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About The Omaha morning bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 1922-1927 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 30, 1924)
Farmer Must Be on Same Basis as Industry-Daw es — ■ " V Urges Need of Specific Relief Plan Pledges Party to Thorough Survey of Situation With View to Bringing Forth Solution. Says War Caused Distress I realize that because I happen to be a candidate for office, the question Is naturally raised in your minds as to whether that fact disqualifies me to discuss the agricultural question as it should be discussed from the standpoint of national Interest and not party Interest. Let me say at the beginning that both the republican and the democratic parties recognize the difficulties under which agrlcul I tural industry has been carried on during the last few years; that both are equally anxious to correct it; that in the betterment of the Industry of agriculture, from which our people draw the means of existence and life Itself, all parties and all the people must see the welfare, not simply of the American farmer, but of the American people. This question Is a national question. It is a nonparti san and economic question. It must not be and cannot be either dis cussed or settled as a party question. It is the most serious economic question confronting our nation to day. Upon its solution depends our future national prosperity. This is no side issue. It is a most important and complex issue. In its solution we have no precedent to fal low, for never In the history of the world, so far as I can find, haa there been a country producing and export ing in large volume, at the same time, both the products of the farm and of industry. Farm Price Equality Needed. The problem stated In the most sim ple terms Is how can equality In earning capacity be secured between agriculture and Industry. "What are the conditions of this problem which we confront? What is the situation? Disparity In earning capacity of j agricultural and Industrial population is evidenced Jn unmistakable manner . by the marked Increase In savings de ^ posits in industrial centers as com pared with those In agricultural sec tions of the country. The unsatlefactory condition of ag riculture is most evident In the case of producers raising crops of which the available supply exceeds the do mestic and consumptive demand. The distress of the wheat grower has been emphasized by leaders of agricultural organizations and by politicians seek ing the support of agricultural com munities but. as a matter of fact, the same general condition In varying de gree applies to all branches of agri culture. The agricultural and the Industrial elements in our population are abso lutely Interdependent. Lasting indus trial prosperity cannot exist if agri culture is In a state of depression and conversely agriculture cannot prosper if Industrial activities come to a standstill. Few Failures Due to Courage. While broad publicity has been given to the distress of the farmer, particularly the grain grower, it is to be noted with satisfaction that dur ing the period of post war readjust ment from which we are emerging the percentage of failures among farmers has been smaller than among those engaged in commercial pursuits and this would indicate that the Amerioan farmer has the courage, intelligence and resourcefulness re quired to solve the most difficult problems affecting his pursuit. The recent Improvement in the agrlcul AI> TERTIS EMEVT. FACE HEALED > OF PIMPLES INTEN DAYS Renewed Beauty and New Popularity Soon Won by New Jersey Girl—Had Been Suffering for Over a Year Relieved by Mercirex “I have had wonderful result! • with Mercirex, which I have beer using for about ten days. I have had trouble with my face breaking out for over a year, now all my friends remark to me how well my face is looking.” So says a New Jersey girl whose complexion now is the kind you envy. Pimples, blackheads, rashes, acne, ivy poisoning, boils, eczema— Mercirex is unconditionally guar anteed to give relief from these snd similar troubles, no matter how serious or long standing. If it doesn't, you get your money back. Mercirex is a professional prep aration, developed scientifically for use by physicians, and is still pre scribed Dy them. Not a greasy, messy, dark oil or ointment that stays on the surface. Mercirex is clean, flesh-tinted, and vanishes. It goes through the sur face skin down to the true skin. It reaches the source of your trouble, the only place it can bo cured. Apply Mercirex and go to office or shop, dance or party. Nobody will be able to detect it. You alone will remember it because the soreness and itching will be gone. Don’t suffer with pimples or other skin disorders a minute longer. Start using Mercirex to day. Buy it at the nearest drug jw store—76c. Remember the money m back guarantee. For free book on care of skin and scalp, write The L. D. Caulk Co., Milford, Del. We also recommend Mercirex Soap, which Is sold in