Mansfield mirror. (Mansfield, Wright County, Mo.) 1908-1957, 1918-12-12
ECHTY-SK
MILLION DOLLARS
IN 3 YEARS WIRING FROM
AMERICAN GRAIN FARMERS
OF JUS.
TICE POWERLESS
Food Administration Now Crap
ping With Mexican Govern.
ment Profiteering Monopoly

ment PROTECTING Monopoly
Tie price of Binder Twine is
an important matter To the grain
farmers of the tnitel States.
Interesting light IN the reasons
Why il has scared to its present
dizzy height is contained in an in
terview with Mr.M Michael J.Smith
Of the tirm-o of Hanson & Ortb, ii
bre nierchantsof New York City
My firm has been in the fibre
busins 50 for n great many years
and until the Fall of 1915 was ac-
lively engaged in the importation
from Iucatan Of Sisai Hemp,
which is the material out OF
which approximately 800 OF the
Binder Irvine used in the United
States and all over the world is
made.
In September, 1915, General
Salvador Alvarado, the military
dictator of Yucatan, issued an
edict proclaiming 4 Government
monopoly OF the Sisal Hemp bus
mess OF iucatan, which produces
over s0a OF the worlds >isal. At
that time the price of Sisal Hemp
in tne New York market was sac
per pound. BY a series Of ad
vances which eliminated in Au-
gust, 1911 the price was increased
until it reached 1870 per pound
in New York. The price of Bind.
Ier Irvine necessarily followed
suit.
IN 1915 the less than carload
price Of Binder Irvine was 7Ac
per ID.
In 1916. 95sc per ID.
In 1917, 1870 per Id.
In 1918, 23Ic per Id.
The $50, 600. 90 represented by
this advance have gone chiefly
into the hands of the Yucatan
governmental proiteers. -.
The situation was regarded by
the United States Senate as so
serious that in the Spring of 1916
it instituted an inquiry. a mass
of testimony was taken by a Sub
Com mittee Of the Senate Com
mittee on Agriculture but a long
ensued before this Sub
Committee announced it's find.
ings, which briefly stated we're
to the following effect:
That an oppressive monopoly
exists which holds in it's grasp
our importations of Sisal, that it
is costing American farmers ma
ny millions of dollars annually,
and that the power held by this
Monopoly to fix prices regardless
Of the law Of supply and demand
is most dangerous. The Senate
Committee urged that the De.
partment of Justice take such ac.
ton as the law and the facts war
rant. In view of the fact that the
American people are being forced
to pay for one OF the necessities
of life many millions more than
the fair value thereof, the Com.
mittee referred the matter to the
State Department with the sug.
gestion that it be taken up
through diplomatic channels TO
see if some measure Of relief
could not be obtained. The Com.
mittee also urged the farmers of
the country to make every effort
TO find a suitable substitute for
Sisal. .
In 1917 the United States De.
partment Of Justice institute ted al
suit against the Yucatan Mono
poly, claiming that it was in con.
of the anti. Monopoly
Laws of the United States. Tue
of this suit al-odragged,
but in August, 1918, Judge
Hough gave a decision adverse
to the Department Of Justice.
The Food Administration has
been struggling with ibis Mono
poly for some time past, but the1
are aware that the
grain crops Of the United States
be threatened with total
loss if Sisal from Yucatan were
not available for binding it. Con
r~annanttv tho MonopnIy is in