Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1921-12-15
STRONG ARGUMENT FOR
COOPERATIVE SALES.
Senator Capper To Back Legal
izing Bill In Congress AS
Aid To Farmers

for the marketing and distribu-
ton OF agricultural products vii!
be the measure of first import
ance i'll the program of the agri-
cultural group OF Congress, a
soon as that body reassembles al
ter holidays. Senator Arthur
Capper, of Kansas. author OF the
bill for that purpose. said today.
The cooperative marketing meas
uTe. he added. not only has the
support of the farmers. but also
il strongly backed by the Nation
al Consumers League and kin
dred organizations. while organ
lied labor is not opposing it.
In discussing his measure to-
day, Mr.. Capper declared that the
cooperative marketing move
ment. such as that recently or
ganized to handle the hurley to-
bacco grown in Kentucky. Is the
greatest development in agricul-
ture in recent years.
This plan" said the Kansas
Senator. has been tried out in
Great Britain and Denmark and
: has been found to be especially
successful in both countries for
both the farmer who produces the
food and the buyer who consumes
IT. Operations under this system
actually have demonstrated that
II affords the farmer a reasonable
profit on what he grows. better
profit i'll the long rum than he re-
/ ceives under the present market
ing system. and likewise that the
consumer buys his foodStuffS at =
very considerable reduction in
cost. The system has proven
beneficial to all parties wherever
launched upon a proper has ;. and
clearly l. not designe;. to aid the
farmer alone.
: Under the present marketing
system. farming is business thai
cannot become successful or pro-
i;tablc. and unless it is made rea-
~onably profitable it is useless t.
urge men to get back to the
land. The farmer buys at retail
It prices fixed by the man from
whom he buys. He is compelled
to sell his products at wholesale
and at prices fixed by the man to
whom he sells. This is uneco-
romic and an unsound business
policy.
Until he can operate his bust
ness along scientific lines. like CIV
cry other business the agricuf-
tur1st can never succeed, and the
people of this country must no,
! lose sight OF the fact that farm
ing - real business i'm which
enormous capital has been invSct-
( ed and which has brought little. ii
any. return ON the investment.
"One thing that has been large
y responsible for this drift away
from the farm i this very uncco-
nOnic method OF marketing aori-
cultural products. Our farming
lends have been steadily Conccn-
trating into the hands OF a fewer
number of owners. while tcnan
TRY has been steadily increasing
This Is due to the fact that farm
ing Is no longer profitable. except
when conducted on = very lar~,
scale. History shows that tn,
downfall of nations has como
with the downfall of agriculture
III these nations. and it i well {,
remember this when considering
the present agricultural condition
in this country"
Mr.. Cappcr said that the mair
purpose in his bill i to reduce the
lsrread between the grower ana
the consumer and in so doing t.
eliminate much OF the profits ot
the middlcman and particularly
the Spectator. Under tn. pres.
ent system of marketing and dis
tr butinS farm commodities. n,
ipointed out. the farmer deal.
with a large number OF middle
men. the tendency being all along
the line to take toll off of him
while every toll thus taken also
puts up the cost to the ultimat,
consumer.
The idea of the cooperative
marketing system is that the pro
ducer shall market his product
through organizations and asso-
c atoms in which he has a voice
and an interest. This system, Mr.
Capper said. affords a much bet
ter way of doing business be
cause it reduces the intermediar.
res, gives a larger volume anC
reduced overhead.
Child In Peril Is