The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1917-09-04
Tou1nley Explains
Patriotism Is Only
Purpose OF Meets
Whole Government Price Fixing Policy to Get Atten-
ton When Gatherings Are Held At Fargo and ST.
Paul Under Call Is sued by League Head

In a statement covering the pur.
poses o. the meetings he has called
to be held in Fargo and st. Paul
the former on Sept. II, and the lat
ter on Sept. Is, 10 and 20, Pres. A
G. Townley of the Nonpartisan
league explains that the meetings are
to be purely patriotic.
| Originally announced as meetings
Ecalled to protest the action of the
wheat price fixing board, the state
ment indicates a considerably chang
ed attitude, and according to Mr.
tTownley's present proposal, the
meetings will be given over to the
consideration OF the governments
price fixing policy, not only as re-
lates to wheat, but as relates to all
commodities.
Mr.. Townley charges that an. at
| tempt is being made to array the
CONSUMERS against the producers.
Speaking at Alexandria, Mimi, yes
terday, Mr.. Townley dealt at length
with the food administrators work
A woman in the audience asked
why IL was that flour had gone as
high as $3.50 in New York last
spring while 1t was selling for $500
in England at the same tiTne.:
II will tell you why" said MIR
! Townley. "It was the same competi-
tive operation that fixed our price at
$17.60 last spring that Hoover lis de-
pending upon now"
Mr.. Townley- urged the farmers to
send a big delegation to the coming
St. Paul meeting to consider wheat
and -four prices.
1T would not be so bad" he said,
IF a low price had been fixed on
wheat IL we could be sure the gov
eminent would go ahead and FIX the
! price on everything the farmer has
| to buy. We can be patriotic. We will
say to the government, we are salts
fed with the price you have fixed,
provided you go down the line and
fix the price of everything else. "
President Townley declared that
enemies of government control were
attempting to make it unpopular
with the people and that the influ-
ence of spectators in positions Of
authority with the food administra-
ton had been thrown against the
joint interests Of farmers and labor
ing men.
Statement of Purposes.
t. 81
purposes of the forthcoming confer
ences follows:
THE purpose of these meetings il
distinctly not to resist any action that
may be taken by the government or
any action that has been taken.
The farmers of the northwest are
patriotic. They VIII agree to the ac-
ton of the government which has re-
duced the price at which their wheat
could be sold by nearly 80 cents q
bushel, but they want their situation
and their sacrifice to be understood
so that public sentiment may get be-
hind the government in other steps
that il will be necessary to take TO
prevent starvation and disaster in
I'VE are calling this meeting 50
that the farmers can come from all
over the west and confer together
and so that they can meet representa-
tives of the other classes of working
people and discuss the common PROP
lens of the producer and the con-
sumner.
"The government has had no dif1-
Guilty in setting price which means
heavy sacrifice to all of our farm
ers. 1t has fixed absolutely the price
the farmer is to receive for his wheat.
1t has taken away from some all OF
their profits, to others who were for
tunate in big crop II has allowed a
slight profit, and others again have
been made to suffer heavy loss on
the whole years work. i-
IF high prices for wheat mean
starvation for the children of the
poor the farmers of the northwest are
willing to give up out Of the earnings
CT their own sweat and toll, but the
farmers want to be sure that the
money that comes out of their profits
does not stick in the pockets OF
greedy milleFs and middlemen.
THE government has had little diff
ficuIty in looping of a big slice of
the price of wheat as 1t comes from
the farm, but 1t has met with tre-
1nendous difficulty in the EFFORT to get
prices on anything reduced to the con-
sumner. 1t seems TO be easy enough To
cut down the wages or the prohts OF
the man who actually produces, but II
is devilish hard to DO anything mat
will save the buyers .pocketbook.
We do not know whether this is
because manufacturers and specula-
tors and middlemen have more arttul
and forceful ways OF impressing their
views on those who make the laws or
administer them. we do not know
what Is the reason, put we want to
find out.
'FThe farmers are willing to give up
their good money and their good la
Dor to help the government and they
are willing to wear themselves to the.
from starvation and suffering, but Il
they are asked to turn over tnGIr
hard-earned money to war profiteers
and thieving miudlemen they Will Al
least want to have something to say
about it.
.'This is not merely a farmers
problem. This is a consumers PROB
lem. There seems to be an effort on
foot in this country today to set one
class of workers over against the
other. The effort is being made to
prove that the city workers have no
interest in common with the farmers,
that the only way to get cheap bread
as to give the farmer less for mis-
wheat and that the only way the
farmer can reduce his cost of living
is by making the wage-worker take
/ IF this game is not blocked II win
reduce production in every line. II
will discourage the farmers from pro-
ducing big crops and it will make lar
Dor discontented and inefficient.
+ The only remedy for this Is Tor the
farmers and the consumers to meet
together and work to get justice for
both.
eve want to find way to assist
the government to put into erect 4
fair policy in price making. EYidentw
lyfthe government has not mao sum-
Client support by public sentiment 50
that IL could move effectively against
the big profiteers. So IL has been
driven to the course of making the
farmer bear the entire burden OF re-
ducfng the cost OF bread 70 the poor
and 1t has not been able 20 40 any
thing Of consequences to reduce the
prices OF other articles the poor must
guy or OF the things the farmer must
buy.
I'VE want to help the governme ~
into a strong position 50 thaL Y VII ~
hit the big fellow just as well as inc
little fellow.
EFF the government is going to con-
script the dollars that the farmer
coined out OF his own back-pr @aklns
ia hoY. and the labor of his wife and
hla childran we want to help INC