The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is in corporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, APRIL 23, 1926. THE PLEA FOR THE PRIMARY PRODUCER.

Hokitika Guardian, 23 April 1926, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is in corporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, APRIL 23, 1926. THE PLEA FOR THE PRIMARY PRODUCER.

3 HR Hon. Mr. McLeod on Wednesday night when making a very practical plea for consideration for the primary producer, referred to the sitnaton in the United States, whore doubtless owing to the size of tho country, the situation is more aggravated than it ■' here. An article has come under our notice on the subject in question, and is interesting enough to produce in tho"main. It proceeds: A movement of world wide import is reflected in the crystallisation of the idea held by American farmers that- ‘•something must he done” to hc-tter their condition, or at least to bring it more lienrl.v in line with the prosperity prevailing in manufacturing and industrial circles. The farmer, it is unnecessary to add. is not radical. On tho contrary. he is ultra conservative. But ho is not pnrticipating in the general 2;ood times. Those who speak for him •ite statistics that prove the case. Not inly are farm prices stationary, and •ven reactionary; they are inadequate n their purchasing power. Dollar

coni means only sixty-five, or seventy cent* in liquidating a dollur of prcwar mortgage. So general lias tlic pressure bei nine that conferences are heing hold at- Washington and else, "here to discuss the situation and seel; a remedy, with or without the assistanoe of politic. it is apparenl. however, that a more or less prevalent, helief exists that tho farmer's ills can he cured hy political action. This is lmanitest in hills introduced in Congress to better the agricultural silnation, the panaceas providing everything from a reduction in freight rates to Governmental assumption and disposal of surplus production. Naturally the tariil .school of medicine has also been invoiced. The cynical take somo joy in noting tho fact that tho first short cut to a proposed cure is restriction in output that will do away "ith surplus, thus making for higher prices. W hat the advocates and beneficiaries of this plan have had to fny about an alleged similar plan as applied to rubber is another matter. The real friends of the farmer and of the larger world to which he is so important are not exactly convinced that removing sources of supply Mill he of lasting benefit. ] t . would require pages to set forth in detail all tho reasons for the seeming lag that exists in the farming situation, compared with the speeding tip process manifested in other linos of productive effort. That there is such a lag no one will deny. Tt. has affected tho farmer seriously and in many instances cruelly. NT) individual ever came into in court of justice and equity with cleaner hands. His case attracts the goodwill and interest of the most unthinking. In a measure that is had for the farmer. Misguided sympathy is apt to write a verdict for him that will he merely palliative and not lastmg; that will react adversely on tho farmer’s domestic and export customers and therefore on him. There can 1,0 overproduction. But tho world is not. suffering from it as yet. Cnpro(luetion is a worse evil, and more to he feared. The ease of food does not n„ parallel with quantity ouput as upplied to other commodities. Adjustments and limitations to meet soared f■o* to the supplies of artificial maimtaetures are possible almost bevond belief, as demonstrated so frequently and gene,ldly during the war Bnt m the matter of food the limit is soon reached. Hie farmer starts with a fixed minimum absorptive market. His troubles begins when lie overfills That fie has already done so is not quite clearly apparent, nor | ias proof been offered to sustain the claim. Faults in distributive processes, undue expenses in production and wasteful methods of domestic administration have also to be considered. Ignorance of the job is a homely but pertinent evil privately balked about, but acknowledged only in the production of mass statistics to prove a general but glaring point. Polities may help the farm situation to a certain degree, but the assistance it lends will probably ho found to have been to the injury of the other fellow. Yet the fhrseeing are already aware that the farm issue will loom large in the next Presidential campaign and in other campaigns in the interval. Its influence will rciuh far beyond the borders of the United States. No one can judge accurately the final effects of a misled agrarian political campaign. The strangest feature of this farmer unrest, or genuine feeling of grievance is the accepted belief in the hopelessness of farming as an industry. The decrease in the percentage of farming population compared with the rise in industrial population is pointed out as significant To -add to the force of this argument prophets in mathematics are producing figures to show that the percentage of farmers will continue to decrease, and that instead of

nearly half of the population being of rurtal classification, the total will drop to a third, or a quarter, or less. To one who does not Jet his sympathy run away with his judgment, this argument would seem to be in favour ol the farmer, for assuredly with more mouths to feed among the growing industrial class, lie ought to lie in an envied position. Factories and centres of production can grow almost without physical limit. But there will never lie any more land. And as per capita food requirement is almost basic, this land will have to take care of the needs of more people. It can do it, and will do it. Dr. Malthas to the contrary notwithstanding. The trouble is not so much with the farmer as with the class of friends, mostly of the political variety, who hre advising him. They are encouraging his feeling of grievance, without suggesting a way out, or explaining a few elementary economic facts. The farmer, emerging from the war, was caught between the upper and nether millstone* of an artificial inflation and a consequent inevitable deflation. He could not protect himself, as did labour, through powerful organisations, for he had none. He is really suffering now from the exactions, just or unjust that wrung high u'ages out of production. These crystallise themselves into higher freight rates, higher priced commodities and utilities. In open competition tho farm commodity suffered. If wheat went tip a certain number of cents a bushel, freight took it and labour got it. This may appear as an argument that the farmer should emulate his brother toilers. That b what he is trying to do. Still if lie gets freight rates down, lie will take it out of labour, for Hie present wage schedule in transportation is’ all that tho traffic will bear. It is the seeming hopelessness already alluded to, of accomplishing any of these things, that accounts for the gloom in the fanning class. The farmer does not as a rule get into this condition of mind. It is bad for him and no less so for everybody else, since it makes him receptive to ideas and leadership that tinder other circumstances lie would reject, Government may do something for him, but ho will bo infinitely bet ter off if he does something for himself. 'the farmer needs first to take stock of quite a number of things that are affecting his prosperity. Ho might study with profit tho totals of rising cost of local government, due to an optimism in expenditure that, increases tho tax bill and affects the actual value of his land. He has been caught unknowingly and innocently as indeed has everybody else, in the vicious circle of elective extravagance. Payment of the penalty Ivis begun. The farmer feels it first. His protest is natural. The saving clause in the situation is that the intelligence of the farmr as a class is so high that he will think many of his problem*! into a satisfactory answer without abandoning them and tbrowing himself on political shoulders for reliel. It he does this >ll will he well, for the farmer himself and the world at large. .Should the issue go into polities, the trading nations will have a greater interest in the coming American elections than usually is the case.