The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, February 17, 1916, Page 7

THE NONPARTISAN LEADER SEVEN’ Distinct Victory for Cooperative Elevators (By. Staff, Correspondent): Bismarck, Fé fasresne ) tory for the chvommtio, Gstinet vie- Stwte Railroad Commission. Complies with. Equity Men’s Plea and. Refuses Demand of Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce That Mandatory Charges for Grain Stor- age be Ordered by Farmers’ Elevators. terests in: North Dakota as opposed to. the: old line elevators. and the 1!&‘Sllnxt?apqhs tbfihamber of Commerce . won in opinion and handed. downs b.y.pthe, railroad com- mission. todag, refusing to make mandatory eharges. for storing of grain. inr-elevators at primary mar- kets in the state. The ruling follows a hearing at Fargo last week at which the ele- vator rinterests of the state were representéd and heard, on the ques- tion. ~'Representatives of the Equity Coopsrative exchange: and Equity elevators: at primary throughout North: Dakota: practically. single handed took up the fight against. the propesition: ~to compel storage charges on grain, which old. line- elevators: and t%f& Grain Bulle- tin; organ of the: Minneapolis Cham- ber: of Commerce; advocated making. mandatory. Favorable- to Cooperators In taking the view of the case ad- vocated by the Equity the railroad commission. recognizes the strength and standing of the cooperative movement: among the farmers. Inh its opinion. the commission remarks that elevators operated. on a.cooper- ative: basis “more: nearly represent: the grain growers themselves than. any other class of warehousemen® and hence concluded’ that the farm- ers’ themselves. were opposed to mak- ing storage charges: mandatory, de- spite the fact that nearly all eleva- torr men present, except the Equity managers, were: for mandatory charg- es’ and outnumbered’ their opponents at the Fargo: hearing: The: statute at present provides that' no elevators: shall: charge- more: for storage of’ grain.than the follow- ing: schedule: 20 days free, .1 cent per. bushel per month for the first thiree: months' thereafter, = one-half’ cent per- month- thereafter. The statute does naot make any: charge mandatory: but the Commerce and' - old: wanted it made mandatory. Their contention: was it was’ discrimination: for- some- elevators: to make charges: and’ others not to: The Equitincontentibn- was- that to make the ch ri%- mandatory would discourage- the- holding: of” wheat' at primary markets and! tend. to result im: the’ dumping of* all grain on' the: market at once; glutting: the: market' and making favorable conditions: at Mineapolis for the. grain gamblers. Chamber of To Run Own Business “It is one of the:objects-of the co- operative movement to encourage farmers to hold’ their grain, either on their farms or in storage in' ele: vators “at” primary markets,” said J. G. Crites, manager of' the Equity: Co- order - markets: line: elevators: opegative: elevator at Lisbon. Dump- ing: of the. grain on the market. all ationce.is.a. big evil. If.is true some Equity. elevators make: a storage change, mostly at: a less: rate than provided. as a maximum. in the stat- ute, while other Equity ‘elevators. do not make such charges. We do not want anything in the law which will prevent the boards of directors of our various: elevators . making. such charges as they seé:fity 6r no charge at all, according ito *what they think best for their lodal “conditions: In other words we want to be left to. run our own business?’ Mr. Crites added no little zest to the meeting by:“insisting that. each * elevator man who took the floor in favor of mandatory charges state whether or not: he- was connected, in any way with: the: Minneapolis Cham- ber of Commierce;” Several elevator men repredented ‘themselves: as: man- agers of “farmers” elevators but: under questionilg admitted they were conmected’ with commission firms with: sedts: -on the chamber. One of these. was A. A. Lee, who heralded’ himself ‘as- manager of the: Farmers®* HElevator: company. at Sharon: “Are- you: not comnected with: the firm. of Randall, Lee and Mitchell, which: has: a: seat’ in: the: Minnneapolis chamber?” asked. Mr. Crites: “Of course- I’ am,” said: Lee;. “but: what! has: that: to' do:with it?" Iiguess: that: doesn’t” take: my: rights: away to explain: my. position on this charge tottlié: railioad: commission: as: am: ele: vator manager.’” “Not: at. allj’”” said. Crites.. “All’ we: want! is: that: each: person: favoring; these: charges:- state: his connection, if any; with: the. chamber. We: are connected: with: the: Equity and’ prougd: of it. Why should you. object to stating your: conneetions?”" Subsermentt speakers: were: careful: to mention: their connection. with: the chamber when: they: got: up to. boost the: proposition: of! mandatory. charges. | Eguity: representatives: were loaded! up: on: facts: as: to: the: connections of: those: opposing: the: Equity stand" and! saw that: each: speaker played’ fair: : The Equity Cooperative: exchange: was represented st the hearing: by Mr. Crites, A. E. Frie; of Berlin: and: W. H. Bell of Sheyenne;. and the: co:: eperative movement was" represented. by several other managers: and: directors of Equity elevators. Mest! of the old line elevators and several CHamber of Commerce firms had; rep- resentatives. present. The Equity delegation made no secret of the-fact it is believed' the move for mandatory: charges on' storage came- directly from the. Minneagolis chamber. 