The Delta independent., 1923-02-23

rine.
'At the beginning of the war it cost
about cents bushel to ship wheat
from New York to Liverpool, but dur
ing the past few months it has cost
over 40 cents. The rate is now As
cents. At the beginning of the war it
cost about one-fourth cent per pound
to ship cotton across the Atlantic. To
day it costs in the neighborhood of 8
cents pound. Other products of our
farms and factories are paying similar
extortionate freight rates.
''As the world price of wheat is
determined by the law of supply and
demand and is established at Liver
pool rather than at your local market
or mine. it is clear that if the cost of
ocean transportation were today 8
cents instead of AS cents, the wheat
growers of this country would receive
substantial part of this difference in
higher price for their wheat. 1t is a
highly significant fact that on Feb
ruary 10, 1916, the cash price of No.
hard winter wheat was 40 cents higher
in Liverpool than in New York while
rate for wheat from New York to
Liverpool was 47.9 cents.
With facts like this staring us in
the face it is not difficult to see the
close connection existing between
ocean freight rates and the price the
American farmer gets for his wheat.
1t is true that we are getting good
prices for wheat now, but as Liver
pool is paying enormously higher
prices, there seems to be no good
reason for allowing the international
shipping combine to take advantage
of the crop shortage in Europe and
the ship shortage on the high seas to
boost freight rates 100 to 1000 per
cent.
"This year we have the largest
wheat crop and one of the largest corn
crops in our history. If we had ade-
quate shipping facilities for carrying
our goods at reasonable rates to the
markets of the world prices of farm
products would be so enormously in
creased as to bring a net gain to our
farmers of over $500. 900. 900 on our
wheat alone or our cotton alone
Moreover, even at present exorbitant
rates it is impossible to get ships in
which to transport to market large
percentage of our products of farm
and factory. Not only are all the
docks and storehouses of our leading
Atlantic ports glutted with goods, but
every important railway between the
west and our seaboards has its ter
min crowded with 1naiai
that a practical railway embargo re-
Gently has been declared on further
grain shipments from the west
Senator Hefin of Alabama attempt
ed to belittle the argument of Senator
Jones and discount the statements
quoted from Mr.. McAdoo and Mr.
Vrooman by claiming the reason the
price of cotton declined was not the
lack of ships. but because Great
Britain imposed an embargo on the
shipment of cotton to Germany. SEN
Senator Heflin, because that was done
Immediately by Senator Underwood,
Senator Heflins colleague from Ala
bama. Senator Underwood said:
Mr.. President. l dislike to take
issue with my colleague, but the facts
do not sustain him. During the sum
mer of 1914 and up to October. 1914.
cotton dropped from IA cents pound
to cents pound. Up to that time
there had been no embargo issued. 1t
is true that it was said by all that
this condition was due to war condi-
tions, and we swallowed it. but we
afterwards found out that war condi-
tions stimulated the price OF cotton,
and under war conditions it went from
; cents. to which it had dropped in
1914, to 40 cents a pound, when we
got transportation before the war was
ended. so that it was not war condi-
tions that brought on that situation.
1t was due solely and alone to the
fact that we did not have ships in
which to carry our cotton to the mar
kets of the world. OF course, l agree
that later on there We're other causes
that affected it, but up to October,
1914, there was no cause in the world
except the diversion of the ships
Granting that the United States
never becomes involved in another
war. the need for an American mer-
chant marine remains quite as urgent
as though our nation might become
so involved. Upon this point Senator
Jones said:
when the Boer war was on we
were not party to it. 1t was thou
sands of miles away from us. Yet we
We're dependent upon British ships for
the carrying of grain and other prod
ucts of the farm to foreign markets.
What was the result? Because of the
demands of that war. British ships