The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1925-09-17
this country if the industry is to be

this country II the industry is to De
maintained.
In short, until the time comes when
the farms of this country can come
nearer than they do at present to-
ward supplying the domestic needs of
the American market in farm pro-
ducts of the temperate zone, it seems
that all of this talk about the neces-
sity for American farmers to reduce
their production in all directions
lacks any sound foundation of fact.
Wheat is the bugbear in all of this
kind of talk; yet this year, wheat is
not produced in an amount larger
than our domestic needs and there
is practical certainty that the time
is almost at hand when we will be
compelled to import breadstuffs to
make good an annual deficit here.
More than two years ago the pub
lie was excited and nislead as to
the overprodction of wheat. | found
myself almost alone in declaring no
such surplus existed; that no sort
of intelligent reasoning would bear
out the assumption of greater sup
plies on hand than would go into inn
mediate consumption that we were
more likely to be facing shortage
than otherwise. Many who two years
ago preached overproduction of wheat
now admit the greatest shortage in
rs years. This change has not come
about by short crops wholly, but by
wrong calculation. We are not now
producing in excess of 20 years ago
with far greater ability to consume.
How much sympathy does the
farmer deserve who is producing one
crop and buying all his food to live
on when it can be cheaply produced
on his farm? What is true of the
farmer is true of the country, state
or nation. AS long as we have food
in great quantities from others and
of an inferior quality to what we
can produce at home we had best
be thinking more of development,
production, distribution, cooperation
and less of over-production.
Does the remedy Of saving the
single industry in this state lie
in less production in the United
States? While our cedar of the fin
est quality is rotting and being de-
stroyed, Canada is furnishing these
United States consumers with her
shingles for no other good reason
than unfair competition. Our Ameri-
can labor and capital are idle and
our material wasting away.
If I conclude am producing in
too great quantity of any given
article can l control my neighbours
If the policy of this state
is less production, can we regulate
production of other states to produc-
ing lille products If it were possible
for the United States to put over a
policy of restrictive production, would
the world also fail to produce, would
it not be true that we would be de-
pending more and more on foreign
production and our American farm
ers be finally driven out of the busi-
ness?
If this state would put over a pro-
gram of consuming food grown at
home, manufactured articles made at
home used in preference to all others,
in fact a real program of helping
our own people in our state, we
would be serving humanity far bet
ter than so much idle talk of some
thing that does not exist. For an ex-
ample, when box Of apples sells
for $1.50 in Wenatchee and $500 in
Seattle or Tacoma, and the $500
price is more than the average con-
sumner can pay, is it production
or does our system Of distribution
need some attention? What is true
of apples is true Of most all farm
products and food grown at our very
doors are out Of our reach and we
substitute with inferior imported
products.
The old bugaboo Of over production
has been brot out with new dress
to deceive the farmer. It has made
regular appearance ever since Adam
discovered more than one variety of
fruit in the Garden of Eden. It will
appear so long as there is selfish
purpose to serve. It is used by buy
ers, but never by sellers of farm
products.