special package of one jar of Cream and two cakes of Boao—$1.66 value for $1.26. i • V 1 - . tural situation must not b« taken as evidence that the farmer’s problem has worked out its own solution. Within tha last 90 days there has been a marked advance in grain prices which is a natural result of the operation of the law of, supply and demand. The good fortune of the American farmer is attributable to the fact that there is an estimated shortage of two hundred million bushels In the Canad ian wheat crop as compared with that harvested last year, and when one considers that the Canadian crop of 1923 furnished almost one half of the total requirements of wheat importing countries it is evi dent that a shortage in this most im portant source of supply is of vital in terest to all European countries which are largely dependent upon their imports for their bread supply. In addition to the Canadian situation, extensive drouth has been reported in Russia eliminating that country as a source of supply. Furthermore, the uncertainty attending the maturing of our corn crop has doubtless had a sentimental effect upon the prices of all grain in this country. It should be emphasized that all of th^ factors contributing to the present price level of grain are temporary in their na ture and cannot be counted upon in the future. This statement should relegate the absurd and demagogic claim that the recent advance in grain has been engineered by the so called Interests, for political purposes. Farm Distress General. The unsatisfactory condition of the growers of grain and live stock has been so widely heralded through the press and upon the platform that one Is Inclined to believe that the agri cultural depression is confined to these particular classes of growers but upon inquiry It becomes evident that the distress Is general and con sequently Its cause must be funda mental. Passing from the raising of field crops to the most Intensive form of agriculture we find, for instance, that the growers of fruits in California have been unable on the average to realize a profit from their operations during the last two years. Citrus fruit growers are feeling keenly the increasing competition of Florida and there have been carried over from last year’s crop large surpluses of raisins and prunes which naturally act as de pressing factors on the price for the new crop. This year’s drouth may relieve the California situation tem porarily just as the Canadian short age benefits the grain grower. The cotton grower has passed through the same experience which Until recently has affected the grower of grain and his improved condition is dud not to any fundamental change In the situa tion but to a curtailment of supply through the ravages of the boll weevil. Foremost among th* causes respon sible for the unsatisfactory condition of agriculture In this country la un regulated production. Until reduc tion is brought more nearly Into line with consumptive demand thers can be no permanent betterment In the agricultural situation. Under the stimulus of war time demand our wheat acreage increased from forty seven million acres, which w-as the average for the period 1909 to 1913, to nearly seventy-six million acres In 1919, since which time there has been a substantial decline, but the 1923 acreage, although 29 per cent below the maximum, still shows an increase of six million, four hundred thousand acres, or 13 1-2 per cent over the pre war period 1919 to 1913. In this con neetton, I would call your attention to the fact that of tfiis existing in crease in acreage, the states of Kan sas, Oklahoma and Nebraska have contributed five million, one hundred and twenty thousands acres. While this expansion in wheat production has been going on In the United States the prairie provinces of Cana da have increased their acreage 56 per cent, or over eleven million acres. Must Grow for Home Demand. It Is an admitted fact that in the case of any agricultural commodity of which we raise a substantial sur plus the price obtainable fot> this surplus in the world's market! estab lishes In a general way the price level of the entire crop. This being true, it Is significant that, while we exported about 15 per cent of our wheat crop during the pre-war years 1909 to 1913, In 1920 practically 44 per cent of the crop was exported, and in 1923. a year of lighter production, about 26 per cent of the crop was exported. In other words, the per centage of our wheat crop sold in the world's markets has, since pre war years, almost doubled, and conse quently has had an Increased tendency toward the maintenance of our price level on the basis of the world's market. Since the pbrlod 1909 to 1913 the increase In the average annual exports of wheat from the United States exceeds by 10,000,000 bushels the average annual export of wheat from Russia prior to the war. While there has been a marked de crease in our wheat acreage since the year of maximum seeding, 1919 (about 29 per cent). It la discouraging to note that the