The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-12-02
Men And Murkets
 Rn D v p
By ?. F. B.

Food producer against food consumer. The ratio between food producer and food consumer in this country is stead- fly dwindling. Each year there are more to be fed and relatively fewer to feed them. As demand increases and supply | does not 1t looks as though the farmer would be in continually stronger po- sition. The same development, however, also points straight to the time when | the United States will begin to import foodstuffs. A high tariff would of l course shut much of this out and would protect the farmer in his advantage. On the other hand, as the situation de- velops and there are more consumers and less producers within our own bor- ders the overwhelming majority of peo- pie will be interested in food at the lowest possible cost regardless of source. Since we are a republic and are gov erned, in theory at least, by the ma | jority 1t is hard to see how nine-tenths | of the people are going to uphold tar If law which benefits the other tenth | at the majorities expense. If you are given to doing these cross word things try your hand at the probable position ! of the farmer twenty years hence.
 Accidents are increasing at the rate of per cent a year! At least, that is the loss ratio reported by the insurance companies who are called upon to pay claims in mounting volume. As re- suit many of the liability rates and schedules are being revised January list. It has been necessary in some cases to raise rates as much as 34 per cent to | cover certain risks. Notice of increase in the cost of protection is hardly good l news and the necessity for it testifies to growing national carelessness that not only costs money but many other things more valuable.
 Production of crude oil has increased 22,250 barrels a day, according to the lat est report by the American Petroleum institute. The jump is credited to the bringing in of new wells in Oklahoma and Texas. The oil industry, suffering for sometime from overproduction has been able to reduce stocks on hand dur ing the recent weeks but 1t sems that new gushers mean more oil, even if these who struck them wished to cur tain production, which they do not. Our $125, 5,000, 900 gain in exports regis tered during October seems to result from an increased shipment of food stuffs. Comparing October, 1924, with the same month a year ago we find that crude materials for us in manufacture | increased $13,000,000. The shipments of foodstuffs increased $79,O00O OO0 in the l crude state and about $1O,00O,O0O in the manufactured form. Partially manufac- tured goods and completely manufac- l tured goods made up the balance of the gain.
 Sudan cotton grown by the British | in Egypt has bobbed up from time to time as a possible threat to American cotton supremacy. It is a fact that cot | ton can be grown in the Sudan, and a very fine grade of cotton at that. But
 in order to grow it the land must be | irrigated. Water fro mthe Nile used for this purpose deprives lower Egypt of very necessary water. What is gained in the Sudan Is lost at the delta Just now, the British are having plenty of trouble in Egypt without cutting off the water supply of the populous dis trict to grow cotton in the Sudan.
 I Guy E. Tripp, chairman of the board Westinghouse Electric and Manufac. turing company, foresees the develop. ment of a super power system in this country which promises to revolutionize our social and economic life. He out ines central systems collecting powe, from every available source, with volt
 age as high as 220,00O which will dis
 tribute and supply power in any desired quantity at economical rates. The plaI eliminates waste of energy by balancing supply with demand and by transport
 ing power to places where it is mos
 needed. Nor will these great system:
 be confined to the cities, when the de
 velopment is completed every farm will
 enjoy electric light and power on tho
 same service and at the same rate a.
 that enjoyed by the city man.
 | Wages and hours of labor in the men!
 clothing industry have undergone (
 "a lical change, according to a curren
 report by the department of labor. Av
 craze working hours have ben reduced
 from 54.4 per week in 1911 to All il
 1924. This present schedule represent!
 an eight-hour day with Saturday after
 moons off Wages in the meantime hay,
 increased from an average of $12.30 pe
 week in 1911 to $33.52 In 1924. Compared
 with 1913 the average earnings per hou
 have increased 1S8 per cent, while hour. of work have decreased 15 per cent. Tn,
 sweatshop is apparently a thing of tn,
 past!
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