2 ty: Position* Equity representatives- presented: the following formal statement in writing to the commission: “We are: opposed: to this board making any change in the present ruling on the storage law for the- reason that we believe the source from: which. the prorosition eman- ates is: not for the business imterest of the farmer, but for ‘Big Busi- ness’ in its most vicious form. We believe: it. is- only another scheme fathered by the line companies to extract. a Yittle more: tribute from the farmers of North Dakota...... The present campaign that is being instigated bi; members of grain ex- changes: with the old argument to sell your grain in the fall and buy an option against it is most vicious and. if the elevators are: compelled to charge the maximum rate of storage it. w’yill give support to this propogan- a Equity- men pointed out that. old line: companies: at: the present time are in many instances paying four to. five cents more for grain than Equity elevators: in the same' town, in an attempt to put the Equity out of: business: They ask. what a little charge-for storage on grain amount- ed to when' this: kind: of cut-throat competition was going. on. pposes: Chamber Gambling. “Whydgn't: you take your grain you have: In. your: elevators over to these competitors and; sell it to them at: this advance in. price th‘v are: offering?” asked Chairman V H: Stutsman of’ the: railroad’ commis- sion. . “That’s- just: what' the old. line companies: want;”” was: the reply of Mz, Crites; “and: that!s- the last thing: we: will. do. We: don't: propose they: shall: get: our graim and’dump it on the: Minneapolis: market: so they can: lower: the: price-and; gamble in it. Purthermore; in. refusing: to sell to them: we: are: oné!.')‘:;adoptiqgf the same kind: of® a- rule: the: Chamber of Com- merce: has:adoptedi. A-member of the Chamber’ of® Commerce recently was expelled: for: buying: grain from the -Bquity: Cooperative exchange. The charge: against: him was that he was c}iea%fnggt.iiv farmers of North Dako- ta: by: ing rom 2 to 10 cent less for grain mght from the Equity than he could buy it from other eleva- tors. They won’t deal with us; we won’'t deal with:them. What is more,;. the cooperative priciple is so thorugh=- ly. believed in and followed' that' they: can’t keep grain away from us by this cut-throat competition. We get: all. the grain we can handle. The: Equity movement is beyond beating. They can’t beat us by raising the: price: to the farmer, so they try to get after us on this mandatory: charge matter.” . : P. M. Casey of Lisbon, represent-- ing, the state union of" the American Society of Equity, also made an ef= féective talk .against’ the proposed:: ruling. Among others: present, most--: ly’ boosting for mandatory charges;. were W. E. Tatlin of the’ Northwest. Elevator: company, Minneapolis; F.R. Durant of the Grain- Bulletin, Minne- apolis;’ E. ‘E. Mitchell, Great Western: rain company, Minnearolis; L. Du Marskall, National: Elevator company;.: Minneapolis; -A:+B. Dickinson; Car~ gill" Elevator' company, Minneapolis:. Commission: Ruling: In its ruling the railroad commis- sion. says: ... “While the commission is- impress- ed’ with' each: of: the contentions:: first, that a uniform rule is desirable: in' order to prevent any chance: of.: diserimination; and second, that. oo, the other hand- the: farmer. should: be: encouraged to hold his grain: from: the: market if’ he so desires; until. sach time as the market would right, yet a careful reading: of the: statute - convinces: us- that it: pro~- hibits the commission from: making: any such rule in the absence of a.. showing' that the granting. of free:: storage results in abuses: which: amount to- a violation of’ the: anti= diserimination” act: “While- the “cdmmission would in- sist"upon its" jurisdiction to. make a: rule: which“would, prevent any abuses. growing out: of’‘this -practice the. anti-discrimination. act, before- we. would; be justified in taking such a_step we: would have: to: bz thorough- ly. convinced: that’ evils of this: sort existed, and'in:view'of the fact that, although warehousemen of the- state were quite generally’ represented at. the conference;. no specific com- laint was: made; and; the- commissior Eaving received no- complaint from: the grain producers which would: béx traceable to.