The Omaha morning bee., 1923-11-22

and consumers. Next to meter mar
kets, better and cheaper distribution
is the farmers biggest problem. So
long as IL costs as much or more to
market what the farmer grows as it
does to grow it, the consumer will
pay too much for his food and the
farmer get too little for his crops.
''3o-operation, then. IS the flrst
means of securing better markets for
the farmer in the future than we have
now. The second is to bring the
foreign markets closer to our farms.
One way to do that is to build the
lakes to the gulf deep waterway pro-
posed by Theodore Roosevelt, the
most effective friend the farmers of
Omerica ever had. At the great con-
servation congress at st. Paul he said,
1.-The lakes to the gulf deep waterway
and the development of the waters
which flow into 1t should be pushed
to completion vigorously and without
delay The Mississippi should be made
a loop of the sea and work upon 1t
should. be begun at the earliest possible
moment"
"The lakes to the gulf deep water
way was strongly endorsed by Presi-
dent Harding's nationwide agricul-
ture conference. With its connecting
links, it will add to the prosperity of
the Mississippi valley infinitely more
than the Panama canal has added to
the prosperity of the United States.
No one has objected that we were
looking too far ahead in expending
beyond our boundaries the hundreds
of millions of dollars necessary for
the construction of that great water
.4. No one should object that we
are looking too far ahead in asking
for the construction within our
boundaries of this great deep water
way, not only at far less expense. but
with an immediate return in lower
freight rates, better markets, and In
creased prosperity far and a way
greater per dollar expended than the
Panama canal has produced or ever
can produce.
Would Reduce Expense.
THE second waterway which should
form part of the great program of
bringing the farmers market nearer
to hin, is the st. Lawrence deep
waterway, which will open the lake
ports to the ocean commerce OF all
the world, and make it possible to load
cargoes OF wheat for Liverpool al
most at the back door Of the Dakota
wheat farmer. Another step Is the
proposed coastwise inland waterway
from Boston to Galveston, which
would not only bring the products of
the eastern but also OF the western
farmers more cheaply to the cities,
and in return place the heavier prod
ucts of the manufacturing east on
the farms of the central west at cheap
err rates than ever before.
Another link in this great chain
of waterways Is the Lake Erie and
Ohio river canal, which would unite
the agriculture and the resources Of
the northwest with the agriculture and
the industries of the Ohio and the
Mississippi valleys.
with such a system as this nine
tenths of the worlds ocean going
ships could deliver their cargoes un-
rNsoken to what is now the interior OF
the United States. and the farmer,
both as buyer and seller, would reap
the inevitable benefit.
Moreover, hand in hand with
stream control for navigation would
20 stream control for waterpower, for
drainage of swamp lands, for frriga-
ton, for domestic and manufacturing
water supply, and for the elimination
of destructive floods. 1t is q plan OF
such far.reaching usefulness that its
benefits and advantages would be
IA xub n
In the greatest cities and ON the lone
Hest farms and all the way between.
Project Not Visionary.
''This is no visionary project. IT has
long been approved and advocated by
the practical men who know most
about IL. Great things have been done
for other classes in the United States.
tt Is high time that equally great
things were done for the farmers.
"There are two other main lines OF
endeavor which will help the farmer
TO better markets In the future. One
is continuance of state and federal
aid to good roads. That aid ought
to be apportioned so that only a prop
err share Of 1t is expended on main
highways between centers Of popuia-
ton, and so that the farmer on the
back country road gets his fair share.
The other Is the bringing of the
domestic market closer to the farm
bv encouraging the tendency already
in existence for our new manufactur-
ing Industries to locate In our smaller
towns and cities. There Is one way
sure to do 1t, and that is by giant
power.
- Giant power means uniting all
sources of mechanical power. whether
derived from water power. from coal,
or from oil, I'm great systems OF cleo
trical transmission, which Will serve
factory and farm alike, bring power at