News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1922-01-25
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Let US, then, consider some of the
| farmers grievances, and see how far
they are real. In doing so, we should
| remember that, while there have been,
and still are, instances Of purposefu
abuse, the subject should not be ap
preached with any general imputation
to existing distributive agencies of de
liberately intentional oppression, bu,
rather with the conception that the
marketing of farm products has not
been modernized.
An ancient evil, and a perssten
one, Is the undergrading of farm prod
,ucts, with the result that what the
farmers sell as of one quality is re
sold as of higher That this sort OF
chicanery should persist on any i'm
portant scale in these days of bust
ness integrity would seem almost in
credible, but there is much evidence
that 1t does so persist Even as
write, the newspapers announce the
suspension of several firms from the
New York Produce Exchange for ex-
porting to Germany as No. wheat
whole shipload of grossly inferior wheat
mixed with oats, chaff and the like.
Another evil is that Of inaccurate
weighing of farm products, which. il
Is charged, is sometimes matter of
dishonest intention and sometimes of
protective policy on the part of the |
local buyer, who fears that he may
weigh out" more than he weighs in" |
A greater grievance is that at pres |
emf tho field farmer has little or no |
control over the time and conditions |
OF marketing his products, with the |
result that he is often undergrad for
his products and usually overcharged |
for marketing service. The differ
ence between what the farmer re.
ceives and what the consumer paws
often exceeds all possibility of just.
fication. To cite a single illustration
Last year, according to figures attest.
ed by the railways and the growers
Georgia watermelon-raiser received
on the average rs cents for n melon,
the railroads got 1877 cents for carry.
ing II to Baltimore and the consumer
paid one dollar, leaving 70 cents for
the service of marketing and its risks,
as against 20.2 cents for growing and
The hard annals of
farm-life are replete with such com
mentaries on the 'crudeness of pres
ent practices.
Nature prescribes that the farmers
goods must be finished within two
or three months of the wear. while
financial and storage limitations gen.
orally compel him to sell them AT the
same time. As a rule. other Industries
are in continuous process of finish.
ng goods for the markets: they dis
ribute as they produce. and they can
'urtail production without too great
injury to themselves or the commu-
lity; but II the farmer restricts his
output, ii is with disastrous conSe-
luences, both TO himself aad TO the
The average farmer Is IuSy with
for the major nart of the
ear, and has nothing 90 sell. The
ulk Of his output curcs an the mar.
ct at once Because of lack of stor-
ge facilities and of financial support.
he farmer cannot carry his goods
through the year and dispose of them
$ they are currently needed. In the
reat majority Of cases, farmers have
, entrust storage-in warehouses and I
levators-and the financial carving {
T their products to others.
Farm products are generally mar
eted at a time when there Is q CON
estion Of both transportation and (
nance-when cars and money are I
'arce. The outcome, in many in \
ances, is that the farmers not only n
III under pressure, and therefore an n
disadvantage, but are compelled toll h
Ike further reductions in net returns. =
order TO meet the charges for the =
rvice Of storing. transporting. financ- \
Z, and ultimate marketing-Nhicb
larges they claim. are often exces- :
We, bear heavily On both consumer =
ID producer. and are under the con :
q Of those PERFORMING the services 7.
is true that they are relieved Of =
o risks Of q changing market hvl =
Hing st once but they are quite viii D