report of the United States Department of Agriculture, under dste of August 15, dealing with Intended seeding of wheat this fall. Indicate# that an Increase of 7H per cent is contemplated by the winter wheat growers. The value of this estimate Is quetionable, hut it at least affords an indication of the effect an advance in price always has upon production. This tendency to ignore domestic con Kumptlve demand In our seeding and planting operations Is equally evident in the fruit Industry of California, notwithstanding the very substantial Investment required In the develop ment of orchards and vineyards. In the case of raisin grapea, the pre war world’s crop was about 150,0410 tons, of which a little over one-half waa produced in the state of California. Today the vineyard acreage in Cali fornia under normal conditions would produce over 300,000 tons, and there ire still many thousands of acres un der cultivation which have not yet come Into hearing. As a result of this unwarranted expansion there Itas been carried over from last year a surplus of raisins nearly equnl to an entire prewar crop, and the aame condition exists In the prune Industry. The general situation In California is clearly shown by the fact that while the 1923 production of fruit crops was 137,000 tons greater than that of 1922, the farm value of the 1923 crop was $42,300,000 less than that of the previous year. Should Save Land. If our established standards of liv ing and the cost of labor, materials and services required in agricultural operation^ were on a parity with those existing In competing countries we might with satisfaction look upon our production of exportable sur pluses, but in the case of wheat, and to a lesser extent it is true of other commodities, our production costs are materially higher than those of other surplus - producing countries whose products we meet in competition In the world markets. The recent re port of the United States tariff com mission indicates that our Canadian neighbors, although they enjoy sub stantially the same standards of liv ing which are found In our agri cultural sections, produced last year’s wheat crop at a cost approximating 57 per cent of our production costs in the northwest states. If this is true of Canada it is clear that our position relative to the Argentine (our next largest competitor) would be still more favorable, owing to the differ ence in standards of living and the cheapness of labor obtaining in South America. With truly American spirit, desiring to accomplish the development of our' resources in the Immediate future, we have undoubtedly put under cultiva tion millions of acres of land, which should have been conserved as a source of food supply for future gen erations, and in this connection, I would state that every reclamation project, whether by irrigation or drainage, furnishes added competition for existing cultivated farms, or chards and vineyards, at a time when we are already seriously embarrased by overproduction in many lines. Push Co-operation Slowly. That the farmer, in common with the entire American public, is suffer ing from the increased burdens of taxation is evidenced from the fig ures given by the Secretary of Agri culture in his report to the president last November. It Is stated that property taxes paid by the owners of agriculaural lands In 1920 amounted to $532,000,000, while In 1922 this amount had Increased to $797,000,000. The added burden of $265,000,000 Is a factor worthy of serious consideration and can only lead to the conclusion that economies in federal, state and local governments are absolutely im perative. Co-operative marketing has received the endorsement of the more impor tant political parties. The theory un derlying this form of marketing and distribution is unquestionably sound, but in the application of the princi ples Involved, many serious difficul ties have been encountered. Up to date experience has demonstrated that cooperative marketing has fTroven most effective in Jhe case of farm, vineyard or orchard products, which are perishable or semi-perish able and which constitute, to a vary ing degree, natural monopoles, owing to the restricted areas in which the commodities can be produced. The fact that a certain method of market ing has proved successful in Den mark, with an area of less than one quarter of the state of Nebraska, does not necessarily mean that it would bring the sama results In a country comprising ns vast an area as the United States. The development of the practice of co-operative marketing must proveed slowly and upon sound lines. It must be borne In mind that such success as has been attained by co-operative or ganizations in this country is meas ured by a comparison with absolutely unorganized marketing conditions, which existed prior to the organiza tion of the co-operative. Many of the best minds engaged in working out co-operative marketing problems are of the opinion that this form of dis tribution is of value chiefly in the ■base of commodities, the