Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-08-20
|EllIlRER|' Kate
STRUCTURE TO
Be. ! AT TACKED |
Testimony Of Experts Used
as Basis For Fight Launch-
ed by Grain Men. e

washington Aug. 20.-Abandon-
ment Of western farms now should
not be compared with abandonments
q few years ago in the New England
states, John e. Benton, solicitor, tes-
titled today before the interstate com
merce commission in the hearing. on
rates IN grain and hay. New England
farmers had been able barely to live
on the worked out land by producing
everything they needed and little else
when they left their farms for. the
west. Mr.. Benton said. II conditions
forced western farmers to q bare
living basis, he added, the country will
suffer and the railroads lose a great
volume Of traffic. He attributed pres
ent1 conditions in large measure to
high freight rates.
The comparison of the abandon
ment Of New England farms and those
in the west was injected into the
hearing by Commissioner Esch, who
asked whether the growing of the
bulk OF the agricultural products in
territories. remote from the consum-
ing population was not being done in
this. country at a great waste Of
transportation" Mr.. Benton said the
vast production Of the west, involving
even asIi 1t does long transportation
had proven to be best from an eco
ponic standpoint.
Washington, Aug. 20.-After five
days of testimony regarding the agri-
cultural situation in the west, grain
men began today before the interstate
commerce commission an attack
through testimony of traffic experts.
on the entire freight rate structure
on grain and hay maintained by west
ern railroads.
Previously attorneys for the grain
men, farmers and shippers had de-
scribed suffering OF the farmers,
which they declared was due in large
part to high freight rates.
Rate experts were called today to
show that tho rates on grain a. com
pared with that on other commodi-
ties was unreasonably high and that
the commission should, therefore. re-
duce rates even If it was not con-
vtnced that such a reduction would
increase the revenues of the carriers
through Increased volume Of tariff.
Washington. Aug. 1s.-Grain men
OF the west completed today before
the Interstate Commerce Commission
| their description of agricultural dis
tress throughout the grain and hay
producing states . and announced
readiness to begin tomorrow their eff
fort to show that high freight rates
were responsible for these conditions.
Alllfalfa meal mill operators OF Col
orado told the com mission that he
industry was threatened with total
4 4 a asStructte3 s,ron shish a fretEh,
rates. sifaee the principle market.
were on an average OF j, 200 miles
from points Reproduction. The, in
dustry, which Has grown up In: the
past Is years has furnished the car.
riers with considerable traffic. nos,
Of which has been lost through high
freight, the witnesses asserted. .S /
Cost of Moving Ctops.
| j.. p. Larson, secretary of the Iowa
Cooperative Grain Dealers Assocfa.
tion, testified that where it had cos,
| from 10 to IL per cent OF the gros.
corn crop In his state to move the
crop to market in pre-war times, i,
now costs from 25 to 20 per- cent
He explained the working OF coop.
erative elevators in Iowa, and said
that prices paid by 4 the elevator
we're those of Chicago or Minneap.
oils less the freight and handling
| costs The farmer would get the
\ benefit of any freight rate reductions
he said. Tia
| J.. J. Neville of the Millers' and
Grain Dealers Association Of Utah
and Idaho, testified as to todepressed
prices in his section, asserting thai
he saw nothing to indicate that grair
prices would go above pre-war prices
again. n. ::s q,