Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1933-11-23
URGE FARMERS
TO BACK LEADER
Asked to Withhold From Market
Other Products Than Cream and
Rutabagas at AskOv Meeting.

RutabagaS at ASkOv Meeting.
The farm strike in general wa:
discussed at meeting of the Asko,
unit of the Farmers Holiday Associa
ton at the D. B. S. hall Monday eve.
ming, with Harold Peterson of At
water, as the principal speaker. Mr.
Peterson advocated continuance of the
strike for another two weeks while
John Bosch, president of the state
organization, is negotiating with
Northwest governors for an embargo
on farm products in case the next
Congress fails to map out a compre-
hensive farm program that will give
relief to the tillers of the soil.
No farmers are satisfied with pres
ent price levels, said the speaker
Those of society who have more than
plenty will not give up their riches
and so the masses must organize tc
bring about change. The Farmers
Holiday Association is the fastest
growing organization in the country
1t now has over 100000 members
The speaker frowned on the cur
tailment of production program by
Secretary Wallace, maintaining that
it is more the problem of distribu-
ton which must be solved. He called
it blind leadership and had hoped
that some man like the president of
the Farmers Union, Mr.. Simpson,
would have been chosen secretary of
agriculture.
Farm prices are higher today, said
Mr.. Peterson, but the farmer is worse
off than three days after the adop-
ton of the Agricultural Adjustment
Act for the simple reason that what
he buys has gone up more than that
which he sells. The federal act has
not yet benefited the farmer.
Struggle for Justice.
Control of the marketing system
must be acquired by the producers,
said the speaker-not forcibly but in
an educational way. Revolution is
proof of ignorance and it comes
on when things have been left to
slide too long. But when enough
people have been hungry long enough
there is sure to be revolution. There
must be eternal struggle for Justice.
The speaker advocated control of
the flow of products to market in
order to obtain cost of production
Otherwise the flow of the products
will control the price.
Even in the years from 1909 to 1914
the farmers were short on parity as
between prices on farm products and
those of industry, maintained the
speaker. The farmers added ST more
debt per acre annually in those years.
There is no fixed relationship be-
tween what the farmer receives for
his commodity and what the laborer
in the city pays for the finished pro-
duct. Bread formerly selling at 1Qc
per loaf went down only to SC last
year when wheat was the lowest it
had been in the history of the country.
There have been instances of the
Farmers Holiday Association taking
the law into their own hands, said
the speaker, in such cases as where
the statute law conflicted with the
moral law-where the eviction from
the home was entirely beyond the
bounds of reason. Railroad bridges
have been blown up in Iowa as re-
ported in the daily newspapers, but
you can bet ten to one that the farm
ers did not do it, said the speaker.
Examples of how labor organizations
have been blamed for violence when
the employer had it done in order to
stir up sentiment against the labor
was brought out.
Farm figures, showing cost of pro-
1uction, and prepared by E. e. Ken
1edy, secretary of the Farmers Union,
we're discussed briefly by Mr.. Peter
son. The cost of production for but
,erfat is now Sc cents per pound, he
said.
Urges Withholding.
John Percy of Pine City, president
If the Pine County Holiday Associa-
ion, urged all to withhold their farm
products from market for another two
weeks in order to back up the work
If John Bosch, and let Pine county