Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-04-30
The Rising Demand tor Cooperative
Marketing of Grain
~ c. 4.

|--aa+.. rsa.N4Hf'H ..stsst Ha..Uf as.ss tE.ET. ~
The splendid organization of the
grain trade and the milling industry
which centers at MinneapOlis-with
the Chamber Of Commerce as It's
agency fer carrying on Its multiform
transactions between producers and
consumers, and with all the transpor'
tation lines SO flcused as to facili'
tate IN every possible way the Far.
poses of the organization-has long
,held1aup to the world as n of the
triumphs OF American civilization.
How harmoni0usly have here been
combined the forces of finance ani
industry. OF invention and commerce
and with what Effects seen in
that matchless array OF great. busy
elevators and gigantic flour miSIll.
whose marvellous output SURPRISES
that of any other. district in the
world. SO grandy efficient and pros.
porous seems this organization for
handling the farmers wheat and
unlimited market, that, to these who
look only on the surface OF things.
it may easily seem that in no way
thei farmer be better served.
Why. then, the present attacks upon
the Organization, and VIII ythe rise
OF the movement for the establish
ment Of a Farmers Cooperative ex.
change in st. Paul?
OF No Benefit to the Farmers.
The answer. is, in brief, that while
the cost Of maintaining that splendid
organization, in it's many ramifica-
lions fall upon the farmers, they get
no" share in the profits thereof. It
affords Q very expensive apparatus
for conducting what should be a com.
pa%ratively simple operation, namely,
the transfer of grain from. producer
to consumer, and the return. of On
equivalent in cash.
The transfer is made so smoothly
and beautifully as to elicit the high.
est encoMiums; but the return in
cash is subject to so many diminu-
iti0ls before It reaches the farmer
that he is in no way benefited by
that triumph CT organization and
civilization" beyond contribution of
income not proportionateSy greater
than that which he received when his
only market was found in the little
country mill by the b%rookside.
To the farmer who reads history,
the glOries of that wonderfully sue.
cessfnlt Minneapolis combination or
millers, elevator men, commission
sshnNses and transportation interests
seem very much, like those Of the
splendid Fronchl court just before the
FFentl 1evoleitioa-they exalt the
few at 5thASexpensa ~ the many.
Some sRrSyoeative Object Lessons.
In various other lines Of rural In
dustry. the farmers Of; Minnesota and
the NcrthNaets have recently witness:
ca some Striking object lessons in
the methods and advantages OF com.
bi1ation and cooperation among
themselves, which have provoked
m 70 esiolns study ct the ques-
tionsoe sahepl same methods
on hSiargersscnle, toSthe; cooperative
marketing of grain At the great ter.
minal and distributing points.
l. There are the cooperative
creameries now scattered by hun
dreds all over Minnesota and ada
cent states. These have been built
N in the face. Of fierce oppositio1
by would.be monopolies. with the. re-
suit that. for a vastly larger output.
the dairy farmers are now getting
higher prices than ever. The price
here paid for butter fat is twice that
paid, for instance, in Missouri, where
the farmers are .1till in bonds tc
the ~"centralizing'' monopolies.
2. In the cooperative marketing Of
livestock the stock raisers Of Mime
sofa; have been meeting such success
es that ere long none Of them will
dream of marketing in any ether
way: Under this plan a single selling
agent. to whom on specified days, the
stock raisers bring whatever they