Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-07-25
No Danger From Argentine Corn
Congressman Raney the Absurdty the Argument
That United States Farmers Face Ruination.
Corn


are much enlarged.
A few years ago a fleet of vessels
was organized to carry grain from
Chicago to European ports. The ships
made one trip, l think, and after that
the plan was abandoned. This oc-
CURED several years ago ! thinh
The shipment from Chicago to Euro
pean ports by this method was found
not to be feasible. The old way of
getting it to the coast was found
better and cheaper. If it was not
practical to ship wheat by way Of the
lakes and the canals without break
ing bulk from Chicago to Liverpool,
it of course will not be practical to
ship Argentine corn without break
ing bulk by way of the same canals
and lakes to Chicago.
All the Argentine corn that will
reach the corn belt country of the
United States within the next two
years, even if there should be another
corn shortage, will not be enough to
furnish the hogs of Illinois with one
breakfast. l am a farmer myself and
feed considerable stock. On account
of the drought in our section and the
chinch bugs. I did not raise any corn
last year. / was compelled to buy
carload about two months ago. 1t
came from Iowa and cost me. on the
car at Carrollton, ILL.,. IS cents a
bushel. need some more and have
been making Inquiries and find that
can not get it for less than 50 cents a
bushel. Under such circumstances as
this Argentine corn ought to reach Illi-
nois now, IL ever.
Not Buying Cattle.
All through my section, which is a
cattl' feeding section, farmers are
not buying cattle this year. On &C.
count of the high price of feeding
cattle and the high price of corn it is
impossible for them to do it. The
cattle shortage in this country and
the shortage in last years corn crop
are alarming features. The recent
tariff bill places cattle on the free
list Whenever they resume the
raising of cattle in Mexico and re-
plenish their herds this feature of the
bill will be of tremendous benefit to
our corn belt farmers. They will
then be able to get their feeding
cattle at reasonable prices from
Mexico where grasses grow the year
round and where they can raise
cattle cheaper than in any other part
of the world. 1t is not proving
profitable. as 1 understand it to bring
in cattle for feeding purposes from
Canada. They do not do well in our
warmer climate.
81
as there is now, under the Underwood
tariff bill corn will come in from the
Argentine republic to be manufactured
along the Atlantic coast, and 1t ought
to come in for that purpose, so that we
can retain in our section, devoted to
animal husbandry, the corn we grow
there and feed it to our own stock,
thus keeping up our soil fertility and
keeping up the value of our lands.
Those farmers who were fortunate
enough to raise corn last year GER
tainly can not complain of the prices
they are getting For the last 43 years
corn on the corn belt farm has been
higher than it is now only four times,
and the period when corn prices were
higher than corn prices on the Amer
lean farm for several months past
never before exceeded so days.
These Argentine corn arguments are
inspired by interests in this country
which have profited exceedingly in the
past from a protective tariff. Their
profits are no longer protected. The
tariff on corn, wheat and all foodstuffs
never had the slightest effect in keep
ing up prices on the American farm.
Corn raised on our farms is not being
displaced in our markets, nor in any
markets, by Argentine corn. In a per-
fectly natural way, through unrestrict-
ed trade channels, an effort is being
made to supply in this country the
tremendous corn shortage of last year.
The attempt has not been successful.
few million bushels only have en-
tered the country-only an inconsid-
cradle portion of the total shortage
and the corn that is brought in is not
being used in competition with our
corn belt corn and can never be.
Farmers of Illinois cannot be de-
ceived by such absurd peanut politics
as the real beneficiaries of former
protective tariffs are advancing.
Absurdity Of Argument.
In order to show the absurdity of
arguments being advanced in order
to brighten Illinois farmers, l might
call attention to the fact that Illinois
produces every year nearly four hun
dred million bushels of corn. In
other words. Illinois produces alone
over three times as much corn every
wear as the Argentine Republic will
have. for expectation to all the world.
In other words, if all the corn the
Argentine Republic exports should
come every year to the United States
alone it would amount, on an aver
age. to only about one-third the aver
age production of corn in Illinois.
We have five counties in Illinois. any
one of which produces every year as
much corn as has. up to the present
time, entered the United States from
the Argentine Republic. The coun-
ties to which / refer are Champaign,