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Show HH . -.- - - -. ,-..-.,, t . .. ,t , ; H Some Aspects of the Farmers' Problems H . By BERNARD M. BARUCH BJ "r Bj (Reprinted from Atlantic Monthly) H Now that the farmers ara atlrrinff, H thinking, and uniting as never bcfor H to eradicate these Inequalities, they H are subjected to stern economic tec- H tures, mid are met with the accusation H that the; are demanding, and aro the HH recipients of, special privileges. Let H us seo what privileges tho government H has conferred on the farmers. Muck H has been mado of Section 8 of ttw H Clayton Anti-Trust Act, which ptir- H ported to permit theta to combine with H Immunity, under certain condition, H Admitting that, nominally, this ex H emptlon was In the nature of a special HI privilege, though I think It was so In HH appearance rather than Ir fact, we And that the courts have nullified It Hi by Judicial Interpretation. Why should H not the farmers be permitted to ac- HHl compllsh by co-operative methods what HV other businesses are already doing by HH co-operation In the fora of lncorpora Hj tlont If it be proper for mi to form, HH by fusion of existing corporations or B otherwise, a corporation that controls HHV the entire production of a commodity, HHb or a large part of it, why Is It not HHJ proper for a group of farmers to unite H for the marketing of their common HH products, cither In one or In several HHa selling agencies? Why should It be HHfl right for a hundred thousand corporate HHb shareholders to direct 23 or 80 or 40 HH per cent of at Industry, and wrong for HjHB. a hundred thousand co-operative HHH farmers to control a ho larger propor- tton of the wheat crop, or cotton, r HI any other product? B Tho Department of Agrlculturo Is H often spoken of as a special concession HHB to the farmers, but In Its commercial H results, it is of as much benefit to the HH buyers and consumers of agricultural HH products as to the producers, or even HHja more, I do not suppose that anyone HH opposes the benefits that the farmers HH derive from tho educational and re- HHsl March work of the department, or the HI help that It gives them In working out HHl Improved cultural methods and prac- HHI tlces, In developing better yielding va HHB rtettes through breeding and selection, HHI In introducing new varieties from re HHI mote parts of the world and adapting HHJ them to our climate and economic con- HHI dltlon, and In devising practical meas- HHB urm .for the elimination or control of HHg sstfsjipua and destructive animal and H - pjfiiijFilteases, Insect pests, and the HHf likajfc All these things manifestly tend HH tolswulate and enlarge production, HH anJpivelr general beneficial effects are HH obvious. HH It Is complained that, whereas the H law restricts Federal Reserve banks HH to three months' time for commercial HH paper, the fanner Is allowed six HH jaooths ob his notes. This Is not a HH , tpcll Klvllege, but merely such a HHJ recognition of business conditions as HH makes it possible fer country banks HHJ to do business with country people. H The crop farmer has only one turn HH over a year, while the merchant and HH manufacturer have smny. Incidental- HH ly, I note that the Federal Reserve H Board has Just authorised the Fed- H eral Reserve banks to discount export HH paper for a period of six months, to HH conform to the nature of the bust- hVhVM QMS. H The Farm Loan bask are pointed H to as an instance of special govern- Hi ment favor for farmers, Ara they not H rather the outcome of laudable efforts HH to equalise rural and urban condt- HHJ tlonii And abewt all the government HJ does there la te help set up an ad- HHJ mlnlstratlve -organisation and lend a HHj uttlo credit at Uie start Eventually HJ tho farmers will provide all the capl HH tal and carry all the liabilities them- HJ selves. It, U true, that Farm Loan HJ bonds are. tax exempt t but so are HHj bonds of municipal light and traction HJ pldnta, arid new housing Is to be ex- HH empt from taxation, In New V'ork, fof mm ten year. HJ L;. On the other hand, the farmer wads Ha of plana for municipal housing proj- mM ecta that run Into the billions, of hun HJ dreds of millions annually spent on HE the merchant marine; he reads that HJA the railways aro being favored with HJ Increased rates and virtual guaranties HH of earnings by tho government, with HH the result to him of an increased toll HB on all that ho soils and all that he HJ buys. He hears of muny manifesto Hj tlons of governmental concern for par HB tlcular Industries and Interests. Ilea HJ cuing tho railways from Insolvency Is E undoubtedly for tho benefit of the HH country as a whole, but what can be HJ of more general benefit than encour- HJ agoment of ample production of the Hj principal necessaries of life and their HJ even flow from contented producers to HH satisfied consumers! HH While it may be conceded that HH special governmental aid may be nee PH essary In tho general Interest, wo must PJf nil agree that It la difficult to see why PH agriculture and the production and dla- HHj trlbutlon of farm products are not ac- HHj ' corded the samo opportunities that are JB provided for other businesses; esp HH daily as th enjoyment by the farmer HH of such opportunities would appear to HH be oven more contributory to the gen H eral good than In the case of other HI Industries. The spirit of Amortcuu IHJ democracy la unalterably opposed, mm nl!h to enacted special privilege and HJ to the sptclal privilege of unequal op HJ portunlty that arises automatically Hi from the failure to correct glarlna H econofmS jaaanama. I am oddoscj to Wo Injccnon ot Bovcrmncnt lntto business, but I do believe that It Is nil essential function of democratic gov eminent to eqimll.o opportunity s far us It Is within lt power to U so, whether by the repeal of nrchnlo stntutes or tho enactment of modern ones. If the iiiitl-tru.it