Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1921-06-14

adjustment of grades for tobacco
sales? The bureau in. its circular
stated that one of the primary rea-
sons for the growers not receiving
as much for his tobacco as he ought
to receive is that the grower has been
kept confused by the buyers as to
grades. The Bureau of Markets is
working on grading right now.
The Bureau of Markets called in a
group of important tobacco buyers and
conferred with them about grades.
Practically every one of those buyers
took the stand that tobacco couldn't
be graded; that it was a waste of time
for the Bureau of Markets even to
attempt that thing. The Bureau of
Markets was very interested from
the standpoint of the grower. If you
ever want to hear a very interesting
story, get some man at that confer
ence to tell you of the indignation
with which they were advised by the
buyers they were monkeying with
something they didn't know anything
about-and that any buyer of intelli-
gence could tell them they couldn't
grade tobacco. 1t was perfectly anus
ing. 1t was just the same stunt they
pulled when we started in to organize
eggs, raisins, prunes, beans and every
other product 1 have had the least
thing to do with. L have never known
them to admit that anything could
be graded.
The Same Old Story.
I was just lately down in Arkansas
talking on the cotton situation. That
campaign has been launched. 1 was
there informed by some of the most
important men in Arkansas that cot
ton cannot be graded and that you alb
solutely have no basis of grading it..
1t was the same old story. OF course,
l could realize that it was perfectly
good propaganda to put that out, but
as matter of fact everybody in the
country agrees cotton can be graded
and it is being graded. There isn't
a buyer that doesn't grade cotton.
That is why the Government is now
training cotton classes. If you are a
grower of cotton you can get the Gov
eminent to tell you how to grade your
product. The Government tells you
how to grade as to quality and color
and everything.
So, from the standpoint Of grading,
I don't think you will have nearly the
problem these buyers tell you about
In any event, whatever problem you
have, or will have, is exactly the
same problem as those buyers now
have. They don't lose money by it
and 1 see no reason why you should
lose money by it. There is no reason,
as a matter of fact, whyNyou should
not employ the very same men they
employ, use the same talent they
think is their talent.
Take the California farmer. He
pays his farm hired man sometimes
81 a day, to help with production.
Then he has a $4,000 year man who
sits in Fresno and is hired to sell the
fruit for him. Our growers don't have
to bother about sales, because they
have a $4,000 a year man working
for them.
We have unquestionably the finest
experts in. their lines going straight
through our industries. You haven't
any better men in the United States
than the men in our fruit associations.
We pay them well. You can't ask for
fair price for raisins and deny a
fair compensation for brains. There
is competition for brains as we'll as
for products. We employ bankers for
financing problems, and railroad men
for transportation, but we get experts
all the way down. Our farmers do
the thing they are best fitted for. Our
experts do the other things that the
farmers are not fitted for. You know
there is very good economic reason
why the farmer is not fitted to sell
his own products.
Each To His Talent.
If you will pardon me for talking
economics-suppose we take the
manufacture of steel rails? No one
man does it. You have group pro-
duction, the factory system. The
factory system is recognized as the
key to all forms Of productive indus
tries today all over the world-except
III agriculture. Now where you have
the factory system or group produc-
ton you have group capital. Where
you have group capital = you must
have a corporation formed. That is
why every State in the Union estab-
lished laws whereby group marketing
and production could be carried on,
giving us the artificial thing called a
corporation for carrying on that &C
tivity. But they forgot the farmer.
The farmer is the only element of
production besides art in which you
have individual production. The
ideal of every man is country
dotted with farm units, in which one
operates the farm and produces
his own labor or through the
assistance of hired men. Yet they
think that because the farmer pro-
duces individually marketing is an
individual problem.
But marketing is not individual at
all. 1t is a group problem. You
cannot market without distinct
consideration of what all the ether
fellows are doing at the lame time.
You cannot market without knowing
what the market absorption is, or
what the market demand is, what
the money markets are, and the
other clements of trade. Production
can be done individually. Marketing
can be only done sanely on a collec-
tive basis.
The next universal rule in group
ing is when you do get the experts
on the job, what do they do? Do
they work miracles or merchandise
ing?"
Cooperative marketing simply per-
mits you to merchandise your prod
ucts. Merchandising your products
means to follow the theor ;tical rule
of supply and demand. But when 1
use the term supply and demand"
I don't use it in the style in which
old-style economists used it-as weird
machinery, which in some way skill
fully strips the producer and carries
home riches for the middieman. II
use the term tsupply and demand
as a flexible ter5n. I try TO find the
movable factor5 in those words.