The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1928-05-04

state commerce commission In the
fixing of railroad rates to and from
the Northwest"
Situation IntoIerabIe.
"The situation is so intolerable that
there are industries located in Min
nesota that, unless some remedy is
speedily accomplished may well afford
to scrap their plants and move to the
east or the west coasts, there to build
new plants at cost that in a short
period of time would be absorbed by
the saving in shipping charges" Mr..
Nelson declared.
"When development of industry in
the Middle West Is throttled agricul-
ture suffers, just as industry is de-
pressed when agriculture is not pros
perous," he continued.
"But agriculture is facing difficult
ties of its own" said Mr.. Nelson. "The
undisputed facts reveal that there has
been a consistent decline in the per-
centage of income received by Ameri-
can agriculture since the war. In 1920
the American farmer was getting
1880 of the national income. In
1925-26, the period for which last re-
ports are available, the farmer was
receiving but 71a% of the national in
come. In other words the farmer,
comprising between 26 and 278o of the
total population, receives but 71s% Of
the total national income.
"The reduction in percentage of in
come received by the American far
mer from 1920 up to the present time
Is the more remarkable when we con-
slider the fact that there has been a
substantial increase in the efficiency
Of the farmer, coupled with the devel-
opment of diversified agriculture and
the availability of improved producing
and marketing facilities.
at Is a fact that a unit of farm pro-
ducts will purchase only 1870 as much
OF city products as before the war,
while unit of city products will pur-
chase 1910 as much of farm products
as before the war. It is interesting to
note that the farming industry is the
only one in America which pays the
transportation upon both what it buys
and what it sells. This indicates most
unfair discrimination against the
farming population of Minnesota and
the Northwest.
"There is no section Of the United
States which is so seriously hampered
by this inequality in the income of the
American farmer as the Northwest
the greatest agricultural producing
section in America.
Agricultural equipment is always
sold (. o. b. eastern points and agri-
cultural products are sold generally on
the markets at Liverpool, with the
farmer paying the freight both going
and coming.
Farmer First To Suffer.
"And to make matters still worse,
the farmer was the first to suffer the
effects of the defation period follow
ing the war and has faced constantly
increasing burden of mortgage in
debtedness and taxation.
moreover, the Fordney- McCumber
tariff act, adopted shortly after the
war, increased the tariff on the man
ufactured products of the East in a
most effective way but failed to
great extent to protect the American
farmer from competition in his own
home market against the foreign pro-
Queer"
Celebrating on the extreme need for
early action on the Great Lakes-St.
Lawrence waterway, Mr.. Nelson said
that with the cost of hauling mer.
chandise by water approximately one
tenth of that by rail, it is obvious that
If we develop our Middle West wa
terways to obtain direct access by
shipping to the Atlantic and Pacific
Oceans and thus to the world mar
kets, the transportation rates on the
products both of the manufacturer and
of the farmer of Minnesota and the
Middle West will be substantially re-
duced, tending to place our section Of
the country on parity with the In
dustrial East from the standpoint Of
transportation"
Urges River Development.
AS an illustration of the value Of
river transportation and In urging
Mississippi River development as one
means of relief, Mr.. Nelson pointed
out that users on the Ohio River
showed a net saving in transporta-
ton costs of about eleven and a third
million dollars annually and that in
the past twenty-seven years the Mo-
nongahela River improvement has
paid for itself and has earned surp-
lus Of almost $100,000,000, which has
been returned to the wealth of the
nation through reduced transportation
costs.
with the Mississippi River much
more suitable for transportation pur-
poses than the Ohio SYSTEM" Mr.. Nell
son asserted, cit is perfectly clear that
the Mississippi can furnish substan-
tial relief when properly developed
through aid of the government. This
will come only after a continued bit
ter fight against the domination of
eastern industry and its antagonism."
Speaking of the present Senator Mr..
Nelson said "he has accomplished
nothing during his five years incum-
bency in the interest of Minnesota"
and that che has been hoodwinked
into devoting his time and effort in
behalf of foreign problems to the vir-
tual exclusion of effective effort in the
economic interest of his constituents.
Must Look to G. o. p.
81 am satisfied that Minnesota must
look to the Republican party for the
needed relief" said Mr.. Nelson. How
ever, he declared he was mot I'M
mindful of the fact that the Repub-
lican party has more than glory at
stake-that the time is here when the
Republican party itself must perform
definite, constructive service in the
interest of Northwest agriculture and
Northwest industries"
"Minnesota's Republicans in Con-
gress should have the help of another
Republican Senator in their efforts to
pass effective legislation for Mime
sota."
After subscribing to the platform
adopted by the Republican party at