Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1922-10-01
ny Harry c. wallace.


own that strikes would not benefit.
ny Harry &. Wallace.
| Secretary of Agriculture.
Al this time when every ono IS
pondcring over questions OF wages
and conditions Of employment In
the organized Industries. there is
much food for sober reelection IN
contemplating II" wages and tho
! third Of tn" American people. name.
/ ~ TIL" farmers and those who liv"
I on III" farms. arc working Let us
/ consider hrst tho matter OF waEc,.
I or income. Tho value OF income
whether II be in tho form OF wages.
| or of money received for sales .ot
the products of labor. Ia repre-
| in what that money viii buy--iu
other words. by its purchasing
power 1t Is rather startling to
! thinking people to compare tho
wages paid the workers In the or
! ganized industries with tho wages
received by the farmer, as repro
! s"nt"d in tho price lie gets for tho
things he grows. y few specific
| illustrations Indicate clearly the
! position in which the American
| farmer finds himself IN relation to
workers in these Industries.
I Take for example t.le average
/ wag" received hy tho coal miner for
/ mining a ton OF coal In 1919 this
I wag" per ton would buy IL hushcl
/ OF corn III Iowa. ia 1921 It would
/ buy % bushels % corn in the sam"
state. In 1913 The ton wage would
/ buy = uf bGsh"l OF wheat In
/ North Dakota; in 1921 1t would pur-
/ chase q" az "a bush"l. in 1913 II would
/ buy IL pounds az cotton In Texas
! bur IN 1921 II would purchase So
/ pounds of cotton In the same State.
/ In 1919 the miners wage per ton
/ would buy seven pouuds 81 hog in
/ Nebraska; In 1927 fourteen pounds
! In 1919 The miners ton W re pur.
( chased s OF n bushci OF potatoes In
New York; In 1921 II would bring
/ him IL bEshel. In 1913 eleven
! pounds or sheep i'm Wyuuing: in
( 1921. eighteen pounds In 1919 lG
/ bUshel 81 oats In Illinois; In 1927
81 bushels IN 1913. 20 pounds az
/ butter in Missouri In 1921 % pounds
F, Of butter Ia the sam. state.
Some Figures.
! II we take the average yearly
! earnings of railroad employees. we
( that in 1919 the wage r years
work would purchase 1882 bushels
} OF corn I'm Iowa. but in 1921 the
employees would buy i.1I2 bushels
/ Tho average yearly earnings Of
F., railroad employees would buy LOGS
/ bushels % wheat In North Dakota
I in 1919: In 1921 IL would purchase
! l46G bushels. In 1919 II would buy
G.+i9 pounds o! cotto- "a Texas.
/ but in 1921 K would purchase 49,
! ga pounds II would hwy In l"l3
/ 1902 hundredwc!eht - hogs IN Ne
/ bra ska, and in 1921 297 hundred
weight. /, would buy l4s hum
drcdwciEht OF sheep in Wyoming In
1919: and In 1921 296 hundred
weight. In 1919 Il would buy
( LOST bushels of potatoes in New
/ York: IN -a2l 1.''G bushels In
1913 2.i7i bushels of oats IN MI
nols: in 1927 5.I09 bushels IN 1918
SCUM: in 1927 5.2s5 pounds.
In 1913 the freight revenue per
ton mil" received 'by the railroads
would buy IL bushcl OF corn In
Iowa In 1919 one bushcl Of wheat
in North Dakota: in 1921 IL bnshcl.
In 1919 81 pounds o: cation III
Texas: in 1921 1913 pounds. In
1919 ten pounds Of hogs in Ne
hraslta: in 1921 eighteen pounds
In 1919 one bushcl OF potatoes In
New York: in 1921 Is bushc.. In
1913 fourteen pounds Of sheep In
Wyoming; in 1921 twenty-,wo
pounds In 1918 81 bushels Of oats
In Illinois: in 1921 twenty two
pounds. In 1919 2.l bushels OF oa's
IN Illinois. in 1927 8? bushels IN
1913 al pounds Of butter in Mis-
souri,: in 1921 four pounds.
Prices Go Up.
In fairness II must he taken into
account. OF course. that before the
corn. wheat. hogs. sheep, cotton. but
ter or other farm products get to the
consumers table. It good deal has
been added to the price which tho
farmer received. This margin be
tween the farmer or producer and the
consumer has greatly increased dur
ing the past eight years. AT the
same time it Is also fair to note that
good deal Of this increase has been
due to the increase in the wages
paid the people who handle these
products in connection with their
marketing and distribution. The
foregoing comparisons show, how
ever. that the wages Of the farmer
"a represented by tho prices paid
for his crops are lower than his
wages were before the war, mca-
surcd in purchasing power. while on
tho other hard, tho wages o: Tho
workmcn ana especially tho WORK
men in organized industries. are
considerably higher than they were
before the war, whether "" measure
then in dollars and cents or in pur.
chasing power.
The fact IS that the farmers Of tho
country. numbering almost one third
OF our entire population, have borne
altogether the heaviest burden OF
deflation. They have cndcavored &c
get relief by all lawful means. They
have appealed to the administration
to Congress. and to every other
agency which they thought might
Ii I'll d -, C