers were not getting q square
deal In the matter of credit from the ma
tion's financiers; that they were not being
paid enough for their products. and that
a nation of landlords and peasants would
be the result-a forerunner of bankrupt
cy and other evil things for the country
at large.
Farmers are compelled to pay higher
rates of interest on the money they bor-
row than than the holders of any other
security. although land is the best Sc
curity the Lord made he said. Rail
road stocks and bonds are put up as Sc
curity and readily accepted, while the
owner of farm has difficulty in bor-
rowing money even at high rate of in
terest.
1.-THE people in this country are eating
less meat today than ever before. The
price of cattle on the hOof is SO low that
the farmer cannot afford to raise beef,
while the prices of meats still are soar
ing. What is the obvious conclusion?
Farmers and the consumers must
come closer together. The farmer who
has food to sell must get close TO the
man who desires to use his products If he
wishes to get the highest price for them,
and If the consumer hopes to get the best
food for the lowest price.
1T was not so long ago that coal was
lying on the ground in Pennsylvania alb
soluteiy without a market, while the
farmer in Kansas was burning corn be-
cause he couldn't sell it. The trouble
was in getting these two interests to-
gether so that they could do business.
I'm many localities food rots in the
fields while in the great cities there are
thousands of men and women craving
it to keep body and soul together. We
must put those people where they can
transact their trading directly with each
other.
s,Of course il will be necessary for us
to increase the production of our farms,
as has been done in European countries.
But this will not be nearly so difficult
as to increase the production per man.
That is we cannot increase the produc-
tion per acre without cutting down the
earning capacity of each farming family.
rs it going to be necessary to feed the
millions coming into this country annual
~ at the expense of the tiller of the soil?
II the responsibility is placed upon the
farmer. we are going 70 have lower
class of people on the farms, standards
Of living among them will go down and
we will develop a peasant class