The Omaha morning bee. [volume] (Omaha [Neb.]) 1922-1927, 1923-01-05
By PAUL GREER.

| Dy
Lincoln, Jan. 4.--tSpeciaI. Telegram
Agriculture, business and the world
political situation were linked In dis
cussion of the economic situation by
DIR. David Friday, president of the
Michigan Agricultural college, at the
meeting of organized agriculture here
| today
1.-The nation stands at the point OF
business revival" DR.. Friday assert
ed, and he proceeded to analyze the
causes of depression and of pros
rerity.
THE necessary balance between the
prices of farm products sand manu-
faetured goods is approaching" he
said. THE price level for farm COM
modites now stands at 14S per cent
of that OF 1918. Manufactured goods
are priced at 160 per cent"
Within a year or 10 months he pre-
dieted, partly by an increase in farm
prices and partly by lower manufac-
turing costs, prices at a common
level will have been reached.
Leading Economist.
DR.. Friday is one of the nations
leading economists. Now the pres
ident of a great farm school, he was
before the war a consulting economist
for a number of eastern financial in
stitutions and during the war served
the government in an advisory capaci-
". He brought a message for farmers
and business men of the middle west
and was strikingly frank with both
At a MONDAY luncheon of the Lions
club he gave the merchants the same
facts that later held a large audience
of farmers for almost two hours.
Middlewestern agriculture, he point
ed out, must look to different mar
ket than do the farmers OF more
densely populated states. In Mich
igan, where there are three city peo-
pie to every man on the farm, 1t is
possible for the farmers to adopt a
state program by which they strive
to fill the local demand and keep on
the international market. In Ne
braska, which has only one and one
fifth town dwellers to each farmer
the agriculture output must neces-
sarily look to the foreign market. Be.
cause of this, freight rates and Euro
pean politics assume the greatest i'm
portance.
Rates Must Be Cut.
There can be no solution OF the
Nebraska farmers problem unless
TRANSFORMATION costs are lowered"
said DR.. Friday.
You haven't the people here TO
eat your products. In Michigan we
have a town every 80 miles and can
haul our crops to market by motor
truck. I wish someone with nerve
would get up and put this matter
where it belongs. The principal
items of expense Of the railroads are
wages and fuel. Both these must be
reduced, or else the efficiency Of rail.
way labor must be increased. 1t is
not matter of how much per day is
paid this or that group. The thing
to look at is the amount of work 1t
does. If the same number of railway
men now employed can handle one
third more traffic next year, a reduc-
ton of freight rates could fairly be
expected"
DIR. Friday was optimistic over the
European situation
"Within a year." he declared, Ell
rope will begin paying on its debts. 1t
Is beginning to see that it can't play
politics. keep up great standing ar
mics, or rely on conferences over Ger
many 1t Is discovering that the only
path to recovery is to stabilize its
currency and begin exchanging manu-
factured. goods for our food. It's fac
tories will begin running full-blast.
Predicts Competition.
my guess is that within a year
Europe will be manufacturing goods
as a real competitor Of American busi.
ness men. Trade consists of the ex-
change of goods for goods. When the
countries across the ocean again pro-
duce goods for exchange, the middle
western farmers will find an outlet
for their surpluses.
Business recovery in America be-
San with the building boom. This
gave employment at good wages to n
great number of men. The biggest
fund of buying power consists Of
wages and salaries. These had slipped
off from $3S 900 900 900 in 1920 to $780,
600 ,o00,O in 1921. but began to rise.
The farmers purchasing power
slipped off proportionately more. but
stands at $40 900 100000 now. Through
general employment, business depend
ing OH home market has improved
more than agriculture which depends
on a foreign market
Record in Saving.
DIR. Friday advised business men to
watch the building boom for any