Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1918-09-04
OBSERVATIONS
(ey a cornfieId PhiIosopher.)

(By a cornfieId Philosopher
The writer Of this article has been
on the firing line, so to speak in the
defense of farmers rights and interests
and has taken some little part in the
efforts that have been made from
time to time to make life a little
easier for those who till the soil,
for almost fifty years.
AT gathering Of farmers way back
In the early seventies, when a mere
youth trying to work my way through
college, that l might be- the better
quallhed to fight the battles of nv
class, made an observation that will
bear repeating, and in substance, it
was as follows:
The Power of Price Fixing.
said, II don't care how MANY hours
you labor, or how big crops you grow,
so long as you permit one class of
middle men to fix the prices on what
you produce and allow another class
to name the price on what you have
to buy, you are headed straight for
the poor-house. Prosperity for the
tarmers-that prosperity to which he
is entitled is not possible under these
conditions"
These remarks have been the basis
of my contention ever since. In those
days the Grange arose to be a mighty
power. It's members sought to in.
.vestigate their condition by club
|
goods. The great wholesale-house
OF Montgomery Ward & Co., the first
OF its kind, came into existence at
this time.
The Origin Of MaiI-Order Business.
Mr.. A. Montgomery Ward and his
brother-in-law, C. H. Thorne compos-
ed the firm. They had no capital but
simply used the farmers money to buy
for cash wherever they could get salts
factory goods the cheapest.
They had no store, and at first no
headquarters but they issued a price
circular and large and constantly in
creasing Grange orders soon put them
on their feet financially and enabled
them to open moderate business
and keep some samples on hand for
the inspection of suspicious Changers,
who might take a notion to pay them
visit
The Grange can truly claim credit
for inaugurating the system of coop.
erative buying, which has grown to
such mammoth proportions to-day.
Changers First Eschewed Politics.
In the Constitution of the Grange
there was clause prohibiting the dis.
cussion or even the introduction of
and religious or political question
Bitter partisanship, skillfully famed
by deceiving politicians ran high, and
man who would even scratch his
party ticket and vote against some
unworthy candidate who had the
party endorsement, was looked upon
with suspicion and often denounced
as turn-cOat.
Those were the days when the cor.
porations were, indeed, in the saddle
and big business was laying the foun.
dalton for that strangle hold upon the
country, that it finally secured Corpor.
alton lawyers and attorneys for spe-
cial interests dominated political con-
ventions every where and a large ma
jority of the lawmakers were on the
pay rolls of some corporation Of a
quasi public nature, like the rail
roads, or dependent upon them for
Corporation Lawyers Dominated Con.
ventions.
favors and all professional politi-
clans as we'll as important public
officials rode on railroad passes and
editors of even obscure country papers
had their ANNALS over the same lines,
under the pretense of encouraging the
development of the natural resources of
country, lands, timber, water power
privileges, and minerals aggregating
in value billions of dollars, the proper
ty of all the people, were given away,
to favored few, with wrecklessness
and prodigality never equalled in the
history of the world.
Grange RebeIIed.
| Against this condition Of affairs in
spite of their rules and regulations,
many Changers rebelled, and an Inde-
pendent Political Movement directed
mainly against exorbitant and discrim-
mating freight, and passenger rates
sprang up. This was notably the case
in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa, where
the Granger attempted to set the poll
ticians aside and seize control of the
State Governments by the power Of
their ballots.
Farmer TayIor's Backbone.
In all these states, they partially
succeeded. In Wisconsin, Farmer"
! Taylor was chosen Governor and an
Anti Monopoly Legislature elected
that proceeded to enact laws regu-
| lating and, materially, reducing rail-
way charges. When the time came for
the act to go into effect the President
| of one of the big railways wrote the
Governor that Acting on the advice of
| Counsel" his line would ignore the
law Farmer Taylor replied that lit
| was his sworn duty to see that the
laws of Wisconsin were faithfully OBJ
served and executed" and if the rail-
roads defied the State he intimated
| that he would seize possession of the
lines and operate them himself. There
was no defiance, thanks to the back
bone of the man the farmers had
chosen Governor.
In Illinois, similar laws we're passed,
and bitterly fought by railway attor
neys in court The celebrated case of
Minnesota VS.. Illinois, was carried
clear to the Supreme Court and in this
decision the highest legal authority
in the Land affirmed the right of Con-
gress and State Legislature to regu-
late both freight and passenger charg
es.
Partisan Prejudice Broke Down
Grange.
The fight of Iowa, in which state, L
became resident, about that time,
was only partially successful. Pass
enger fare was reduced on first class
roads from five to three cents per mile