The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1915-03-12
PAYROLL Of
CIVILIZATION MET
BY FARMER
WANTS NO "DEADHEADS' ON
LIST or employees.
"A CALL UPON THE LAW MAKERS
TO PREVENT USELESS TAX
UPON AGRICULTURE.
BY Peter Radford

Inc farmer IL the payulaSLeT Oh
industry and as such he must meet
the nations payroll When industry
pays IT'S bill II must make q sight
draft upon agriculture for the amount
which the farmer Is compelled TO
honor without protest This check
drawn upon agriculture may travel to
and fro over the highways OF com
merce; may build cities; girdle the
globe with bands of steel; may search
hidden treasures In the earth or
traverse the skies, but In the end II
will rest upon the soil No dollar
will remain suspended In midair; II is
as certain to seek the earth's surface
as an apple that falls from tree
When farmer buys pillow he payf
the man who mined the metal the
woodman who felled the tree. the
manufacturer who assembled the raw
material and shaped 1t into an ar
ticle OF usefulness, the railroad that
transported II and the dealer who
sold him the goods He pays the
wages Of labor and capital employed
in the transaction as well as pays
for the tools. machinery, buildings,
etc used In the construction Of the
commodity and the same applies to
all articles OF use and diet Of him
self and those engaged In the sub
sidlary lines OF industry
There ia no payroll In civilization
that does not rest upon the back
OF the farmer He must pay the bills
| --all OF them
The total value OF the nations
annual agricultural products Is around
sl2. 000000.000. and II Is safe to esti-
mate that 95 cents on every dollar
| goes to meeting the expenses of sub.
sidiary industries The farmer does
not work more tnan thirty minutes
per day for himself; the remaining
thirteen hours of the days toll he
devotes to meeting the payroll OF the
hired hands OF agriculture, such as
the manufacturer. railroad CONNER
cial and other servants.
The Farmers Payroll and How He
Meets II.
The annual payroll of agriculture
approx!mates $l2,000.000, 900, A por,
ton OF the amount Is shifted TO for.
eign countries in exports, but the
total payroll OF industries working for
the farmer divides substantially as
follows: Railroads, $1,252. 100000;
manufacturers. $4,365.0000O0; mining
1856 100000; banks. s2o0,OOO.OOO;
mercantile $S.500.000 900. and heavy
miscellaneous payroll constitutes the
remainder.
II takes the corn crop, the most
valuable in agriculture, which sold
last year for 1892. 100000. to pay of
the employees of the railroads; the
money derived from our annual sales
of livestock of approximately $4,000.
100000, the yearly cotton crop, valued
at 100000 900: the wheat crop
which is worth $610000.0O0, and the
oat crop that is worth $440.000,000
are required to meet the annual pay
roll OF the manufacturers The
money derived from the remaining
staple crops is used in meeting the
payroll of the bankers. merchants
etc. After these obligations are paid
the farmer has only few lunches Of
vegetables, some fruit and poultry
which he can sell and cali the pro
ceeds his own.
When the farmer pays off his helI
he has very little left and to meet
these tremendous payrolls he has
been forced 70 mortgage homes. work
women In the field and increase tn.
hours of his labor. We are, there
fore. compelled to call upon all in
dustries dependent upon the farmers
for subsistence to retrench in theil
expenditures and to cut off all I'm
necessary expenses This course II
absolutely necessary in order to avoiI
reduction in wages, and we want
IL possible. to retain the present wag,
scale paid railroad and all other in
dustrial employees
We will devote this article to ;
discussion of unnecessary expenses
and whether required by law or per
mitted by the arrangements OF thu
| concerns, is wholly immaterial w,
| want all waste labor and extravd
gance, OF whatever character. cut Out
| We Will mention the full crew bill a