Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1922-10-20

'm,nlbcr OF the 'farm Bios" in toe
Ncn|tc. ron'ur> With the Ecpubli
can newspapers as TO the way in
which, this Republican tariff will
affect the fortunes of the farmer. He
says:
Many Of our agricultural pro
ducts are on an export basis and the
tariff will not help the producers OF
these products except under cNcep-
tlonM conditions and on special
grades. II, in addition to this, the
power Of foreign countries to buy
the products of our farms and
ranches is limited by tariff which
prevents our people from buying
on fair competitive basis the man :
ufactured articles of the highly in
dustrialized countries of Europe, the
plight Of agriculture will be even
worse than it is at present"
That the selling prices of some
agricultural products will be en-
HANGED by the imposition of certain
duties written into tic bill is freely
conceded. Wool and sugar will be
among these few items. The great
bulk of agricultural pl odurts, how
ever. will not be benefited at all.
This may be illustrated with the
duty of 10 cents per buShcl on corn.
said Senator Simmons in Il speech
III the Senate. NO duty upon corn
can affect the American price of
corn because practically none is i'm
ported into the country and We pro
ducc more than We need for our
own consumption. The amount i'm
ported compared TO the domestic
production would be as one ear to
a buShcl of corn. No duty upon
these tritling importations would
affect the price of corn. 1t is csti-
mated by experts, after thorough
Investigation and calculation that
for every dollar increase the farmer
will get as a result of such Of these
increases us are effective he will pay
by reason Of the higher duties on
other products nj least S5-$I in. So
out If that is not swapping dollars
for dimes il is swapping dollars for
quarters"
In the last analysis. Senator Me
Cunbcr does not pin his faith in
the tariff as Il stimulus to a4ricul
turai products and prices. He would
have recourse to very different
artiiicc. The joint author of the
tariff bill with Fordncy says:
For the most part. wheat is :,
drug on the American market. We
want more acres of farm land plant
ed TO other products, we want to
encourage the farmers in this coun :
ty to SOW millions of acres to flax,
to hemp, to onions, to beans and the
like products"
So, then, Senator McCumbcr ad
mitS that the tariff-even a Repub
lican emergency tariff" warranted
like western wire fence, to be
horse high, bull proof and hog
tight-haS been utterly worthless
for the object of maintaining the
price OF wheat in the domestic mar
kct after the foreign market had
been dcmoralizcd by this fatuous
Legislation.
Not the tariff. after all, but /:
variation Of crops, reduction OF
acreage Of wheat and corn and cot
ton, and larger production of some
thing elSe-that is MIR. McCunber's
plan for assisting agriculture. But
1t may be asked, what will be his
remedy if there should suddenly
appear surplus of FLAX, hemp
onions, BEANS" and the like Would
the tariff that has failed in respect
TO surplus OF wheat fare better in
the case of a surplus of beans?
The plain fact is that so far us the
farmer and the wage Garner and
the general run of consumers arc
concerned, the Fordncy McCumbe1
bill is a fake and fraud.