Devils Lake world. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1914-1915, 1914-12-03
EUROPEAN WAR SHAT.
TIERS KING C0TI0KS
THRONE
FLEEcY STAPLE MUST PAY RAN.
SOM INTO THE GOLFERS OF
WAR.
Nation Rings With Cries Of Stricken
Industry.
BY Peter Radford

BY Peter Radford
Lecturer National Farmers Union.
King Cotton has suffered more from
the European war than any other az
ricultural product on the American
continent. The shells of the belliger-
ents have bursted over his throne,
frightening his subjects and shatter-
ing his markets, and. panic-stricken,
the nation cries out God save the
king!"
People from every walk Of life have
contributed their mite toward rescue
work. Society has danced before the
king; milady has decreed that the
family wardrobe shall contain only
cotton goods; the press has plead
with the public to buy a BALE;
bankers have been formulating hold
ing plans; congress and legislative
bodies have deliberated over relief
measures: statesmen and writer's
have grown eloquent expoundins -
inalienable rights Of His Majesty"
and presenting schemes for preserv-
ing the financial integrity of the
stricken staple, but the sword of Eu-
rope has proved mightier than the pen
Of America in fixing value upon this
product of the sunny south. Prices
have been b%ayoneted, values riddled
and markets decimated by the battling
hosts of the eastern hemisphere until
the American farmer has suffered a
war loss of $40o,0 900 900, and a bale
of cotton brave enough to enter a
European port must pay a ransom Of
half it's value OF go to prison until the
war Is over.
Hope Of the Future Lies In co-opera.
ton.
The Farmers Union, through the
columns of the press, wants to thank
the American people for the friend
ship, sympathy and assistance given
the cotton farmers in the hour of dis.
tress and to direct attention to co.
operative methods necessary to per.
manently assist the marketing of all
farm products.
The present emergency presents as
grave a situation as ever confronted
the American farmer and from the
viewpoint Of the producer, would seen
to Justify extraordinary relief meas
ures, even to the point of bending tn.
constitution and straining business
rules in order to lift a portion of tn
burden off the backs of the farmer
for unless something is done to chez
the invasion of the war forces upol
The cotton fields, the pathway of tn
European %pestilence on this @continen
and famine and poverty will stalk owe
the southland, filling the highways c
industry with refugees and the banl
ruptcy court with prisoners.
All calamities teach us lessons an
the present crisis serve to illuminat
the frailties Of our marketing metl
DDS and the weakness of our cred:
system. and out Of the financial a,
guish and travail of the cotton farme
will come a volume of discussion an
a mass of suggestions and finally
l solution Of this. the biggest prohlel
in the economic life of America, i
indeed, we have not already laid til
: foundation for at least temporary r.
lief
t More Pharaohs Needed In Agrcu,t"r
Farm products have no credit an
, perhaps can never have On q perm;
, nent and satisfactory basis unless "
: build warehouses, cold storage plant
elevators, ETC., for without storage an
credit facilities, the south is con
$ PEELED to dump its crop on the markt
at harvest time. The Farmers Union
IN the cotton producing states hay
p for the past ten years p~ersistently a,
vocated the construction of storae
facilities. We have built during tn:
: period 1000 warehouses with a c;
pacity of approximately 1000, 900 bale
and looking backward the result
would seem encouraging, but lookin
forward, we are able to house les
I than one-third of the. crop and war
houses without a credit system los
80 per cent Of their usefulness. TIL
problem Is a gigantic one-too gree
for the farmer to solve unaided. H
7 must have the assistance of the ban
er, the merchant and the government
e In production we have reached tn
e high water mark of perfection in til
x worlds history. but our marketin
methods are most primitive. In tn
dawn of history we find agricultu1
blowing with a forked stick but wit
a system of warehouses under COVER,
mental supervision that made til
4 Egyptians the marvel of civilizatio,
n ''r who has not admired the vision
u Joseph and %applauded the wisdom
Pharaoh for storing the surplus unit
demanded by the consumer, but
! this age we have too many JOSEPH