demand of which can be stimulated by national and international advertising and by the adoption of standards for grading, sorting, packing and processing which will make the quality uniform ly dependable. Up to date the co operative organizations have appar ently been unable to exert sr.y mark ed influence in the regulation of pro duction, as Is evidenced by the fact that the largest dried fruit co-opera tives in California and the tobacco co-operatives of the south are all re ported to be carrying burdensome sur pluses into the new crop. Farm Commission Needed. The problems involved in co-opera tive marketing should receive most serious and continuous study to the end that this form of distribution may be established on sound lines which ultimately will bring results advantageous to the producer. The announced Intention of the president to appoint a commission to study the agricultural problem and to make recommendations to con gress, precludes the possibility of a political discussion of any of the relief measures considered by con gress or now under consideration by the leaders of various farmers' or ganizations. The necessity for choosing a com mission and for a thorough non political study of ths problem la evi denced by the fact that at no time has It been possible to secure, for any proposed plan of relief, the en dorsement of all of the lending sgrl oultural organizations. This Is evt deuced by the fact that during the last session of ingress, the docket of the house committee on agrlcul lure carried 3# hills for agricultural relief, and the senate docket shows that 13 bills were brought baforo that committee. The farmers must organise—prsfsr n,My on a commodity basis-—for the purpose of Improving marketing facilities where present coats are burdensome or can be reduesd. and what is of equal Importance, for the purpose of collection and prompt dls semination of Information In intel ligible form which will aid In the working out of proper seeding and planting programs. Dawes Plan In HenelU Farmer. My nnrne ta attached to a plain evolved by a group of experts, of which I was one, recently summoned by the allies fo suggest means for the settlement of the reparations question, which bids fair to result in the economic peace of Europe land the establishment of Ha normal consumptive demand for the products of the American farm and American industry. It will not be considered Improper for me to say In this con nection that, in my Judgment, ahould the plan become operative aa now seems likely, there will follow, with out question, direct benefit to agricul ture through increased demand par ticularly for pork products and spe cialty crops, and decided indirect benefit through the stimulation of industrial activity and consequent broadening of our domestic markets for agricultural products which always follows Increased purchasing power. Upon the agricultural problem we are listening, as a people, at this time, to three lines of argument. First, a political discussion of the question from the stump. This con sists of statements of what not only the farmer but every good cltlsen wants to see accomplished in the agricultural industry, without any practical suggestion as to the steps to be taken to achieve them. The implication underneath such argu ments is that if the people will give their voters to some particular party that in some way, somehow, by some unknown and mysterious methods, these results will be reached. Since the agricultural problem Is a wholly nonpartisan and economic problem, this kind of debate Is wholly de structive In Its effect upon the chance to find proper solutions. It may be dismissed without consideration. Must Guard Against Depression. Second, the line of argument ad vanced by proponents of specific leg islative remedies, able and not dema gogic In nature, but In which condi tions and statistics are neceasarlly viewed snd presented from the stand point of a conviction that their specific legislation will be effective. Third, the discussion by men sin cere In their desire to find a remedy for the recurrence of the distressed condition through which the farmer has passed, but who thus far hava not been able from their consideration of the facts and the relation of economic law thereto, to formulate a aatisfao tory and specific legislative remedy. The mere fact that It Is now possi ble to consider this question when the Industry Is not In the trough of a terrible depression, as It was 60 days ago, has Its great advantages. It re moves that obstacle to the gaining of perspective which Immersion In lm mediate crisis always involves. In fact, there was never a better oppor tunity presented for the proper con sideration of constructive measures relative to an Industry than exists at present, when a terrible experience, with Its lessons. Is so recent and a demonstration of the ultimate effects of economic law Is at the tarns time before our eyes. It is, however, one of the fundamen tal characteristics of human nature to be much more