The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1930-10-08
FARMERS SELL ONLY
AS MUCH GRAIN AS
Cash NEEDSF FORCE
Policy Of Storage on Farms and
in Terminals Arises Out OF
Low Quotations
TEN-YEAR SLUMP WORRIES
While Industry Has Had Its
Booms, Farming Has Been
in Slough, Is Argument

st. Paul, Oct. 8.-F-"Don't faint
when you read these prices" is the
phrase that was written on a country
grain elevator bulletin board at San
ish, N. D., by Tom Nelson, manager.
This phrase probably best expresses
the sentiment of farmers regarding
the present prices being paid at
county points of anything that could
be written, the weekly agricultural
review of the Farmers Union Termi-
nal association says.
Accompanying the phrase" the
review says. twas a list Of prices being
paid at that station. which is repre-
sentative of western North Dakota.
The prices per bushel were:
No. / dark northern wheat, Sc
cents; No. / durum wheat, 40 cents;
flax, $l.45; rye, "a; barley, Is; oats 10.
1.-THE don't faint phrase describes
the attitude of the farmer. Bewilder-
ment and amazement that prices for
grains should sink to the low levels
they have reached are expressed by
the growers. There Is less OF bitter
ness than bewilderment.
"At another elevator, shipping to q
private grain commission firm ana
not q cooperative, was written,
Hoover prosperity standing on one
Legge,' as indicative Of the bitterness
of the battle with the c~ooperatives for
the. grain business.
Sold Below Cost
"A 20OO-mile trip to grain elevators
Of Minnesota, Montana and the Da-
kotas indicated that farmers are SELL
ing only as much wheat as they are
forced to sell. They r storing on
farms, in local elevators and at termi-
nails to a larger extent than ever be-
fore. However, many are forced to
sell their wheat at any price they can
get to pay up labor and store bills
and taxes.
I'm some cases farmers have hauled
their grain to the local elevator,
looked over the prices. and hauled
their grain back to the farm. One
man paid a combine harvesting bill
of sos for $50 acres Of wheat near
Sanish at an extremely low combine
rate Of $1.sC AL acre and received
$l05 for the wheat from that land.
He would have saved $50 by tot.ching
q match to the gran or turning live
stock to. feed In 1t. but had expected
= larger yields This issAn e&tsame
case, but not ,,nusu6l. in some sections
of western North Dakota and Mon
tana.
This argument was put up to one
farmer: Farmers r not the only
ones suffering from poor business
conditions. Other industries have
been hurt. Sugar, cotton, rubber,
copper and other commodities are
relatively as low as wheat. Don't
you think that industry has suffered
as much?
Not Yet Feeding Wheat
Great blazes, man. was the
prompt but emphatic reply Other
lines of industry have been hit
in the. past. year, but indus
try generally doomed along for IL
years and while we have been facing
depression nearly every year since
1921. Wall Street Is complaining
about one year Of bad business after
10 years Of booms. III they have Il
face 10 years of depression like w
have. they will have something *
complain about
"InQuiring about wheat feeding re-
vealed that little wheat has been fet
on farms q yet. Farmers plan *
feed barley, rye and low-priced grain'
first and expect to feed wheat on
large scale when pastures r NJ
longer available If prices r not i'm
proved in the meantime, The gen
eral sentiment Is that wheat Is worth
much more for feeding than for sell
ing at present prices"