Milford chronicle., 1930-04-18
TELLS FARMERS STAND
ON TRACTOR LAW
(Communicated)

Mr.. Editor: Since reading the ar
ticle referring to the objection of the
fee or tax on farm tractors and en-
gines, in your paper of the 18th of
March, and noticing what Secretary
GTantland had to say, l have been
making some inquiries among the
threshermen, farmers and members
OF the legislature. The threshermen
so far as l have inquired say sooner
than pay the fee they will not thresh
any wheat except their own. A state
senator tells me he is under the i'm
preston that as the law now stands
man cannot thresh his own wheat
even if he does not move his ma
chine off of his own farm unless he
does pay the fee. Should the
threshermen pay the fee then they
would have to raise the prices for
threshing, of which the farmers have
been complaining for several years,
and if prices is raised every wheat
grower would be affected. Person
ally, not only as a farmer and wheat
grower, I am opposed to the fee, be-
cause 1 think it is an excessive tax
upon the threshermen.
1 have known several men who
have owned machines and done GUS
tom threshing and 1 have failed to
learn if one who had more money
made from the threshing business
when they quit than when they COM
menced.. In my own district there is
one man, should he pay the fee, it
will cost him about ninety (S9O.OO)
dollars to do about two weeks work,
for that is about the length of the
threshing season in our district. In
the article above referred to l read
that several groups of men have ap-
pealed to Secretary Grantland, seek
ing to have him interpret the law
that would enable them to get Off
with the payment of $500 license
fee. Mr.. Grantland does not see the
matter that way and is endeavor1ng
to collect the right fee. The owners
of tractors and engines have now
asked him to take the matter to
court and obtain a ruling there. But
again Mr.. Grantland feels that if
there is any appeal it should be
made by the farmers, so says the ar
ticle. The governor of our state was |
duly bound to sign or veto the bill;
it was placed in the hands of Secre-
tary of State to enforce. Again, a
member of the legislature tells me |
that the state highway department
has the power to place fee of this
kind upon tractors and engines with
out any enactment of the legislature.
If so, why can't this question be set
tied through these departments
without the farmers having to be
drawn through a role of red tape and
a cost to the state or court fees.
season is only three
months off and with this question
hanging over the threshermen and
farmers, it is time something was
done. Should the threshermen refuse
to pay the fee and stay at home with
their machines and the question left
for the farmers, as Mr.. Grantland
suggests, then as a state senator,
there will be trouble. This spring
the supervisor of our district went
to five different farmers who own
tractors to help him scrape the dirt
roads. They all refused, because
hey were not willing to pay the fee;
he sixth man agreed to work; what
he was compelled to go.
20 Dover and get permission and was
granted a permit until 1881, by
whom? If permit can legally given
20 one tractor owner, why not to all
and let the threshermen known it?
B. F. DAVIS.