concerned with get ting out of trouble than, when once out of It. to keep from getting In again. This we must guard against, or the opportunity may be lost. Farm Exchange Value Too Low. The demand for the equality of treatment from the farming commu nity. made without appeal to dema goguery or partisan fooling, has been based upon broad principles. In the 10-year pre-war period, there was a value in the commodities for which the farmers exchanged their products, which received by them, allowed them to exist In reasonable parity with other Industry and without entailing undue hardships upon other industry. During the period succeeding 1920, they not only no longer received In exchange for their products the form er value, but the exchangeable value had diminished to a level rendering the Industry in some sections no long er self-sustaining. For this change In condition, dur Napiers’ Shoe Shop, Jr. j Oxford Sturdy Shoes For School Boys and Girls < School begins September 2. In this finsl busy week of pre paration mothers will appreci ate the rendincss of our shop with sturdy shoes for boy* and girls from kindergarten age * to high school year*. High Shoei High Shoes or Low Shoes Sizes: 5>i to 8... .$2.95 8 Vi to 11. .. $3.95 ll\'t to 2...$4.95 Obtainable In Tan Calf and Patent Leather. NAPIERS BAflTERIE 307 Se. 16th St. | ■■■ ml lng the two periods, which In certain sections of our country is so marked that extreme business prostration and suffering have existed, It Is claimed that a number of things contribute, outside of the effect of the war. The American prices of farm products, as I stated before, are fixed by the price at which the exportable surplus Is sold aboard In a competitive world market. In other words, unllks the condition which existed In manufac turing, when a small surplus sold abroad at the world price does not necessarily fix the American price for the bulk of our manufactures, the world price of a wheat surplus Axes the price for all American wheat at home. Tariff Aids Farmer. But, in making a claim for equality for agriculture, the leading propo nents of measure for agricultural re lief have not assailed the American system of protection nor <£> they as sail the policy of restricted immigra tion as a necessary national policy. They recognise that in the better buy ing power of labor, resulting from higher wages, there is a benefit in the increase In demand for farm products. While not asking a re versal of the national policy of pro tection of labor and manufacturing so long pursued by this government, recognizing that disaster not only to them but to agriculture as well might be involved, they do claim that the farmer has the right to be included In the governmental policy of protection —that it is as Important that the great basic Industry of agriculture be protected from th* fixing of a price on the bulk of its products at home at the figure for which a sur plus of them Is sold abroad as It Is that labor and manufacturing be pro tected from unlimited foreign compe tition. In any plan they maintain It as a principle that the objects of any measure of relief should be only the placing of the farmer in that fairer relationship to other industries In the United States which existed in the pre-war period. Such relief, if the means for it can be found. Is fatr. The farmer does not ask sympathy. He demands Jus tice. The position outlined by the pro ponents of agricultural relief is evi dence that they regard properly the protective tariff and restricted Im migration, more as a moral justifica tion of the demands for agricultural relief than as the cause of the recent, depression. War Cause of Depression. This is natural, for in the 10-year pre-war period the surplus of the farmers’ products, as at present, was sold In the world market and he bought in a protected market. Our policy of protection in no way eliminates the operation of the law of supply and demand within our own borders, but simply limits supply from abroad below a certain price level de termined by the import duty. That the protective tariff was some what lower then than now In exist ence was because it was sufficient then to give labor and manufacturing their American market. At that time the manufacturing costa of produc tion In Germany had not been less ened by the enormous decrease in the wages of labor there, caused by the degradation of the mark. Inflation of other European currencies had not then lessened other labor costs In Europe. Ths lower tariff, then, pre vented ruinous foreign competition, as the Fordney tariff does now. As to restricted Immigration, con sidering the two periods of before the war and since the war, the difference in the number of immigrants Is not yet such as to be a reel factor in the difference in labor costs. Other rea sons have operated there, including the proper organisation of labor for its own protection. Fair consideration of all the ele ments In the situation leads one to the conclusion that the great under lying cause for the recent