The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1916-10-13
CROWLEY MAN URGES
FARMERS TO STAND PAT
Crowley, La, Oct. 6, 1916.

| StulLo, dI ONSI IlS OllltSu pIdISoJ anu
the increase in prices the farmers or
producers are getting on everything
except rice? If not, it is time you
are becoming posted.
Let us make few comparisons:
Flour today is selling at the highest
price since the Civil War, and that
was some time ago. The price on
beans today in all the markets where
beans are sold is fourteen and fiji
teen cents per pound, when they were
selling this spring for six and seven.
Potatoes today are selling 116 per
cent higher than year ago, Ameri-
can cheese is selling today for 21R
cents per pound and last year it was
selling at 14A cents. Hogs are SELL
ing rs per cent higher than year ago
and lambs are 20 per cent higher.
Cabbage in New York has risen
from cents per pound last year to
8 cents now. Tomatoes that sold last
year for so cents per crate are selling
at $500 now.
Rice is selling. at IL cents per pound
in almost all the cities in the north,
and what portion of that are you get
ting? If the mills were paying you
1926 per barrel for your No. / Blue
Rose and were getting 35S cents per
pound for the clean, they would be
making what they call milling out of
it.
Almost all the northern cities have
a 35-cents pc rhundred freight rate
from the rice belt, so you see it costs
a cents to lay your rice down in the
northern cities. If the farmer that
raises this rice and the mills that put
it into the clean and the railroads
that haul it into the north only get
4 cents out of it, who gets the differ
ence between the cents and the
price the consumer in the north pays
for it, be that II or even 10 cents /?
The people of the north, east and west
would be eating more rice if they were
buying it for the price it should bring
in proportion to what the farmer is
getting out of it.
Are you going to take less for it
than it brought last year? Now, it
is up to you. You can get the price
it should bring if we all just stand
together.
Understand, l am not talking $500
barrel for it, but any one that sells
for less than 1925 for No. / is not
only throwing good money away, but
is simply making his neighbor take
less for his too. / understand some
have contracted the rice they are to
handle for less than the above price.
Well, all have to say is that they
must be selling something that is not
their own, or that they have reason
Tor making some mill present. The
mills ali agreed that the Southern
Rice Growers Association was very
conservative when they set the mini
mum at 1925 for No. / Blue Rose.
The early part of this crop could have
teen handled easily for that price
and little later advanced enough to
cover storage and insurance. It is
we'll known fact that the jobbers
arebuying large orders in rice, book
ing orders ahead heavier than ever be-
fore.
Why is this? Because they know
that with all the other food stuffs
soaring The people of the United States
are going to eat more rice this year
than ever before, and that this price
the iobber can buy rice today it is
a safe gamble. Now, lots of orders
were contracted for when Blue Rose
was selling at 1925 for No. Is and Is
Understand, I say Blue Rose should
be bringing 1925 where it has to be
sold. 1t is worth, in comparison with
Jther food stulfs, $3.50 or more. YOU
will see before this year is over clear
rice selling higher than last yea
when Blue Rose was selling from
$3.50 to $500 per barrel.
Now, listen, I am rot talking tt
members of the Southern Rice Grow
ars' Association alone, for every ric'
farmer is entitled to thesame none!
for the same cua!:iy of goods. Be
cause you nave not signed up, do no
think you can sell cheaper than you
neighbor that has 2 contract. I'll
true he is standing with great man.
others trying to get only what he i
entitled to, but if you do not ge
what yours is worth, he simply has t.
wait ill you give yoprs away, so h
can get what you and he both shoul
have had. Some will say, "Oh, W
have such big crop, we have to SCI
cheap to move it." That is not Sc
The trade will take just as much rio
at $3.50 per barrel fer rough as if yo1
sell it for $50.
The price of the rough has nothin,
to do with the price of the clean t
1 Al.