The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1920-08-26
.0'C0NN0R TALKS
. ON GRAIN GRADE
AND INSPECTION
Says League Law Has Cost
Farmers a Great Deal of
Money and Is Unfair
LEAGUE JUDGE HIT II
Quotes Jurist as Saying That
Act Is Providing a Huge
System of Graft


upholding the structure of govern.
ment based upon the national and
state constitution was emphasized l.y
J. F. r. O'ConnOr, in an address here
in which he also went into the sub
ject of grain grade and inspection act
Of the state. D..
The speaker avoided abuse during
his speech. In going into detail into
the grain grading act he declared that
the league leaders were causing the
farmers to lose millions of dollars,
and that they were not only giving the
farmers less for their aockage but had
spent over hundred thousand dollars
to DO it. .#t
In Peculiar> Situation
"The farmers at Embdan, North Da-
kota, found themselves in i peculiar
situations" he said. "Congress passed
grain grading law which provided
for inspectors of grain, for grades and
for weighing the same and also pro-
vided that any person who violated
this law which applied to all inter-
state shipments could be fined thou
sand dollars and imprisoned for a
year or both.
"The state of North Dakota passed
grain grading law which provided
for grades, inspectors and weighing
the same and provided that If this
law was violated, that for a first Of
tense, there was imposed fine of not
less than ten dollars nor more THAI
one hundred dollars or confine Il mt IN
both and for each succeeding Offense
the county Jail for not less than ten
days nor more than thirty days or
both and for each succeeding Offense,
fine of not less than one hundred
dollars or more than five hundred or
be confined in the county jail not less
than thirty days nor more than ninety
or both These farmers had their
own elevator and they could not con'-
ply with both laws. They did not care
to be imprisoned by the United States
government and they had no desire 70
be imprisoned by the state Of North
Dakota. There was only one thing
these farmers could do and that was
to ask the court which law they
should follow.
Ladd's Tests ,
"The sworn testimony of the man
ager of that farmers elevator before
Judge Amidon discloses that he was
grading wheat that tested fifty-four
pounds to the bushel as No. wheat.
A representative from Mr.. Ladd's de-
partment compelled him to grade this
wheat as No. 4'which meant loss to
the farmers of about ten cents a bush
ell. The manager of the farmers ele-
yator insisted that as he was given
No. 3 for this wheat in Minneapolis,
be should Lc allowed to give the farm
ors No. 3 but this the inspector denied
him the right to do. =.
1.-The attitude of the league leaders
say that the farmers must lose this
ten cents a bushel on their grain
which loss would amount to about
five million dollars and that they have
no right to go into the court and ask
redress. When this law was before
the supreme court of North Dakota,
the Nonpartisan judge who received
the highest vote, said: The act is n
long, ill-cOnstructed, ungramatical,
multifarious, hodge-podge document.
1T was Senate Bill 314, and again
this learned Nonpartisan judge says
about this grain grading act: 1T
should be entitled thus: an act to ere
ate huge grating system and to de-
ny farmers the right to sell their
grains without paying to some in
spector an unknown and unlimited
graft on each and every load. 81 N. D.
$685. -aag1. fE' .f-
"The present law provides that sew
enty thousand dollars bi-annually may
be, expended to enforce this law. The
farmers have paid over one hundred
thousand dollars for the privilege OF
getting ten cents a bushel less for
their wheat We take our position
with the farmers and against those
who claim they have no right to get
the full market value for this wheat
and their dOckage. ..
"The elevators even before the pas
sage of the grain acts have paid for
dockage; they are paying for dock
age today and we believe that the
farmers are entitled to pay for their
wheat and for dockage that has a
value" ..