Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-09-19
BY ARTHUR CAPPER,

The American farmer Is entitled to
an American price for what he sells
in the United States. But he won't
get II while the farm industry Is with.
out that full measure Of protection
which SO long has been afforded with
out question to other American indus
tries. Until it gets this protection the
American farmer must accept the
world price for his crop in the home
market, and meet on American soil the
competition Of cheap foreign farm
labor and cheap foreign land when
ever he is unlucky enough to produce
a crop which exceeds home needs.
The tariff enables the American
manufactures to sell his products be-
hind the American tariff wall at Amer
lean prices. The American farmer.
producing. as he nearly always does.
a surplus. is compelled much of the
time to sell his wheat and meat on
the basis of prices fixed in Europe
What he buys from Europe is on the
American basis. but he is often com
PEELED to sell his whole product on
the European basis.
There is plenty of evidence that the
tariff does not protect the American
farmer fully. nor adequately, nor as
we'll as 1t protects the American man
ufacturer. In the Minneapolis market
the price of wheat Is seldom more
than half the duty above the price at
Winnipeg Canada. At this moment
large quantities of Argentine beef are
being shipped to the United States: it
Is even being sold in every important
town in Kansas in competition with
beef turned out by our Kansas pack
ing houses. Every time big ship
ment of Danish butter reaches New
York, prices for butterfat fall off a
cent or two in Kansas. The tariff paid
on foreign butter and eggs alone last
year was 100000
Big Duties Collected.
Duties were collected last year on
1896 sos 900 worth of foreign agricul-
tural products shipped to the United
States: on manufactures and non-farm
products for $3.50 900 worth
There should be higher tariff on
meat products. There should be a
tariff on hides for the benefit of the
hard.pressed cattle men. And to
further rectfy the unequal economic
status of American agriculture there
should he a reduction in few over
protected manufactured articles-no-
tably aluminium.
What the Western farmer demands
for agriculture is a plan to make the
protective system and the tariff
actually work as applied to the farm
If American agriculture were assured
of that measure of protection we reg
ularly afford to general industry there
could be no question about its pros
perity.
Most farmers believe the American
protective system. by making a high
standard of living possible through
high wages. has given them the best
consuming home market in the world.
And they would not change that. They
would not remove the actual protec-
tive ratios of the tariff. Yet. the pro-
tective system Is at bottom one of the
chief causes of that economic Unequal
ity with which American agriculture
has had to grapple in gradually los
ing struggle for the last IS years.
Farmer Not Protected.
Our protective system has protected
and fostered American labor with the
eight hour law and restricted immi
grafton; the railroads with the Esch
Cummins act the bankers with
Federal Reserve system. the manufac
turers with an effective tariff. But
the American farmer is not on an
economic. nor business. equality
with any other industry. He is not
getting his proper share ri the ma
tional income. and GOOD crop years
cannot cure this.
Decriers of all legislation tending to
put the farming industry on an eco