Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1919-04-24

The appearance in the metropolitan
press Of fun page advertisements, urg-
ing the free use of wheat and wheat
products, looks to a man up a tree as
a shrewd move on the part of Uncle
Sam to assist him in letting go of the
millions of bushels of that cereal with
which he has unwisely loaded himself.
In the hosting, arbitrarily. Of the
price Of wheat to very nearly double
its normal value, the government has
opened Pandora box, and liberated
multitude of evils that is rocking the
country to it's foundations, by over
turning all established conditions, and
has inaugurated bolsheyistic spirit
of grabbing everything in sight, entire
ly regardless of the rights of others.
1t is responsible for the flood of high
prices for other commodities. 1t is re-
sponsible for the action of the south
ern cotton planters who, not being sub
sidiZed by the government, as were the
wheat growers, have gotten together
and former trust to restrict the
acreage devoted to cotton, and to hold
back the product from market until
right 60 price is realized. A trust"
did l say? WE'LL as much a trust as
ers or manufacturers to restrict pro-
duction, and elevate prices. But if
the wheat raiser is to receive sub
sidy Of millions of dollars for raising
that very necessary article of human
food, then why should not the cotton
raiser receive like recognition for
clothing the human race, He undoubt-
eddy should, if the idea were right in
the first instance. But it was not
The government had no more right to
arbitrarily fix the price Of wheat at
double it's normal value, than it had to
fix the number of breaths one should
take during the day
Let us see how this unjust and short
sighter action Of the government has
worked out in practice. 1t has elevat-
Of honest, hard working Amer
lean citizens are being deprived of a
large portion of their sustenance 1t
has resulted in an accumulation of mil
lions of bushels of wheat in the hands
of the government, for which the peo-
pie are hungering, but which they are
unable to buy at present high prices.
because of their means being dissi-
pated by the illegitimate raise in
prices of all commodi ties, caused by
the high, guaranteed wheat prices. 1t
is often heard said by unthinking peo-
pie, "Oh, the government must stand
the loss if the wheat is sold for less
than the guaranteed price"
But does it, Not at all. For every
bushel of wheat sold the consumer, he
pays the market price, and in addition
pays in tax to the government the bal
ance of the guaranteed price. Thus,
practically, the whole people are taxed
for the benefit of the few, a system
that cannot endure in free America
for any length of time But, the eff
fects of this one example of an unjust
and pernicious system will endure far
too long for the slender purse of many
an honest man, who has labored all his
life to accumulate a little means to
sustain him in his declining years, and
who now sees it dissipated by an un-
just action Of government to whom
he has devoted a lifetime of loyalty
The laborer is not so hard hit, because
his scale of wages keeps pace, approx
mately with the rise in price Of com
mOGitieS And it makes little differ
enee to the mon ed man who has mon
ey to burn.
1t must be evident to all that the
old-time, Christian spirit of Live and
let live" has met an untimely death
at the hands of our government and
in it's stead "Grab all you can" is given
place as a recognized right of all who
may find an opportunity
n. G. ABBOTT
Eureka Springs, Ark