Evening star., 1920-06-27
FOOD PRICES WILL DROP
WITH FARM EXPENSES
Cheaper Labor, Cheaper Living
Costs and Cheaper Fertilizer
Necessary.
From Daily Financial America.

When will food prices be cheaper!
Will prices ever fall? These questions
are heard on every side incessantly.
Food was much lower seven years
ago when the cost of farming was
less It's price will fall when the farm
costs are reduced. The farmer must
have once more the cheap labor OF the
immigrant, cheaper clothes for him-
cheaper fertilizers. These are the
needs that cry out for relief. Yet we
have self-seeking schemers and poll
ticians at Washington working to
erect barriers that will keep out the
immi grant farm laborer.
In the years before 1914 nearly 75O,-
900 was added to our population each
year by the immigrant. arrivals. The
farmer welcomed them. They added
vastly to his production. Few Amer
leans then wanted work as farm Ia
borers. Fewer still want such work
today. Their public school training
enables Americans to become skilled
mechanics, clerks, businessmen, farm
tenants and owners.
Have Left Farms.
Millions have left the farms. Some
returned to Europe. Many went into
other employment. 1t is safe to. say
that if the farmer offered 10 per cent
more wages than the shop hand re-
ceives very few Of these would accept
employment as farm laborers. Sup
pose such an offer won men from
manufacturing and commerce. To pay
the increased wages the farmer would
be compelled to increase the price OBJ
tanned for his food products. Those
remaining in other pursuits would
pay more to fill their stomachs. They
would have less to spend on manu-
featured goods and the farmer no
alone would benefit in pocket
There seems nor good reason why
the skilled workers. or their employ
ers in manufacturing. commercial
and transportation should stand in
the way of the farmer seeking cheap
such privation of the farm is a high
cost Of food production. It falls on
the heads of every one in America
Even the farmer and his helper SUI
ers. Few farmers produce all the
varieties of food their. families re-
quire. They buy indirectly. from
other farmers at high prices like
the rest of us
The farmer also pays high prices
for clothes, fertilizer, lumber, hard
ware. tools. baskets. barrels, bags,
wagons, trucks and other necessities.
The men who produce these articles
and those who sell them to the farmer
pay high prices for food The wages
or profits they demand have been
advanced in part because OF the
larger dMOuhI SAcy AAoSI Pdy Iva
food.
Thus, the circle of high prices. be-
tween producers of all kinds of goods
and services was established.
/. Broken at Farm.
The circle can be broken most ef-
fectively at the farm. because food is
a necessity for all alike. We do not
all buy hardware, though we may pay
for it in increased rental of new
buildings or in commodities sold by
men who must buy hardware. A de-
crease in the costs and prices OF hard
ware is slow to reach all the peo-
pie. But a decrease in the farmers
costs operates quickly. The millions
of farmers compete with each other
in the markets. There is no farm
combine. A reduction in the cost of
producing potatoes or corn or wheat
will bring more of these products into
the market at lower prices.
There are millions starving in Eu-
rope for lack of employment. We
have ships that leave America with
goods, but return empty. They could
bring back no better cargo than will
ing farm laborers. America should
open the gates wide to these men and
help herself and her food production.
Our nation could make no better in
yestment than in steamship and rail-
road tickets for such immigrants.