laws keep the farmers from etuleiivarlng scientifically to Integrate their Industry while other Industries find a wny to meet modern conditions without violating such stntutes, stnt-utes, then It would Recti) rensonnlilu to find a way for thofurmers to meet them under the same conditions. The law should operate equally In fact. He pairing tho economic structure on one side Is no Injustice to tho other shin, which Is In good repair. We have traveled n long wny from the old conception of government ns merely a dufcnslvo and policing agency ; and regulative, corrective, or cqunllz iHg legislation, which nppnrcntly Is of a special nature, Is often of tho most general beneficial consequences. I-vcn the First Congress pasicd a tariff act that was avowedly for tho protection of manufacturers; but a protective tariff always linn been defended ns a means of promoting tho general good through a particular approach; and the statute books aro filled with acts for the benefit of shipping, coin merer, and labor. , V rv Now, what Is tho farmer asking? Without trying to catnlogue tho remedial re-medial measures that hayo been suggested sug-gested In his behalf, the principal proposals pro-posals that bear directly on tho Improvement Im-provement of his distributing and mnr--ketlng relations may bo summarized as follows : First: storage warehouses for cotton, cot-ton, wool,, and tobacco, nnd elcvntnrs for grain, of sufficient capacity to meet the maximum demand on them nt the peak of the marketing period. The farmer thinks that cither private capital capi-tal must furnish theso facilities, or tho state must erect and own tho elevators eleva-tors and warehouses, Second: weighing and grading of agricultural products, and certification thereof, to be dono by Impartial and disinterested public Inspectors (this Is already accomplished to soma extent by the federal licensing of weighers and graders), to eliminate underpaying, underpay-ing, overcharging, nnd unfair grading, and to facilitate tho utilization of tho stored products as tho basis of credit. Third: a certainty of credit sufllclcnt to enable tho marketing of products In an orderly manner. Fourth: tho Department of Agriculture Agricul-ture should collect, tabulate, summn-rise, summn-rise, and regularly and frequently publish pub-lish and dlBtrlbuto to tho farmers, full Information from nil tho markets of the world, so that they shall ho as well Informed of their selling position ns buyers now aro of their buying position. posi-tion. Fifth : freedom to Integrate the business busi-ness of agriculture by means of consolidated con-solidated selling ngcnclcs, co-ordinating and co-operating In such way ns to put the farmer on an equal footing with the large buyers of his products, and with commercial relations In other Industries. When a business requires specialized talent, It has to buy It. Bo will tho farmers ; and perhaps tho best wny for them to get It would be to utilize some of the present machinery of the largest larg-est established ugeuclcs deullng In farm products. Of course, If ho wishes, the farmer may go further nnd engage In Hour-milling and other manufactures of food, products. In my opinion, however, he would bo jylso to stop short of that. Public Interest may be oppostd to all great Integrations ; but, In Justice, should they be forbidden to tho farmer and permitted to others? Tho corporate form of association cannot can-not now bo wholly adapted to his objects ob-jects and conditions, Tho looser cooperative co-operative form seems more generally suitable. Therefore ho wishes to be freo, If ho finds It desirable and feasible, feas-ible, to resort to co-operation with bis fellows and neighbors, without running run-ning afoul of tho law. To urgo that tho farmers should hnvo tho samo liberty lib-erty to consolidate and co-ordinate their peculiar economic functions, which other Industries In tbclr Holds enjoy, Is not, however, to concedo that any business Integration should have legislative sanction to cxcrclso monopolistic monop-olistic power. Tho American people are as firmly onuosed to Industrial as to political uutocracy, whether attempted at-tempted by rural or by urban Industry. For lack of united effort tho farmers as a whole are still marketing their crops by antiquated methods, or by no methods at all, but thoy aro surrounded by a business world thnt has been modernized to the last mlnuto and Is tirelessly striving for cfllclency. This efficiency Is duo In largo measure to big business, to united business, to In tegratcd business, Tho farmers now seek the benefits of such largeness, un Ion and Integration. The American farmer Is n modern of the moderns In tho u9o of labor saving machinery, and he has mndo vast strides In recent years In scientific tlllago nnd efficient farm management out as a business In contact with other businesses aglrculturo Is a "ono horse shay" In competition with high power automobiles. The Atnorlcan farmer Is tho greatest and moat Intractable of ladiyJiuaiisia, wjiUfi. lnjiuairlnL arff- ducntm iTTlTJ Till prmwa of Clieliuge ioi mcrclal mechanism nnd Its myriad nv cessorles hnvo articulated nnd to-ordl nated themsolvQs nil tho wny from nnt ural raw matorlals to retull salon, the business of ugilculturo has gone on la much tho ono man fashion of the hnck woods of the first part of the nine teenth century, wliou the farmer was self sulllelont and did not depend upon, or earo ory nuiclj, what tho Kieat world vns doing. The result Is tlmt tho agricultural group Is nlumtit as much nt n dUadvnntngc, In dealing with other oconoinlc groups as tho Ja: farm, er of the funny pages In tho humu of sleek urban confidence men, who sell him acreage In Central I'ark or the Chicago city hall. Tho leudors of the fanners thoroughly understand this, and they nro Intelligently striving to integrate tht-lr Industry so that It will be nn an equal footing with other bus! IVMftO |