The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1922-09-22
THE FARMERS DOLLAR

The reduction Of the. purchasing power
Of the7farmer since The fall of 1890 is now
generally recognized as one of the chief
disturbing factorSin general business. The
restoration of this. purchasing power IS
rightfully considered one Of. our most
pressing problems, since the farmer con-
stftutes about one!third Of the purchasing
public. s% III
With good average crops, such as last
year and this, the purchasing power IF the
farmer depends upon the exchange value
Of his crops us compared with the exchange:
value OF Che commodities which the farm
eli MUST buy: According to estimates, the
farmers dollar was worth only sixty-three
centsqn 1921 in. exchange value. This year
it's value has increased about sixteen per
cent and it is worth about seventy-fve
cents. This low exchange value of the
farmers dollar was worth only sixty-three
has been slow in returning to normal.
In "a noteworthy address delivered ut the
Minnesota state fair before the Northwest
Tractor Trade association, Congressman
Sidney anderson Of Minnesota gave I'm In
tereyting statement Of the Dps and downs
Of the farmers dollar. MY. Anderson. 1t
will be remembered, was chairman of the
Joint Congressional Committee which made
thorough investigation of agricultural
problems last year and this. In studying
the pur chasing power Of the farmers dol
lar, the committee selected as q basis. of
comparison for exchange values the year
1913 when a normal price relationship ex-
listed. From Mr.. Anderson's statement we
quote the following interesting Statistics:
Using the purchasing power of farm
commodities in terms of all commodities,
including farm products, in 1913 as basis,
the farmers dollar in 1917 was worth
$l.07; in 1918, SLIP; and in 1919, 81 10.
While the prices of farm products during
this period were more than 100 per cent
above 1913, farmers were only about 10
per cent better off than they were in 1913.
Nevertheless, this margin of 10 per cent
was reflected in greatly increased volume
of retail sales during this period. In fact,
many farmers were misled into believing
that they were making more money than
they actually were during the war period
and the period Of prosperity which imme
diately followed it, and bought more freely
and incurred greater Indebtedness than the
ACTUAL situation Justified. '''. -,
I'm 1913 the average farm income in the
United States, after allowing five per cent
for the farmers investment, was $444, as
compared with an average wage for per-
sons employed in mines, factories, trans
portation, banking, government, OF farm
employment of $723. In 1913 the farmer
received as wages .$1,278, as compared
with $1,O94 in the other employnnents re-
ferred to. By 1920 the farmers income iii
money had dropped back to $465, while
the wages of persons employed in other in
al1stries had only slightly decreased.
'In terms of the purchasing power Of
wages, the farmers average return for Ia
Dor, risk and management in 1918 was
$A44, as compared with $723' for employees
ill., OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES 1918-it was 1926,
asi compared with $593 for employees in
other fndustries:s IN 1870, however, in
wages were worth S2l9; or approximately
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