Omaha daily bee., 1918-05-16
FARM TOOL COST
PROBE AROUSES
STATE INTEREST
Omaha implement Dealers Wei
come Congress Investiga-
ton as Means to Clarity
Nebraska Situation.

Adoption of the resolution intro
duced in the United States senate by
Senator Thompson Of, Kansas autho-
rizing an investigation, by the federal
trade commission, OF the production
and supply OF agricultural implements,
and the prices farmers are compelled
to pay for machinery, is of vast in
terest to farmers of Nebraska and i'm
plement jobbers of Omaha.
81 anticipated an investigation of
this character" said w. D. Hosford,
local manager of the John Deere Plow
company. "Such contingency was
provided for in the federal control
measure and / am sure the implement
manufacturers will welcome it as
means of clarifying an irritating situ-
alton.
Investigation Welcomed,
"Charges have been made that i'm
plements are selling at an exorbitant
price and there has been some hints
OF combination and agreement to con-
troll prices.
Implement manufacturers have
been up against the same proposition
that the farmer has and high prices OF
labor and raw material, which the
farmer complains of, is the same shoe
which pinches the manufacturer.
"In a general way the prices of farm
implements are higher oh account OF
the war, but the proper way to put
it is that farm implement costs are
comparatively low in spite of the
war.
Wages Heavily Increased.
"Wages in the implement factories
have gone up 90 per cent since the
war in response to the sky-rocketing
of costs of living. Common labor
which received from $1.75 to 81 per
day is now being paid from S5 to
$3.75 per day and is not near as ct
ficient because the more youthful and
energetic of the men have been
drafted into the army, and the more
intelligent have been lured to the
eastern munition factories.
"Every item of raw material enter
ing into the making of tillage tools
has advanced from 100 to $50 per cent
in 1918 over 1914. Take two items,
that of high speed steel, which costs
$50 per cent more per pound at Pitts
burgh, and cotton duck, which costs
334 per cent more yard now than in
1914.
Some Unusual Changes.
1T is illuminating to note that
seven-foot binders have only advanced
from IS to II per cent in cost over
1914, while the farmer who paid tor
a seven-foot binder in the year pur-
chased the machine with 128 bushels
of wheat, or 1864 bushels of corn. In
1918 he buys the same machine with
1903 bushels of wheat, or Joy bushels
of corn. These are the figures that
have been deduced by the Department
of Agriculture.
implement dealers have not been
as progressive in financing their busl-
ness as has the automobile dealer. He
asks cash of the farmer for an auto.
The implement dealer follows the
same .old custom of accepting notes
for tillage tools in the spring. They
mature in October, after the harvest
ing of the crops. Many country banks
refuse to take this paper, or, where
they do accept it, instead of putting
them into the federal reserve banks as
trade acceptances, they borrow money
on their own straight paper, putting
the implement notes up as collateral
Cash and Credit System.
"Some dealers have been making
cash and credit prices and the dis
counts have been so attractive that
many farmers prefer to pay cash
rather than accept credit.
There has been some complaint IN
regard to the prices farmers have to
pay for repairs" ventured the report
er. "Many of them declare the prices
are exorbitant."
"The repair feature is one that we
have not yet been able to solve"
said Mr.. Hosford, "and it has some
irritating features. The increase in
costs are no greater than the per-
centage of increase in completed inn
plements. We quote prices on repairs
to dealers net, and they add their
overhead and profit. I hope to see
this standardized and made more
equitable"