The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1922-03-15
Some Aspects of the
Farmers Problems
Reprinted from Atlantic Monthly
By BERNARD M. BARUCH

ins american peOpN
are % nrsniy opposed to Industrial AZ
% political autocracy, whether al
tempted by rural or by urban industry
For lack Of unite,. effort the farmers
a. Z whole are still marketing thel,
crops by antiquated methods, or by nc
iueth0ds at ALL but they are surrounded
~ Z business world that has been
mode-nized to the last minute and Il
.:relessly striving for efficiency. This
+fflciency II due In large measure &c
zig business, to united business to In
tegrated business. The farmers now
seek the benefits Of such largeness. un
lon and Indignation.
The American farmer Ia a modern OF
the moderns In the use Of labor saving
machinery, and he has made vast
strides In recent years In scientific
tillage and efficient farm management,
but as business in contact with othe,
businesses agriculture Is tone horse
shay" In competition with high power
automobiles The American farmer Is
the greatest and most intractable Of
individualists. While Industrial pro
duction and all phases Of the huge com
mercial mechanism and Its myriad &C
cessOries have articulated and co-ordi
mated themselves all the way from nat
ural raw materials to retail sales, the
business Of agriculture has gone on lr
much the one man fashion Of the back
woods Of the first. part of the nine
teenth century. when the farmer wa
self sufficient and did not depend upon,
or care very much. what the great
world was doing The result is that
the agricultural group is almost as
much at disadvantage In dealing with
other economic groups as the Jay farm
er ~ the funny pages In the hands Of
sleek urbnn confidence men, who sell
him acreage III Central Park or the
Chicago city hall The leaders of the
farmers thoroughly understand this
end they are inteligently striving to
integrate their Industry 80 that II will
be on an equal footing with other bust
nesSes
A. an example Of Indignation, take
the steel industry, In which the model
10 the United States Steel Corporation,
with Its iron mines its coal mines, Its
lake and rail- transportation. Its ocean
vessels. Its by-product coke ovens. Its
blast furnaces, its open hearth and
Bessemer furnaces. Its rolling mills. ito
tube mills and other manufacturing
processes that are carried to the high.
est degree Of finished production com
patible with the large trade 1t has
built up. All this Is generally conced
"a to be to the advantage of the con,
oumer. Nor d es the steel corporation
inconsiderately dump its products on
the market. On the contrary. 1t so
acts that It II frequently stabilizing
influence, a. IL often the case with 9th.
Or large organizations. It Is master of
IT. distribution as we'll as Of Its pro-
duction. II prices are not satisfactory
the products are held back or produc-
tion IL reduced or suspended. 1t Is not
compelled to send a years work to the
market at one time and take whatever
It can get under such circumstances
It has one selling policy and Its own
export department Neither are the
grades and qualities of steel determin.
% at the caprice of the buyer nor does
the latter hold the scales In this sin
gle Indignation of the steel corporation
10 represented about 40 per cent Of the !
steel production Of America The rest |
% mostly In the hands OF few large |
companies In ordinary times the
steel corporation. by example, stabilizes
oil steel prices. n this is permissible
ut Is even desirable, because stable
and fair prices are essential to solid |
and continued prosperity why would
II be wrong for the farmers to utilize
central agencies that would have SINH
lar effects on agricultural products? /
Something like that is what they are
aiming at.
Some farmers favored by regional
compactness and cOntiguity. such as the
Observation-Disclosures Of California, al.
ready have found a way legally to
merge and sell their products inte-
orally and In accordance with seasonal &
and local demand. thus improving
their position and rendering the con.
oumer q reliable service Of ensured
quality, certain supply. and reasonable
and relatively steady prices. They
have not found It necessary to resort
to any special privilege. or to claim
any exemption under the antitrust
legislation Of the state or nation With.
out removing local control, they have
built up a very efficient marketing
agency. The grain. cotton, and to-
oaccO farmers, and the producers of
hides and wool. because Of their mum
bers and the vastness of their regions
and for other reasons, have found
more difficult task
though there are nav some thousands
Of farmers cO-or erative elevators
creamories, and other en-
terprises OF one SORT and another. with
! turnover of bill, n dollers a year
They are giving tie farmers business.
Experience and training and. so faI
% they 60, they meet the need of
honest weighing and fair grading: blu,
hey do not meet the requirements Of