Omaha daily bee., 1916-09-30
Nebraska
ANDERSON OPENS
TOUR AT GREENWOOD
Minnesota Congressman Dis
cusses Effect of Free
Trade Policy.
FOOD IMPORTS INCREASE

Greenwood, Neb., Sept. 29.-(Spe-
cial. )-Congressman Sidney A. An
derson of Minnesota opened his
speaking tour Of Nebraska towns in
support OF the candidacy OF Charles
L. Hughes for president with aWad-
dress here this evening Mr.. Ander-
SON devoted the main portion OF his
address on the effect of the demo-
cratic policy of free trade and alter
war conditions on farms and factories
of the United States He said in part:
Il speak as republican, but not as
partisan republican. | do not be-
lieve that any party has monopoly
,tof all of the political virtues. l shall
not hesitate to give credit where
credit is due, nor shall | hesitate to
criticize where criticism is justified,
but | am not so much concerned as
to what has happened as | am with
what will happen. | am thoroughly
convinced that the issue of this cam
paign is what will happen when the
war is over. | believe that the best
interest and future of the country
will be safest in the hands OF Charles
E. Hughes during the next four years.
and / am here to state the reasons
for the faith that is in me.
Winners Will Be Losers.
Europe is engaged in the greatest
war of all history. Eleven nations
are engaged in war in which the
winners are also the losers; in which
the cost of victory is only exceeded
BY the cost of defeat. At its end none
of them will be richer; all of them
will be poorer; each of them will have
more debts to pay and less to pay
with; more taxes and fewer taxpay-
ers; more dependents and less to de-
pend on; less to sell and fewer to sell
to; less to buy and less to buy with.
During the war Europe has sold
US less than before the war; we have
sold Europe more than before the
war. After the war we will sell Eu-
rope less and Europe will sell us
more. Under the former conditions
we have prospered. Under the latter
Europe will prosper. 49,
AT the end of the war labor will
be the cheapest thing in Europe.
Europe will seek to sell this labor to
America in competition with Ameri-
can labor in the form of agricultural
products and manufactures.
Our problem is very simple. Two
courses are open to us-one is the
development Of America for Ameri-
cans; the other is the impoverishment
of America to enrich Europe. Which
party is the best qualified to deal with
this situation?
Sound Home Market Needed.
That party which believes that the
interest of America, and of American
manufacturers, producers and work.
ingmen, will be best served by un-
equal competition with foreign man.
ufacturers, producers and working
men for their own markets, by whet-
ting their wits in unequal contest
with foreign competitors on their
own soil; or that party which
believes in preserving the American
market for the American manufac-
turer, producer and workingman, and
that sound home market is the best
basis for the expansion of foreign
trade?
Suppose we get down to brass
tacks.' Suppose we bring the lesson
home to Nebraska. Nebraska is an
agricultural state. If Nebraska has
no crop, Nebraska carpenters, black
smiths, merchants and machinists will
have less to do. Agriculture stands
upon a different economic footing
from manufacture. When manufac-
turing is Improbable the manufac-
turer shuts down his shop and pro-
duction decreases until profits are
again assured, but the farmer must
produce, whether the prices are above
or below the cost of production. Eu-
rope will have fewer factories at the
end of the war, and more farmers; it
will have less to feed and more to
feed with; 100000 nonproducers
will become producers, and the sur
plus now going to feed 100000 non
producers will be turned into the
channels of trade.
Food Imports Increase.
During the first ten months OF the
operation of the Underwood bill we
imported five times as much potatoes,
seventeen fines as much meats, forty
two times as much corn, five times as
much eggs, sixteen times as much
sheep, 2ol times as in4eh oats.
This increase, while large in pro-
portion, was not very much in fact,
but tits large enough to demonstrate
the possibilities of foreign agricul-
tural imports under the present tariff
law. These imports will come in vol
tunes many times larger after the
war. land their effect will be-not
only ito reduce prices to normal, but
to reduce them far below normal"
fsunnrat-a.