The Jasper news., 1914-01-28
illustrating the character Of unnoces.
sary expenses TO which we refer
Union Opposed i.FuIl Crew sni.


tered its opposition to this character
of legislation at the last annual meet
ing held in Fort Worth, Tex. August
q, 1919, by resolution, which %o quote.
IS oollows:
This r.attcr OK Primo Importance
to the farmers of-this state is an ado
quate and efficient marketing syslein
and we recognize tllat sucn System
IS Impossible without adequate rail-
read facilities. caIbrGoinG tho groatcgt
amount of eervice at TIE least pos
eible cost. We ffrther recognize that
tho farmers and pcodnccr3 in tha end
pay approximately S5 per ccat OF tie
expenses of operating the railroads,
end it is therofcTo to the ictcrest OF
tho producers that the expenses CT
the common carriers be as small e5
Is possible, consistent with good sar-
vice and safety Are, therefore, call
upon cur law makers, courts and
juries to bear the foregoing facts in
mind when dealing with the common
carriers OF this state. and we 20 espe-
cially reaffirm the declarations of
State Union, opposing the passage oil
the so-called fulEcrew' bill before
the thirty-third legislature of Texas"
The farmers of Missouri in the last
election, by an Overwhelming ma
jority swept this law off the statute
book Of that state, and it should
come off of all statute books where
it appears and no legislature of this
nation should pass such a law or
similar legislation which requires un-
necessary expenditures. =.
The same rule applies to all regu-
latory measures which increase the
expenses of industry without giving
corresponding benefits to the public.
There is ofttimes a body of mon as
sembled at egislatures-and they
have right to be there-who, in
their zeal for rendering their fellow
associates a service, sometimes favor
an increase in the expenses of in
dustry without due regard for;the men
who bow their backs to the summers
sun to meet the payroll, but these
committees, while making a record
for themselves, rub the skin off the
shoulders of the farmer by urging the
legislature to lay another burden
upon his heavy load and under the
lash of "be it enacted" goad him on
to pull and surge at the traces of civil
ization, no matter how he may sweat,
foam and gall at the task. When
legislatures 'cut melon for labor
they hand the farmer lemon.
The farmers of the United States
are not financially able to carry dead
heads" on their payrolls Our own
hired hands are not paid unless we
have something for them to do and
we are not willing to carry the hired
help of dependent Industries unless
there is work for them. We must
therefore insist upon the most rigid
economy.
Legislative House-cIcaninJ Needed.
While the war is on and there is
lull in business, we want all legisla-
tive bodies to take an inventory OF
the statute books and wipe off all
extravagant and useless laws good
house-cleaning is needed and econo-
mics can be instituted here and there
that will patch the clothes of INDECENT
children, rest tired mothers and lift
mortgages from despondent homes
Unnecessary workmen taken off and
useless expenses chopped down all
along the line will add to the pros.
perity OF the farmer and encourage
him in his mighty effort to feed and
clothe the world
If any of these industries have sur.
plus employees we can use them on
the farm. We have no regular
schedule of wages, but we pay good
farm hands on an average of $1.50
per day Of thirteen hours when they
board themselves; work usually runs
about nine months of the year and the
three months dead time, they can do
the chores for their board. If they
prefer TO farm on their own account,
there are more than 14,000,000,000
acres of idle land on the earth's sur.
face awaiting the magic touch of the
plow. The compensation is easily OBJ.
tainable from Federal Agricultural
Department statistics. The total
average annual sales of farm in
the continental United States amounts
to $4,000; the cost of operation is
$4,000; leaving the farmer $176 per
annum to live on and educate his
family.
There is no occasion for the legis,
latures making position for surplus
employees of industry. Let them come