Arizona republican., 1920-02-15

movement begun four year sagO to re- leve stock men, as well as the country at large from the oligarchy which con- trols the industry and the prices:
 To the president. executive commit tee and members of the American Ma ticnal Livestock association:
 It is a privilege to present to you the fourth annual report of your market committee. Fortunately, you have had the benefit of your own official organ, the Producer, since June, 1919. It is a credit to the association and supplies a long felt need. Inasmuch as you have. through it, been kept quite fully informed regarding the market com mlttee'S activities, it will be unneceS- sary for us to go into as much detail as usual in our annual report. We si,all Iather deal with the larger as poets of the problems to which we have. to the best of our ability. devoted our energies.
 Four years ago. at FL Paso. when the market committee was first created, this association started movement which was destined to produce results of tremendous import to our industry, to the country, and to the whole world We have been dealing with world forces. Whatever involves the equitable distribution of the food supply pro- duced by this nation involves the economic welfare of men everywhere.
 Reduced to it's simplest terms. the
 
 solve is simple enough. It is nothing more nor less than whether this democ- f.lcy shall permit a few men of unlim- tied power and unlimited wealth io stand between the producers of food stuffs on the one hand and the con- sumerS on the other, and dictate the terms on which each shall live. In other words. shall measures be taken to restore competition and free mar kets for livestock and the products of livestock? I ne market committee have never had any doubt where the Ameri- can people would stand if the matter could once be placed fairly before them. The forces of reaction appreciate this and have spared neither time nor treas urc in a desperate effort to prevent the issue from being clearly defined. They have raised many false ones. and the process of educating the people and developing a public sentiment that would demand reform has been a slow and tedious task. That has been our job. Enough had been accom- mpiished by the time the war intervened in April, 1917. to put the country on it's guard. As result the packers were rut under federal license. thereby say ing the people many millions of dollars. LCose as the control was, it gexerted q real restraining influence and es- tablished the valuable precedent of government regulation. The summary
  mission in July. 1918, and the subse- quent installments, were a revelation to the country as to the real character of the packer monopoly. The free dis eussion in the daily press and the farm journals of the packer regulation bills introduced in congress have been of great educational value. The monu- mental advertising campaign of the packers has directed attention to the subject, and possibly has had the op- posite effect from what was intended. As the cost of living has mounted and the food problem the world over has become of absorbing interest, there has come to be a much better understand ing of the packer menace. In ever wid- ering circles the demand has grown for legislation which will secure economic justice for all.
 During the war there were many di- versions. It was an emergency. and a time for temporary measures. so as to get by. The entire livestock in dustry, including the packers. neces- sarily was put on an emergency basis Both producers and packers did their frll share-they delivered the goods. But since the fighting ceased. indus trial conditions the world over have been. and are, chaotic. Today with wild governmental and economic theories and practices rampant in Europe. with some of the nations powerless to feed their starving people owing to the peace terms imposed on them, with tho system of distribution in Europe net functioning in many places. even where there are supplies, and no sys- tenn of international credits worked out So that our own surplus food products can go freely to Europe, the situation Is such that no man is wise enough to foretell with any degree of cer- tainty what our own economic future will be much less that of other na- IL r, sx,<Is f<sf, that progress is being made. The en- try of the great banking house. of J. r. Morgan and company, with it's asso- ciates, into the field as international merchants, prepared, under the Edge h.ll, to furnish credits on vast scale to foreign buyers of our products, the plan of our government to finance Austria and other Central European peoples to the cxtent of one hundred ana fifty to two hundred million dol lars for purchasing our food products, the call for a great international con ference to find remedy for the finan- ciaI and commercial chaos caused by the war, all promise better times ahead. Our industry will be one of the first 10 benefit Stock men and farmers as class have alone maintained produc ton, obviously to their own relative disadvantage. continued broad ex- port demand is essential to take care of our surplus livestock products and re- store the proper balance. |
 In all this confusion your market committee, during the past year, have worked steadily toward placing the livestock industry on {. sound economic basis through legislation You will re- cali that year ago you passed reso- lotion urging both producer and con- sumner to vigorously support a meas pre in line with the proposed Kendrick bill S-5305. and you also directed Us by resolution to cooperate with other livestock and farm organizations. We did so and went further by awakening the interest of consumers organiza tions, like the National Consumers league and various other organizations. These people had ideas of their own regarding the scope of the legislation. The Kendrick bill did not go far enough to suit them. They came in force 10 Washington early in 1919, determined to have their views recognized in the bill. The result was that on June 19. 1s1g Senators Kendrick and Kenyon each introduced bills in the senate which were in the main very similar and quite in harmony. The Kendrick