The Wahpeton times. [volume] (Wahpeton, Richland County, Dakota [N.D.]) 1879-1919, 1915-01-21
A1'||:hCRtAS
NECESSARY N [ ! /
FARMERS UNION OFFICIALS
THINK aAlLRoAps= ARE IN.
TITLED TO MORE R1vENuG
Produets q Plow, and Farmer wiz
Lives Il HONS should o !
Exempt From increase.

Lives at homs Should d
Exempt From Increase.
81 ~ 's
oy Petof Radford.
Lecturer National Farmers Union,
The recent action Of the Interstate
Commerce Commission in granting On
increase In freight rates In the casters
classification Of territory; the applica3'
ton Of the roads to state and inter
state commissions for an increase 10
rates. and the utterances Of President
Wilson on the subject bring the farm|
ers Of this nation face to face with the
problem Of an increase In freight
rates. It is the policy Of the Farmeral
Union to meet the issues affecting tho
welfare Of the farmers squarely and
We will do 80 in this instance.
The transportation facilities Of the
United States are inadequate to eff
fectively meet the demands Of com:
merce and particularly in the South
and West additional railway mileage
Is needed to accommodate the move7
ment Of farm products. II in the wis
dom of our Railroad Commissions an
increase in freight rates is necessary
to bring about an improvement in our
transportation service, and an exten.
sion Of our mileage. then an increase
should be granted. and the farmer ID
willing to share such proportion Of
the increase as Justly belongs to him.
but we have some suggestions to make
as to the manner in which this In,
crease shall be levied.
Rates Follow Lines Of Least Resist,
ance.
The freight rates of the nation have
been built up along lines Of least re-
sistance. The merchant. the manu-.
facturer. the miner, the miller, the
lumberman and the cattleman have
had their traffic bureaus thoroughly
organized and in many instances they
have pursued the railroad without
mercy and with the power of organ;
ICED tonnage they have hammered the
life out of the rates and with unre:
strained greed they have eaten ths
vitals out Of our transportation system
and since we have had railroad com:
missions. these interests, with skill
and cunning, are represented at every
hearing in which their business 10
involved.
The farmer 10 seldom represented
ut rate hearings, as his organizations
have never had the finances to EN-.
ploy counsel to develop his side Of
the case and. as result, the products
Of the plow bear an unequal burden
Of the freight expense. A glance at
the freight tariffs abundantly proves
this assertion. Cotton, the leading
agricultural product the South, al.
ready beare the highest freight rate Of
any necessary commodity in com!
merce. and the rate on agricultural
products as a whole is out of pro.
portion with that of the products of
the factory and the mine.
We offer no schedule of rates, but
hope the commission will be able to
give the railroad such an increase in
rates as is necessary without levying
further toll upon the products Of
the pillow. The instance seems to pre-.
sent an opportunity to the Railroad
Commissions to equalize the rates az
between agricultural and other classes
of freight without disturbing the rates
on staple farm products.
What 10 q Fair Rats3
We do not know what constitutes 4
basis for rate making and have never
heard Of anyone who did claim to
know much about it, but If the pros.
perity of the farm is factor to be
considered and the railroad commits.
sion concludes that an increase IN
rates is necessary. we would prefer
that 1t come to us through articles Of
consumption on their journey from
the factory to the farm. We would.
for example, prefer that the rate on
hogs remain as at present and thd
rate on meat bear the increase. for
any farmer can then avoid the burden
by raising his own meat, and farm;
er who will not try to raise his own
meat ought to be penali4ed. Wd
think the rate on coal and brick can
much better bear an increase than
the rate on cotton and hour, We
would prefer that the rate on plows
remain the same. and machinery
pianos and such articles as the poor.
or farmer cannot hope to possess beaf
the burden of increase. I.
The increase in rates should be "a
arranged that the farmer who liye1
Ut home will bear no part Of the bur.
den. but let the farmer who hoarda
10 other states and countries ana
Who feeds hts stock in foreign lands!
eay the price q bis folly.