Belt Valley times. [volume] (Armington, Mont.) 1894-1977, 1923-12-13
HELPING THE FARMER.

The Helena Independent recently published an editorial upon
the wheat situation. In it the farmer was blamed for the over pro
duction of wheat and the consequent low price. He was accused of
putting all his eggs in one basket and Investigation of crops and
the raising of milk and beef cattle and hogs was held up as a PAN
acea for all the farmers ills.
The Independent writes learnedly of the question but one is
led to believe that they have been reading the Wall Street Journal
which is flooding the country with anti-agriculturaI propaganda.
According to the stories so far this fall fostered by the press,
there is a tremendous over production of wheat in the United
States. Another side of the story is beginning to leak through and
is that the excess wheat has all been sold and that were not for the
constant importations of Canadian wheat, the market would ad-
vance. The old party leaders are calling a conference to determine
the cost of producing a bushel of wheat. This inquiry will continue
until all the wheat is in the hands of spectators and then they will
demand a higher tariff and get it.
Hides are a drug on the market because no tariff protects the
American producer. Dairy products are receiving the best returns
for the ranchers but when all the farmers have turned to produc-
ing milk, butter, cream and cheese, over production will pound the
price down until a dairy COW will have to be sold for the price of
Gamers on the Chicago market.
The average price of western beef at Chicago will not exceed
six cents per pound with the local market slightly lower. Hogs are
bringing six cents locally and six in Chicago. Poultry brings from
eight to ten cents live weight while No. dressed turkeys are SELL
ing for twenty cents.
Can anyone find anything which the farmer raises which is
not low? Can anyone find anything which the farmer could pro-
duce which under the present system would not be low.
Haying and harvesting costs have not declined. This year our
farmers paid from 49, 90 to 100 a day and board for help. This
makes the expense of feeding a steer or hog or dairy cow,heavy.
Every bit of farm machinery has doubled in price since pre-
war times. There is not an article manufactured which the farm
er has to buy which is not almost up to war prices and nov an ar
thle can he sell which will bring him more than in 1918. Projection :
is all right when it protects all alike but protection of our manGfnC
turing interests at the expense of our producers will end in calam-
iy and ruin and will send the protecionists back to their dugouts
again to figure out another way of f~imflamming the farmer. :
Today it will take ten COW hides to buy a pair of shoes, it takes
300 pounds of wheat to buy 100 pounds of flour. 1t takes 80
bushels of wheat to purchase a cheap suit of clothes. 1t takes $50 a
bushels of wheat to purchase farm wagon. 1t takes five good
steers to purchase a binder. IL
President Cooidges address was a disappointment to agricul- .
turaists for they had hoped for tangible indications of a desire to e
better the condition of the farming classes. This they failed to "
find in the Presidents message and many republican farmers have e
already indicated a wavering allegiance to the G. O. P. because of .
this fact. NJ
Protection as it is now exempified is all on one side while the w
other side is left to the tender mercies of the monopolies at home, sc
the spectators at home and an influx of foreign produce. The man
who is familiar with ranch conditions and who believes that the 70
farmer is getting a square deal must either be blinded by reaction -
airy prejudice or so ignorant as to be unable to assign proper value
facts. Some years ago the battle on protection cost the repub- tie
lean party its dominance over the people of these United States. ia
r. seem that tbev fa;lad 70 Iearnt h lasoo, NJ usm~:.:-~ - ba
he wall points to the downfall of that party which fails to equalize m
md stabilize matters between the manufacturer and the producer W,