South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-02-24
MANY POTATOES
GOING TO WASTE
Thousands of Bushels OF Mich
igan "SpudS" Rot in the
Country Districts.

News-Times Special Service.
DETROIT. Mich. Feb. %. - The
potato problem ia Michigan this
winter Is attracting widespread at
tenuon. Private Investigations have
been started To determine why
thousands upon thousands OF bushels
OF tubers have been allowed 20 rot
In country districts. while war prices
have been maintained in Detroit and
other Michigan cities.
In formation obtained from vari-
Gus sections of the state indicates
tflat potatoes which have sold for %
and so cents peck in Detroit are
drug on the market in sections less
than 200 miles from here Farmers
have tried 10 get 81 a. bushel for
their product and failed. Recently
they have been offered about 90
cents
Many reasons have been advanced
for the great range i'm prices.
Commission men have been
charged with unfair tactics.
Railroad congestion has been held
responsible
The weather has been blamed
The poor distribution system" has
been attacked.
Farmers Asked 60 Plant
Last spring when potatoes were
selling for sky hieh prices. "a ire
mendous campaign was prosecuted
al over Michigan for a record yield
seed potatoes sold as high as 50 a
bushel and farmers have claimed
there was a tacit understanding that
they would receive 81 a bushel for
their product
Vacant lots were planted all over
the state Hundreds OF families
raised their own potatoes and the
result was that millions Of bushels
OF "spuds" were dug from Mich.
igan soil last fall The average crop
was 102 bushels an acre, against 45
bushels an acre i'm 1916. Reports
10 the secretary of state estimate
that more than 40 million bushels
OF potatoes was Michigan's yield
Then something happened and. at
present everybody connected with
the potato business i'm the state
seems TO be blaming somebody. or
every body, else. There are two out
standing facts. however. judging
from various investigations one is
thar railroad congestion and weather
conditions had something 10 do with
the situation and the other is that
Michigan farmers have something
like 2O.O0O.O0O bushels OF potatoes
good Indifferent and bad on their
hands.
Shippers Accuse Railroads.
Potato shippers have come for
ward with charges of transportation
defects One shipment OF potatoes
from Cadillac To Detroit was on the
road is days. 10 is claimed One
freight train was held up near Clare
Mich. and four carloads OF potatoes
froze
ON the other hand. farmers have
been blamed by commission men
Detroit dealers have asserted that
farm rs held ON To their stocks toe
long and that when the crash came
they tried TO unload but couldn't. II
is claimed that it cost the farmer,
about g. cents a bushel TO raise po-
tatoes last summer. It is claimed
also that commission men last fal
offered between go cents and 81 q
hushel for big cousiEnments. Com.
mission men i'm Detroit assert tha'
their offers We're quite generally de
cuued and claim that as DetroitI
potato supply began 10 dwindle. bad
weather came.
Finally. when transportation con
ditions were al their worst. IL is as
serted that the potato situation
here and i'm other cities became sert
ous. Emergency prices were Offered
and accepted. Everybody dealing il
potatoes. il is claimed, was satisfied
But there were no cars. or AT leas
no cars that could be moved.
So millions Of bushels of lotatoe
which might have been eaten ar,
still In storage on the farms from
which they were dug.