depression in agriculture has been the conditions resulting from the world war. War Always Hurts Farmef. Agriculture has always suffered as a consequence of war. It was so In the United States following the revo lutionary war, beginning with the de pression of 17*5; following the Na poleonic wars, beginning with the de pression of 1808; following the .civil war, beginning with the depression of 1873; and following the work! war, beginning with the depression of 1921. Indeed, during the present period after the world war, the dis tress in agriculture was not more acute than in the periods after the civil war and the Napoleonic wars. A period of war at first greatly stimulates agricultural production. The increase in the demand for ag ricultural products and the inflation of credits which accompany war cre ates a situation which brings its own reaction. When, after war, reaction manifests Itself, as it does in gener al Industry as well as in agriculture, agriculture as a rule revives more than other Industry. This is chleriy because agriculture is an industry whose entrance is mors widely opened to the detached individual and no ef fective precautions exist for safe guarding it as a whole. Upon the restoration and retention of the normal relationship between the prices of farm commodities and other commodities and services de pihds the permanent prosperity not only of the agricultural industry, hut of the nation. In the midst of the agricultural crisis through which we have been passing, the leaders in thought and action among the farm ers of the United States, have set an example te the public men of the na tion,'for in their discussions, ths au thorized proponents of suggested measures for relief '‘have considered the supremacy of economic laws, the effect of whose operation has recent ly so benefited their Industry. Rele gating demagoguery, presenting rele vant facts and discussing the rela tions of economic law to them, the leading proponents of remedies for agricultural distress have exhibited that moderation in » statement and that wisdom in presentation to which (Torn to Tage >'ln*. Column One.) S-a-t-u-r-d-a-y 1650 1850 1975 F. W. Thome Co. I Saturday—One More Day of Our I Greatest August Furniture Sale And It Is a Day to Be Remembered for Its Savings ‘S I It’s our final thrust in this great annual sale, and the offerings we’ve selected for this day are so ex- , ceptional that the Saturday Furniture Buyers will find values such as are seldom offered. Your last.chance to pick up at little cost that odd piece or that long-needed suite! The savings are genuine, for prices at this time are from 20% to 50% lower than they are generally. You do not need an outlay of ready cash— ijij our very simple EASY TIME PAYMENT PLAN allows you to buy what you wish and pay as you use and enjoy it. Ijj! S: 225-00 Velour Library Suites 159.50 £££ Loose spring-filled Full webbed con | cushions and tas- struction. An ex . , . clusivelv designed sels on each piece. ' ® . .... . suite; guaranteed The upholstenng is absolutely by the genuine Baker cut makers and by the velour. Brandeis Store. I Here is your last chance to secure a finely made and beautifully upholstered library suite at an August sale price. Five suites left for Saturday, the last day.. Save 65.50. B 195.00 Three-Piece Parlor Suites 119.50 I Upholstered in a heavy beaver velour; a suite constructed just like our finest suites; loose sprintf-filled seats, webbed construction, heavy birch frame. Save 75.50. 250.00 Four-Piece Bedroom Suite 162.50 I A genuine American walnut suite of four pieces similar to picture; ami finished in the two-tone. A full sized suite in every way; last day Saturday. Save 87.50. 22.50 Felt Mattress I 15.95 It contains 50 pounds of all pure and select layer cotton felt; has the four extra row* of side stitching; good grade of fancy ticking; I all regular sizes. EASY TIME PAYMENTS 450.00 8-Pc. 9Q COO Dining Suite Will you need a dininp suite? See this one first; a suite made almost entirely of solid walnut; an old Italian designed suite; it comes in a beautiful dull shade. A most extraordinary bargain. 175.00 Three-Piece 1 Bedroom Suite 100.00 I All genuine American walnut veneer in the two-tone shade; dresser, bow end bed and roomy chifforette. A last day special. Save 75.00. Army Cots 2.50 Reclaimed and painted gray; no home should be without an extra bed. No phone or mail orders; limited quantity. 225.00 Eight-Piece Dining Room Suite 139.50 Easy Time Pay ments Made entirely of solid oakt finished in the new fumed shade: the set of chairs have heavy tapestry seats; the buffet measures a full 60 inches. Four suites left for the last day. Save 85.50. 14.00 Mattress 9.75 Fifty pound* co mbination felt and cot ton, full roll Oil edge*; good grade fancy tick ing. The Brandei* Store-Seventh Floor. 17.50 Steel Coil Spring 13.95 Contain* 99 oil tempered steel coil springs; locked in place by a pat ented process. the top ta held in place by the small helical spring*. EASY TIME PAYMENTS