-any: suchcevil, we are constrained to hold that it is neither- pessible or' feasible at~ this- time: to. that would’ violate. the spirit or letter’ of” - make any- ruling’ or’ regulation: re= " garding: any. fixed charge for~ the storing .and”handling; of’ grain on the: part of’ the: wareliougemen.”” { "The" opinion" was" written' by: Com=-" missioner: man and: coneurred: in’ by Commissioners: 0. P N. Anderson:! and W. H: Mann. £ { efiééfls; We:are: in: possession: of the.names:of the school. board atr that time. ; © 'And here is a fellow who: could not successfully- teach one: term: of school, to the satisfaction: of the: patrons; andi now he: says that: farmers: who try to orgamize tlemselyes: are playing: the: “fish: act” and: bucking: “get-richsguick” games.. He: alse: in= forms: us: that banks, railroads: and® elevators: ha¥e-'no- part or lot in robbing the: people. We: are: glad: to: know: that. the: news- paper fraternity does:not contain many such-men as:Ji U:. Pavlik:. And’ you. farmers: who subscribe: for and: read: the: Express;. how: do you like to:be called: “bellyaching: fish?”” : [T is: interesting to notice hew: eongress: discriminates: against the farmer in: the matter of taxation: and' ap- propriations. The farmer, as the records show, pays the big end of the taxes and gets: the. little. end of the:appropriations.: Two items of the 1915 appropriations. are of especial inter- est ip: this: conneetion.. Here they are: , g _Total for militarism, $421,633,528. : Total: for agriculture; $19;865,832. In: other words the. government: appropriates. an average: of $1.90 per family t0 aid: its:farmers; and taxes them more: than: $20 per family to. pay the cost of past and possible. future: wars.. For a number of years the government has: been appropriating 60 per cent of its total income for militarism and: the scheme now: before congress: propeses to: increase it to 70 per cent, leaving but 80 per cent for alli other purposes. : : SRR To carry out this scheme plans are being worked out in: Washington that will inerease the burden of taxation, which. will, in the main, fall on the farm and the home. = It. is safe: fo"say that if the farmers: of ' this: nation had their proportional share of representatives: in: congress there: would: be a.different. story to. tell. ' For: the: sake’ of the republic-and’ for: their own. sakes, the: farmers. must. have a share in the making of laws: and: receive: their full: share: of: prosperity. If: there is:mnot:some. such: bal-- ance of power the government. will: grow: top: eavy and. crumble: to ruin; because the present arrangements carries all’ wealth: to: the top- of the: structure: and: taxes- the: foundationr until’ it can-. not: bear the strain:. | Glothir advertising: they ‘can do. members; and: geb big: results; MY, BUT. HOW. m'ADVEmglsmG, INCREASES. ".Our readers will notice that the Leader has a wonderful increase of new: advertising in this issue—more than a whole page of new ads; and: these. are of' great. variety—some local, some: from maxy points in the:state:and some from firms outside the.state. : There. are. firms- telling. you about seeds,. buggies. and engines,. . cigars, tobacco, confectionery, ‘general’ merhcandi paper, legal blanks, hardware and furniture, harness, trunks, auction- eer, .bakery, bank, ice cream, farm implements,.and: a: hoxde: of. things: for farmers are. offered. for sale: through th This array. of new advertising speaks.louder than:the Leaderitself . can about the value of: the Le:Ee ¢ chants-of every character are beginning to: know. that: if: they wish:to i reach, them effectively through.the i reach them effectively: through. the Leaderr:. This-is: added: to. from the fact that the members are showing: by. their patronage- that they appreciate this ackmowledgement that the Leader: is supreme adver-- » tising‘mediumiin all paxrts-of the state. l And how: the members: of the League: are taking: hold of the: + Leader’s half-price.offer to print:their proposals:for sale, their wants, + ete., im: the: small! ad: or: classified column; they know that it brings: ¥ r and it is therefore the’cheapest: dvertis € our: classified ads grow: to: greater: numbers, and if’ you:have;not: placeds yours: with; us, asking: for' what: you: want which: somne: other farmer- may have, or. offering him: for. sale that which he needs; you better:do:se:at: once: at: our cut rate to - er as.an advertising. medium. Mer- results: far- above any other: pi y NEWS- Crg e o s the. classified. columns. Leader.. ‘This. is added: to: from: