Norwich bulletin., 1920-10-15
'sWI4O WOULD BE FREE THEMSELVES MUST
 STRIKE THE BLOW'

(written Specially for The Bulletin.)
 Talk about the patience" of the Amer ican people Patience" is only half way word. In this matter of profteering and prices small and; comparatively, unimportant class of handlers and pass CTS of goods are standinb between the producers and the consumers and swim ding both with a callous inpartiality. To say that the consumers and the pro- ducers are enduring this with patience" is to put too great strain on a worthy word.
 Instead of patience" how would some such word as ''subrnissiyeness" do? or "abasement?" or "servility?"
 read much from the c0nsuners' end of the trail, and thus learn somewhat about the treatment they are receiving. I am myself a farmer, live among farm ers and thus know at first hand the sort ot treatment they are receiving. It makes my usually coolish blood sim mer to read the stories of exaction and extortion which come to me from the cities It makes that same blood boil l over to see the actual pillage of the country and of farmers which is perpe 1 trated by the same two-handed greedy 1 guts under the once honorable name of l trade.
 l I have neighbor who raises a good 1 many onions. He had a fairish crop this year. Not a big one far from record breaker. And he is compelled to sell his | onions at 75 cents bushel or leave them l to rot That is simply all he can get for | them, in quantity. He has tried all sorts of schemes and a wide reach of markets. He hasn't the means for peddling them Tout by the peck or the single bushel and so is taking that so-calied price. They go to neighboring city, where they are reckoAed at 52 pounds to the bushel.
 And consumers in that very city pay
 five cents a pound for. the same onions
 or S2.60 a bushel The farmer, mind you has to deliver them to get his 75 cents 50 that transportation charges don't entei
 into the dealers footing-up of cost | Now-if 75 cents bushel is a fair pric,
 for onions to the grower, then charg,
 of S2.e0 a bushel to the eater is mex
 door to robbery. On the other hand, i
 s2.60 a bushel is fair price to eharg
 consumers, then 75 cents bushel IS
 wickedly unfair price to pay producers.
 onions are but enc example; take cab bage for another. The buyers talk $7
 ton for it at the shipping stations. It's
 rare field which will average ten tons the acre; six tons is more nearly an ay
 craze yield. That offered price does nc d pay for the seed and the labor, to sa B nothing of a profit. From various par' T of the country come reports that bi
 cabbage growers. despairing of getting s decent price, are beginning to feed the $ cabbages to their cattle to save ha
 which doesn't cost as much to raise ar y sells for much more.
 But various market reports which con
 to me from widely separated cities quo
 the retail price of cabbage to consumer at from three to five cents poun ' Taking that lowest figure, 1t means ss6 ~ ton.
 $ Now if $7 ton is fair price for cal
 bages to the grower thereof. then $50 t ton is next door to robbery, when charge h the consumer. On the other hand. if $t
 a ton is fair price for cabbage to u n consumer. then s7 ton for the san
 cabbage is wickedly unfair price to 0 s fer the producer.
 s Consider also potatoes, the standai
 and universally used vegetable. Says or