The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1923-05-04
., JoHN F. SINCLAIR

iD-.tire bOOkieE ~ in the North
PISTON q GAIN in Raising Areas 1t
Tstenn I. saJ TO the annual confer
rss prs]eS-ioral Reserve agents with
sF sisdai Reserve ,i B0aT1 a. but the the
agoa -. I'M fling about the report was
gCifcan1 ' ;.sned as Confidential
aat i was ,b li5i On November
,st for p-O- -,onth later, another re-
aooa' issued from the same source source
POI. wa was Problems Of the Northwest
o. 'lns b 5e in the main a re
Fsnners' Uoo'5 If the facts shown in
sirt Of SOM mt What do these re-
be garner 5IS others theirs really show? NIL,
rts anu I.,,r State states Of Minnesota, North
The ioC soltb Dakota and Montana
Dakota 5 SSu lS2 farms, consisting OF
. ;Ioo0 acres Of improved ed Il ian on tb be
frst place, land tenancy lS vi 'ii'
increase; cont n 1910 to BAT
Prom a.rt in IN 1920 in Minnesota.
Ia per cent in 1917 10 zoo
81 PROM n 1920 in North Dakota.
PEI g. ,.r' PAS per cent in 1910 to 85.7
iI es1t in 1920 in South Dakota
Sc per cent in 1910 to lib
i. lI ,.nt IN 1920 in Montana.
,tber words, there are 97,10O
IN o.l1 lloso -tates now being work
d BY tenants. -, o,,rorsos
u ,,rarbead are on the increase
S anu 1--we. owes increased in these four
L..~- from S99,0O9,417 in 1916 to
.S.si N 791 in 1921. Millions of
H. sgo-s If additional bonds-school,
-.5b,7ding. auditoriums-were sold
I. ..a III sHIl further to the load. How
.r.5 M one can even approximate.
80 cafe TO say however, that bond
-isb+edness of all political subdivi-
-ors has increased 100 per cent dur
no the past ten-year period. County
sy5srses have doubled and city and
hFn expenses nearly doubled.
Farm mortgage indebtedness-the
srgt liens on these $4,000 improved
arms in the finest agricultural sec
sm Of America increased from
gs992O5O9 in 1910 to $3.50, 791, 929
n ls2O-more than 300 per cent.
And this is not all. The shOrt-time
mpsr obligations owing to the $500
tsrky Of these four states increased
hgn S455,3lOOOO on June Z, 1911, to
gle50O0,0O0 on July 1, 1922-more
tan $50 per cent increase.
hWould be a difficult matter to
ns these tremendous Increased bur
isg Of taxes interest, and govern
usrt expense with $3.50 wheat. It
11i be done. But never, never, in
Gods world will it be done with the
prices which the farmer has received
for his products during the past three
years
These menacing overheads have
piled Up ike a huge mountain, but
unlike the mountain they are growing
hgher and higher every day and
rght Of the farmers life. But this
.aoSs only one side of the picture.
What about the prices charged the
ismer for the things he must pur-
na:e-maehinery, binder Irvine, lum-
@i: A moving machine, which in
i'li sold for S47.5O, in 1922 costs the
amer $40; his manure spreader for
'aafiy worth 500 now costs 500:
Under tWine for harvesting the grain
'-ch Formerly sold at z and 8 cents
I nov sells at from Ia to Is cents: 4
.ller formerly cost S135-now II
80 20. The prices of other arti-
- which the farmer purchases are
SSsieasIng IN like proportion; while or
o ]. :, II, 1922, the average price
I, n scattered grain-shipping points
.oS 1he best No. dark northern harG
I'm -Slag wheat was 1913 cents. That Is
v &c. me farmer got for his choice
I CO What did it cost to raise It
M. iio.lpiee cost records of 1877 NORTH
s o-ao'a farms in 1921 showed an av.
q ii' IS cost Of wheat production NJ
10 net per bushel. These farroc
5i ,,s scattered over 81 counties, wei
rs ,s.,ouOeo both east and west. anf
ers sissent a fair average of farm ON.
yisI5 ',.s IN the state The averag,
az s.,'u per ache was COS busbeIc 7,
bons ''ippUei acreage cost and re-
- MN, q better and more reIiabI,
rs ii-oa, We md that in each Of I'll,
5r,t;.ss 'v!"lng states the cost of pro
go .si,on IN 1920, 1921, and 1000 eT
cent t't y oy from SO per cent to 100 pe,
csiroS ne price which the farmer 70
Hiile s loT the grain. let us 90 ;
3s., ii,ufIner into the ANALYSIS Of tbi
Fro. .u.y Take the wheat cr rll,
M, ,o.l 1850 to 1929 inclusive wo ~ -,,,p
2sooo N nv tne United States more tba,
q 9e soV o..O bushels, or an avAy y,,c Q,
aur 5og'G.,yO'O0O bushels annually a6,
vorl e.e same time we sold on III
r'1l iu market 100000 bushels =,
apDroy;, ,,oor' OF an average yearly o
means ~1i u 165,OOOO0O Tho
evary 60 s'l ~ m the case of wheat f.
hv Il " bushels of wheat raised dI,y
On ' r past 42 years 165 bushels cC,I
he g ,e;ru market in competition wit
Now a 5,.; Of the rest of the worlc
iarmeSrO i ing the past three wears II
aisipe mas gone so deeplv in doh
htersS4 q surplus that he cannot no
low prics IN " what he owes, due to IN
ecs and = ne is getting for his proc o.
for eve ,T I? the high prices he nav
sys The ff.ung ne buys. Anyone VIII
ms tine yr i,,,er needs more credit &
q what h " aI ne cannot pay interes
ag for The already owes, is not speal
az fro01ssIn k loans in the Nortbwa,
Se aggrepa9teg tight; On June 80, = 1872 < 2.