Arizona republican., 1920-01-04

operative energy into an effort of na. tionan scope.
 Its first and primary purpose is to promote cooperation. To this end, it has made its first great political fight for the Capper- -Hersman bill This measure is designed to remove from farmers cooperative organizations the restraints which the Sherman anti trust law places upon all organizations that operate in interstate trade. The Clayton act, amending the Sherman act, specifically exempted from the op eration of the antitrust law. farmers organizations which had no capital and were not operated for profit. But some of these organizations have an op- erating capital. They want clear field to work in interstate commerce The Capper- -Hersman measure will give them this. It will be bold can didate who refuses to endorse this bill
 This board of farm organizations is really a live political organization. II is the rural equivalent of the Ameri- can Federation of Labor. The fedora tion has recognized this fact by asking the national board to affiliate with it. The two organizations have been flirt- ing gracefully with each other for some time. The question whether it should affiliate with the labor organi- zation was referred by the board to its member organizations. They refrained from acting upon it rather than give labor a direct snub. So the affiliation did not come about. But it is empha- sized that the atmosphere between the two organizations is distinctly friendly
 There are few more significant things in American political life today than this tentative effort on the part of labor and the farmers to get to- gether. For a long time, 1t was never thought of. The farmer imagined that
 
 the identity of his interests with those of the laborfng men. Now he has begun to see. The board of farm organiZa- tions has refused to affiliate with the Federation of Labor because it does not want to adopt such an aggressive po- ltica1 attitude as the labor organiZa- tion has taken, and not because it does not sympathize with labor.
 Most agrarian movements have come to grief on controversial ques- tions,' said an official of the board We do not want as yet to express an opinion on any controversial questions which do not concern us directly. We are for the Capper-Hersman bill be- cause we need it a law. We opposed the Lane bill, because we did not be- lieve it was sound. We intend to have something to say about the choice of the next secretary of agriculture We want a strong government control of the packers. But we have no railroad policy. no land policy. no policy with regard to coal and other natural re- sources. Tn a word. we have no poll tical platform. Political power Is based on economic power. We are now en- gagged in federating our economic power"
 There is vast wisdom in the last two sentences.
 The political power will come later. So in all probability will the utilization with organized labor.
 The chief difference between these two great groups is really in their atti- tude toward the land question. Labor is in favor of a land law which will cut-over and swamp lands by the gov ernment, the making of these into equipped farms, and their leasing to individuals, or else their sale under provisions which would prevent specu- lators from getting hold of them. Such a law would give surplus labor an out let to the land, and so tend to keep wages up. as in the old days when a good homestead was to be had for going west. 1t would also tend 10 drain the congested portions of the great cities, and so to remove much of the fostering human material which makes for unrest and revolutionary propaganda.
 But the farmers are afraid of such land program because they fear it would result in production and hence lower the price of farm prod ucts.
 There are some among the agricul- tural leaders who do not agree with this view. They point out that if the government created farms it would the disposal of their products. As a matter of fact. all the land coloniza- tion schemes have provided for market ing systems. In this way, they claim. colonization would promote the CO., operative movement which is proving to be the farmers salvation. And there is really no danger whatever of an of food. Our export market can take care of the surplus A marketing system designed and con- trolled by the producer rather thSr the middleman is the thing needed. they say.