The producers news., 1919-11-28

II
Kansas and Ohio Take
Mines
Legion Convention on
Farmers
The Centralia Affair
Drift to Direct Action
Lloyd George Changes
| Front
A mild experiment in Phila-
delphia has proved that the
farmers can be paid a higher
price for milk while the consum-
ers pay less. The city has been
divided into milk zones. One
wagon now covers the territory
over which a half dozen used to
roam to deliver a few quarts of
milk each.
AS a result the farmers get
8.2 cents a quart delivered at
the city loading stations and the
consumers pay IA cents. In
New York City the farmers re-
ceive 7.8 cents and the consun1-
ers pay 16 cents. In Washing
ton the farmers get the Phila-
delphia price and the consumers
pay 1876 cents. The difference
of II cents per 100 pounds be-
tween what the farmer receives
at Philadelphia and at New
York may easily be the differ
erce between a farm profit and
Il loss. Two cents more a quart
for milk makes q difference with
the poor, too.
And this splendid social re-
suit can be secured in any city
merely by cutting out obvious
waste. Cooperative farmer di-
tribution Of the milk to elimin-
ate middleman profit would I'M
prove the Philadelphia! situation
still further. Some day our
milk production will be strong
enough and wise enough to do
it.
Kansas and Ohio have fol-
lowed North Dakota's lead in
using state operation Of mines
as Il means Of providing the
people with coal. The federal
government evidently does not
vet have official knowledge that
this is the only way to settle
the coal problem. So it will
blunder along in an effort to
protect the assumed superiority
of the coal monopolists over the
rights Of the people who have to
have coal.
Even if the coal miners had
been content with conditions we
would have had a coal crisis this
winter. The miners merely has
tened the showdown. Before
the strike profitecring was run
ni'g wild and production was
below need. AS long as coal
mines are private property, the
owners will do what they please
with them, and sound business
demands coal shortage to boost
the price Per ton. The remedy
is not to force free citizens back
to work for these owners. That
adds to the real problem the un-
pardonable wrong of enforced
labor. The remedy is public in
stead Of private ownership, with
the present profit margins split
consumers of coal.
One of the most spectacular
moments of the recent conven-
tion of the American Legion in
MINNEAPOLIS was the killing of a
bitter resolution rain>i ;ht
Nonpar'isan leaE:. rn,:''.. As
soon as this resolution reached
the floor there were shouts for
North Dakota delegates and 20
to 80 delegates from different
parts of the Union were ON their
feet clamoring for recognition.
But no debate was needed. It
was moved, seconded and voted
oVerWh elminGly to tah|n the re-
solution.
A number of observers have
called the Incident the ruiy de-
feat scored against t'>c inside
Roosevelt Lindsey D'Olier
group. But was it a defeat?
The way in which the commit
tee brought the thing out after
resolutions on Amelicanism.
loyalty, |. W. w., and Bolshevik
elements enabled the controlled
press to put the Legion OF l1-
cord against the farmers. The
actual stand of the Legion dele
gates was noted in obscure