The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1919-06-06


for peddlers' licenses because
thought you might need them"
Now that our boys have licked
those Germans in war they can sure
ly beat the Jews and the Italians in
crying oranges, bananas, cabbages
old clothes and other wares which
New YORK peddlers deal in. Why dc
farmers and workers agitate wher
men in either one Of the two old par
ties can furnish such happy solutions
to their hardest problems
Are the people of the Northwest
more stupid than those in many 9TH
er parts of the world and even our
own country? Most of our "best
people" seem to think so, for they
are quite sure that neither North Da-
kota nor Minnesota, could run a state
owned elevator system. And all the
while Louisiana is making a big sue
cess of a cotton warehouse and port
system, including a 100000 0-bushel
| grain elevator.
In a recent official report Mayor
Behrman of New Orlean says:
"In the harbor of New Orleans is
seen strikingly successful applica-
ton of the doctrine of public owner
ship and operation of public utilities.
Sixty per cent of the port facilities
have been built or developed by the
dock board, a state institution. In
the II years this board has had
charge it has expended 100000 on
wharves, steel sheds, elevators and
warehouses. All are served by the
public belt line railroad, another
triumph of public ownership"
II we were only as wise as those
people of Louisiana we could save a
lot of money in the handling of
crops and other produce. Now the
Nonpartisan league farmers differ
with the "best people" in that they
think we are as wise as the people of
Louisiana. Which are rightg The
farmers are confdnet enough to try,
where. as the other side are afraid to
Elet them try-a point which might
indicate a good deal.
It didn't do Director Hines of the
railroads any good, temporarily at
least, to oppose those fixed prices so
generous-to the steel trust. He
placed bids for 100000 tons of open
hearth rails with six supposedly in
dependent companies, and each one
of these "cut-throat" competitors
fired back at him the SAT ton which
the price-fixing board agreed on.
And 100000 tons of rails is big
order too.
The Independents which so oddly
agreed on their independent bids
were: The Carnegie Steel company,
the Illinois Steel company, the Ten
nessee Coal & Iron company, the
Bethlehem Steel company and the
Lackawanna Steel company.
All Of these and the big United
States Steel corporation were first
cousins, if not twin brothers before
the war. During the war, the tenn
porary shortage of goods, the dealing
with one customer in the person Of
Uncle Sam, and the great power Civ
en- to fnanciers welded them all into
one compact unit. It is a new kind
of trust which we can thank the war
for, found not only in the steel
trade but in all essential lines.
The organization which the big
business controllers perfected for
wartime problems and profteering
is available for peace. We could
hardly expect them to throw away
the perfect profit-producing machine
ry. All talk of restoring competition
is now absurd We have two alter
natives-to be ridden by 100 per
cent monopolies or to replace mono
poly with government ownership.
The workers of Winnipeg are con-
ducting the most remarkable strike
America has seen. It has absolutely
tied up the city of Winnipeg. 1t has
been entirely without violence, due
to the watchfulness of the labor
men. It is a fight for union recogni-
ton and for living wages. Canada
has allowed even more bold and t1n-
principled profteering than we have,
and this strikers the first effective
protest against the results of it In
terms OF living conditions.
Winnipeg labor has splendid
chance of winning because labor
there is at last organized so as to-
work as unit the way the employers