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Show MEANS MONEY FOR FARMERS More Attention Should Be Given to the Question of Marketing Than of Increasing Yields. Officials of the department of agriculture agri-culture are now of the opinion that more attention should be given by them to the question of marketing, than to that of increasing crop yields, says Wisconsin Agriculturist. Conditions today on the farm are such that both producers and consumers consum-ers feel there is something radically wrong with the business of marketing farm products. Higher land values, higher paid labor, la-bor, the expense of fertilization, of fighting diseases, insect and fungous pests, together with decreased yields In some cases have emphasized the needs of a radical change in business methods. Some claim that land is not being properly farmed and that what is needed need-ed is to make the land produce more to the acre. But doubling of production pro-duction will not necessarily greatly improve the conditions of the farmer or relieve the burden of prices to the consumer. Officials of the office of markets, Bay that the largest apple crop, the largest corn crop, and the largest cotton cot-ton crop in the history of the nation has yielded the producers of these crops a less amount of profit than has been obtained in certain years of less production, and it is also known that In these years of enormous crops the prices paid by constrmers in some sections have not reflected In the proper degree, the low prices paid to the farmer. The American manufacturer Is successful suc-cessful because he gives as much, if not more, attention to the question of distribution as to that of production; produc-tion; but where would he land if his sole thought be on production and none on distribution or selling? The farmer of today is in a similar position posi-tion to that of a manufacturer, but when the manner of selling his products prod-ucts is observed, the conclusion is formed that his marketing methods consist rather of "dumping" than of marketing. The government officials say that some men attribute marketing difficulties difficul-ties to the presence of so many speculators spec-ulators and middlemen, but that it must be remembered that these agents have come into existence to perform services that the farmer fails to perform per-form for himself. If the farmer does not arrange to finance his business, he must pay others to do it. If he cannot store his crops and hold them until the markets mar-kets are ready to use them, he calls Into existence a class 'of speculators who demand and receive a liberal price for taking the chance of performing per-forming this service. All of these agents or middlemen must be paid, and most of them are in a position to collect their charges whether or not the consignor realizes anything at all. The government officials' conclusion in reference to the middlemen may be more or less true to the extent that if farmers cannot sell their own crops, the middleman becomes a necessity. However, he Is somewhat of a parasite; para-site; a man who produces nothing, but lives off the profits of the producer pro-ducer and consumer. The question is: how to eliminate this middleman who often waxes fat at the expense of the farmer? |