The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1920-01-02
new Rail BILL
| BLOW TO FARMER
WALL Street millions Massed
T. To- Gust Public From Road
J Operation.

The Farmers National council has
ISSUED the following statement from
its headquarters in Washington:
There has never bAen II better fl
financed, more strongly organized driv.
upon congress to secure big subsidy
than the railroads are now making
Through the Cummins and E>rh bills.
Farmers should remember the essen.
tial facts about the railroads. They
received land grants Of over 1E',WM,'
200 acres. besides valuable terminals.
and cash subsidy Of over three quar-
tiers of Il billion dollars in order to
keep down rates for tho benefit Of the
American people. Instead Of lnin"
this the railroads have been looted by
the big financial interests and heavily
'Over-cnpitaliZed. with the result that
freight rates were constantly increa>
ing, and service becoming poorer be-
fore we entered the war. When we en-
tered the war the roads were in such
ia demoraizeu condition that the gov
J.sernment, had to take them over in
7tOrder to win the war.
OF the total present capitalization of
the ruilroadS Of about twenty billions
, dollars. about eight billion is ,watrrrd
|stock. Fifty per cent of III" STOCK is
iowned by one and nnr.tliill per cent
of the STOCKHOLDERS. The government
has been paying the railroads abou,
$3.50! MM,Mn Il year more than they ar'
tmorally entitled to. while the Who'll.
Wall Street crowd which has remained
In contrn! Of Il. .''.M.g!4s un1rr gov.
'ernmcnt operation. hats been con tinu
'ously hampr'ny operation. niurn"
Service. AMI wasting the peoples
money in an effort to diScrrl1 govern.
ment ownership. In spit" of ali this
unpatriotic rif"r, by Wal Street. rates
have Increased less ON the railroads
than in amy other imr"r'an, utility III
private ownership or in public. less
than wages. and less than the made
Quate increase in prices for farm prod
'ucts. Even under these huri rnlldi.
lions government operation is >huWin"
net profit Ut the rate of over $ltS.
40OO,OOO IL year.
The director Eencxi IF the railroads
and Interstate Commerce tunMi Ss;un
er Woolley. have shown that the Cum
minis and E>ch bills, whcI, Wall Street
is now attempting to drive through
congress, will require that freight
rates be increased about ont-lhirl
compelling the public to pay the rail.
roads a subsidy Of about Il billion dol
lars n year, which will be reflected in
an increase in the cost of living of
L.;
will compel farmers to pay at least
$500, WO,OOO year more for merely
carrying their products, and on most
conservative estimate, $1,000, OOO, 600 a
year more for what they buy, than
they would if the roads continued I'm.
der government operation.
. In order to drive these bills through,
Wall Street has perfected it's plans to
spend ten million dollars on the cam.
Ipaign Of advertising, to return the
roads to private operation with bill.
lion dollar subsidy.
The return Of the railroads under
pending legislation will be n serious
blow to agriculture. Not only will II
compel farmers to accept less for what
they sell, but because Of the tremep.
dous increase in the cost Of living
which will result, the farmers wheat
will be greatly restricted. The city
consumer will be unable to buy so
much farm produce. 80
Farmers should ut once write or tele.
graph Senator A. b. Cummins and
Congressman John J. Esch, in charge
lof these bills. opposing them, and also
rRlre their own senators and congress.
tnaen, asking them to work to defeat
both bills.
FARMERS MUST ACT AT ONCE
FOR WALL STREET IS WORKING
OVERTIME TO PUT THOSE BILLS
THROUGH. -.