The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-01-23
GEORGE 5. LOTUS
DELIVERED TALK
SALES MANAGER or EQUITY CO.
OPERATIVE EXCHANGE OF
MINNEAPOLIS WAS THE CHIEF,
SPEAKER AT GRAIN GROWERS
THIS AFTERNOON.

safes manaSe OIL ttle EQultS Co-opCA
| ative exchange, was one Of the prin-
cipal speakers at the Tri-State Grain
Growers convention this afternoon,
| which was the final session Of the con-
yention.
Mr.. LOTUS topic was The Terminal
Markets and in part he said:
"Mr. President, ladies and gentle
men: Friends and fellow workers in
the cooperative movement, need 1
say that J. am pleased to again be with
you to discuss with you the questions
pertaining to the terminal market?
My heart is in the movement. I might
say I am all wrapped up in the ques-
ton. Ever since I first ventured into
the commercial field as a buyer and
shipper, it became very apparent to
me that in the terminal markets
there a grown UP grave abuses
which need drastic remedies. When I
appeared before you a year ago, / told
you Of some of the things we had ac-
Complished and some of the things we
were trying to accomplish. I told you
of the fights we had gone through, the
fearful force the opposition was able
to put up against us, and the many
methods they had of manipulating at
fairs to he great disadvantage of &C.
tual producers and eventual conSum-
ers. I will not now stop to go over
this with you again but will take up
the discussion of other questions in
the limited time allotted to me. T
might say for your information that
since the Equity Cooperative ex-
change was established the fight has
ragged as never before and that it has
brou: ht on new questions and brought
out more prominently, several abuses
which we suspected to exist but which
we were not in a position to point out
definitely.
"You have of late seen a great deal
in public print regarding the so-called
switching charges, but 1 doubt very
much whether. any of you are fully
The Minneapolis market is to you of
vast Importance. In fact at various
times it is the only market you have
for your grain and I might say that
it is also the only market where
switching charges have been taxed to
the shipper. The small item of $3.50
per a may seem insignificant to you
u when you stop to consider that the
total amount paid for switching from
n ear to another will total
nearly a quarter Of a million
the aggregate does not seem so in
significant and by this I mean SWITCH
ing actually paid to the railroads. In
every other market I know of the
switching charges are paid by the
purchasers but here in Minneapolis
they have been as I said paid by the
shippers. This you will admit Is a
very heavy burden placed on you.
of commerce members devise a very
adroit and cunning scheme whereby
the shippers will not only pay all the
switching charges the railroads ask
for but some $50, 600 to $50, 900 an
nually besides and that was brought
about in this way: they fixed on the
plan OF placing on every car coming
into Minneapolis an arbitrary charge
of $3.50. During the legislative in
vestigation last winter the railroad
and warehouse commissioners of the
state of Minnesota furnished a certi-
fed account of the switching charges
to this effect.
1.-THE various commission firms do
ing business on the SO called irregular
exchanges, are in the habit Of buying
grain at country points and also from
one another. This grain they sell in
competition with grain sent to them
on consignment. Do you fully ap-
preciate what this means? To
illustrate: Suppose I have samples
of ten cars Of grain on my table and
also samples of ten cars Of consigned
grain. These twenty car T must try
L u 5SL Ild vi DClolS VIC sung SOulluS
the closing hour or else pay demur-
rage. Which cars do you think !
would be most anxious to get rid of?
Also if there comes a miller to my
table who wishes to buy say five cars
Of grain, will a that ten cars Of con-
signed grain is very choice. My own
cars T have, bought at a bargain and
they are not SO good. Don't you think
it would be very natural for me to
saw, take two or three cars of n
lot and two or three of the
other and I will make you
a. fiat price of so much. This you
would say was a job lot and this is
the way the commission firms are job
bling you farmers every day their ex-
change is open, and this is a point we
have urged with all the emphasis at
our command on the railroad and
warehouse commissioners of the state
of Minnesota. I believe and you will
agree with me after giving the ques-.
sion --rm should be allowed to handle
consigned grain in competition with
grain he is buying and selling on his
w account, and it is plainly and
clearly within the power of the rail-
road and warehouse commission to.
regulate and terminate this practice
Every commission firm is licensed. Let
wv SSihoS 80 S't4ASt WI
firm, and blythe word commission firm
/ believe handling grain on commits
sion, or let them be licensed as a deal
er or broker.
Another question we have taken up
with the railroad n warehouse com
mission in the state Of Minnesota is
the privilege or non-privilege Of COM
salaries. In other words, selling to
themselves, or receiving your grain or
~confiscating it, If you please, and
charging you a. commission for such
an act. Now is there anyone in the
audience here who for a moment will
contend that a grain firm will organ
lie subsidiary companies for your
benefit, for the benefit Of the farmers?
Absolutely. no-those things are de-
ylsed for the special benefit Of the
parent company; Van Duzen Harring-
ton operate under eight different
names. They go the cunning Peavey
n better. Mr.. Peavey in his balmi-
est lays thought he could get along
with seven and ne did get along very
nicely, Mr.. Peavey did. He started in
the grain business as a poor ordinary
plain everyday elevator and
died a multi-millionaire. 1t is a safe
that many of his millions
We're made by virtue Of his having sub
sidiary companies which enabled him to
trade from of his companies
to the other. each time leaving a
handsome profit in Peavey's pocket.
We took up the question before the
legislature last winter urging legisla-
to stop this nefarious practice.
investigation committee in its re-
Continued III Page Nine