The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1920-05-06
Sees FARMER AS
AID TO PEACE
.st. 80.
INCREASING PRODUCTION WILL
MAKE UNNECESSARY LARGE
ARMAMENT SAYS PRESI.
DENTAL CANDIDATE.
Agricultural interests Played The
Game And Fed This Country AS
Well As Our Allies.


In an address recently in Chicago
Leonard Wood, candidate for president
Of the United States, said that il prop
er encouragement is given to farmers
and to the advancement OF agriculture,
America will not need a large army or
navy.
"The farmer 10 the stsadylng class
about which unstable masses move"
said the candidate. "He 10 a land
owner, consequently, he 10 a conserva
tive man and believes In this govern.
ment"
During the war the American farm.
er played the game. He did not try
to hold up the public by striking and
allowing up the price Of food, but he
fed not only our country but our allies
in very large part. He Is a patriotic,
loyal, non-striking, steadylng American
citizen"
Leonard Woods address in part fol.
lows:
Only Original Producers.
"The farmers today are the only
producers Of original wealth. But they
are getting off of the farms, The farms
are falling into the hands of large land
owners. We want to stop that if we
can. The moment we cease to be a
self-sustaining nation, our whole for
eign policy must change. We are pro
ducers now of food in quantities suffi-
cient for ourselves and for consider
able export, but supposing our agricul.
ture declines and we become depend
ent on outside countries for food and
supplies, what does that mean? 1t
means at once an enormous navy; it
means stronger military establish
ment; it means the control of lines of
supply beyond peradventure, as during
this war Germany expected to beat
England by cutting off her food sup
ply. England however, realized that
danger and has always had a navy
equal to any other two navies. She
has had to have navy that was in
excess of the needs of maintaining her
commerce, in order that she might
have navy strong enough to abso-
lutely insure the free entrance of food
In time Of war.
Farmers Do Not Get Enough.
"You know there is a great deal
OF unrest today in the farming ele-
ment. They feel that enough of the
producers dollar does not come back
30 them, and there is a good deal Of
truth in it, During the Omaha riots
| was knocking about the city one
night and ran into an old farmer COM
ing in with load Of milk l said to
him, What do you get for your milk ?"
He replied, From 51a to cents a
quart" l said, at is selling for great
deal more than that here" He said,
"Oh, yes. On those days when | feel
bit flush go down to the Fontanelle
and get a good breakfast and | meet
my milk there at about fifteen cents
a quart. Now, raised that COW, fed
her, MIXED her and brought that milk
in here about rs miles and got cents
a quart for it, and | want to find this
other fellow that is getting 9 cents in
about two hours.
you know that there is a lot in
that, and that is only one illustration,
but that is one of the big movements
on the part OF the farmers today, to
| get closer to the consumer and to get
a larger share of the ultimate selling
price of his product
so the farmers problem is an in
| teresting one and very important
one, and to sum it up briefly, we must
try to make his living conditions and
the conditions surrounding him in the
way Of education, and transportation
and the delivery of his supplies and all
that sort Of thing the best possible,
| otherwise your farmers are going to
have a constant falling of in the de-
velopment and production OF the
sources of original wealth.
Made Mighty Good Soldiers.
During the war the farmer sent his
Sons to war and they made mighty
good soldiers The divisions had to
train In the Middle West were prac.
tically all farmer boys, and there were
no better divisions went overseas in
discipline. in character, in fighting
qualities. in cleanliness and patriotism.
WHAT THEODORE ROOSEVELT