The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1920-05-21
n. D0CKACE
LAW HIT BY COURT
INJUNCTION

AvOOAVV4 8V4V
Federal Court Temporarily Sus-
ponds Its 6peration-Trial on
Merits to Follow.
st. Paul, Minn.-Temporary
suspension of that section of the
North Dakota grain inspection
act compelling buyers to pay for
dockage has been granted by the
federal district court, sitting
here.
The injunction, issued in fav-
or of a local elevator at Emden,
N. D.. will hold until the court
can consider the merits of the
case, which the complaining
company brought earlier in the
year.
In the complaint it was charg-
ed that the North Dakota law
conflicted with the guaranteed
price for wheat, placed an I'M
due burden on interstate COM
merce, violated the fourteenth
amendment by permitting the
state to close an elevator for
failure to obey the law, and,
further, that paying for dock
age was in conflict with federal
regulations.
FIRST EFFORT FAILED
Federal Judge Amidon, before
whom the plea for an injunction
was first brought, denied it and
in explanation said, in part, that
he believed the signing of peace
would terminate federal food
and grain regulations anyway.
The plea was then taken before
the United States district court
of North Dakota, composed of
Judges w. H. Sanborn of st.
Paul, Page Morris of Duluth and
w. F. Booth of Minneapolis.
The law, which is now sus-
pended and to be tested later,
provides in the main that all
elevator operators must take out
a license and keep accurate
standard records of business
done, that they must grade the
wheat properly according to law
and where the farmer thinks a
mistake is made the operator
and the farmer are to agree on
a sample which the state will
grade directly, and that all valu-
able dockage must be paid for
at market value. The grain in
spector also has the power to fix
a fair margin for operation.
This act was the first attempt
to free the farmer from the ar
bitrary bargaining power of the
elevator operator in the North
west. Hitherto there had been
no rules or regulations and con-
sequently the act incurred the
enmity of the big grain dealers
who depend for much of their
profit on trickery and other
forms of dishonesty at the local
. station.
FARMERS PROTECTED
1t has, on the other hand, saw
. ed the farmers several million
dollars, and will save more as
the farmers become aware of its
protective features and take ad-
. vantage of them. It's weakness
has been the fact that many
farmers did not grasp what the
law offered and consequently
, failed to bring many violations
. to the attention Of the state
. grain inspector.
. In the theory of this act the
elevator operator is an agent of
the state in the grading Of grain
and determination Of dockage
values. He must consent to this
before entering the business and
hence, in law, the regulations
should not be considered bur-
den on interstate commerce.
LADD'S STATEMENT
Blaming the tuncoat attor-
ney geenral for weakened
presentation of the states case,
Doctor E. F. Ladd, chief grain
, inspector for the state, said:
"The allegations of the grain
company that the elevator agent
is the grain dealer and not the
state is false. The grading is
done by the state of North Da-
kota and the elevator agent
when performing this duty is
the agent of the state and not
the company. AS a grader of
grain the agent IS under bonds
for the faithful performance of
this duty. If he does not do the
| r;nrh< thine h~ thu fo~vrnn,s ,,,l, a