FARMERS' CONGRESS. 



209 



the big city, and the fact that boys and girls who 

 might earn thousands of dollars and fill a truly 

 dignified place in society by putting forth their 

 efforts on the farm are willing to live in the cities 

 of the land, many of them having received elab- 

 orate educations, and to work indefinitely at $800 

 to $1,000 a year. 



President Candage, in his annual address, said 

 that " in importance, magnitude, and value the 

 products of the soil represented by the delegates 

 to this congress overshadow all other interests 

 making for the comfort, happiness, and well-being 

 of our country and its people. ... I have been 

 greatly impressed by the magnitude and value of 

 one of the minor branches of agricultural industry 

 that of eggs and poultry. We enjoy the golden- 

 voiced cackle of the barnyard fowl as she makes 

 known the fact that she is a national wealth- 

 producer to the annual amount of $140,000,000. 

 Transportation is of vital importance to the 

 farmer and to the development of interior por- 

 tions of our country in agricultural and other 

 products. To the railroads the farmers of a large 

 portion of our land are indebted not only for con- 

 venience of transportation to their places of abode, 

 but for the value of their farms and the crops 

 they produce. River and harbor improvements 

 by the General Government are of interest to the 

 farmer, for they tend to lower the cost of trans- 

 portation by competition with the railroads. 

 Whatever conduces to lower freight rates and 

 better security to life and property on land or 

 sea the farmer should advocate on the score of 

 economy and for the sake of humanity. The time 

 has come for the farmers, manufacturers, and 

 commercial men to unite and demand from our 

 National Government an American mail service to 

 South America and to other foreign countries, in 

 steamships under our own flag. South American 

 countries are our neighbors and natural allies in 

 trade and commerce, and yet, for lack of direct 

 mail and shipping facilities, Europeans supply 

 them with the bulk of their imported commodi- 

 ties. One half of the amount paid to foreign 

 shipowners for freight on our exports and im- 

 ports should be paid to American shipowners, 

 and it would be if they could build and sail their 

 ships on equal terms with- the foreigner. A canal 

 should be constructed and controlled by the 

 United States to connect the Atlantic and Pacific 

 Oceans, for the benefit of our commerce in time 

 of peace and for the benefit of our navy in time 

 of war. The need of the farmer is a better educa- 

 tion for his calling an education that shall equip 

 him with a knowledge of soils and crop adaptabil- 

 ity to them that shall produce the best results. 

 The question of closer uniformity in State laws 

 regarding marriage, divorce, inheritance, taxation, 

 mortgage foreclosure, right of redemption, and 

 right of woman to hold and to dispose of her 

 property, is suggested for your consideration." 



The Hon. L. Bradford Prince, ex-Governor of 

 New Mexico, paid a high compliment to the presi- 

 dent's annual address, and moved that there be 

 appointed a committee of five on the president's 

 address, with privilege of reporting at any time. 

 The motion was adopted. 



The following committee on resolutions was se- 

 lected: P. Mengo, of Arkansas; W. H. Clarke, of 

 Colorado; W. M. Dewees, of Illinois; W. E. Will- 

 cutts, of Indiana; D. F. Hoover, of Iowa; S. M. 

 Knox, of Kansas; E. F. Wetstein, of Kentucky; 

 George M. Whitaker, of Massachusetts; J. H. 

 Reynolds, of Michigan ; Isaac Noyes, of Nebraska ; 



. R. Demerest, of New Jersey; L. Bradford 

 Prince, of New Mexico; A. R. Smith, of New 

 York; J. L. Garber, of Ohio; J. O. Thomas, of 

 VOL. XL. 14 A 



Oklahoma; E. W. Cooper, of Pennsylvania; J. B. 

 Killebrew, of Tennessee; J. L. Greer, of Texas; 

 J. H. Long, of West Virginia; Spencer L. Gates, 

 of Wisconsin; El wood Mead, of Wyoming; J. A. 

 Johnson, of North Dakota; G. W. Kroiner, of 

 Virginia; Gov. Keith, of South Dakota; S. O. 

 Bowen, of Connecticut; J. J. Laughinghouse, of 

 North Carolina ; George M. Doyle, of Missouri. 



Led by Mr. W. G. Whitmore, of Nebraska, the 

 congress decided to transact all its business before 

 going on any excursions or accepting any enter- 

 tainment. 



A short address was made by Mr. F. A. Con- 

 verse, of New York. He discussed the reasons 

 why the efforts of the farmer should be directed 

 toward an intelligent cheapening of production. 

 He thought the farmer is too conservative. He 

 must change with changing conditions. He should 

 exercise his brains more and his muscles less. 

 With the same amount of industry, brains, and 

 capital as much can be got out of farming as any 

 other occupation. Make the product the best and 

 cheapen production. Let us have better business 

 methods. Run a cash system as far as possible. 

 Interest the boys in a financial way and they will 

 stay on the farm. 



At the evening session Alexander R. Smith, of 

 New York, read a paper on our shipping inter- 

 ests. He said: "About 20,000,000 long tons of 

 American agricultural products are annually ex- 

 ported from the United States. To-day the cost 

 of carrying wheat from the Pacific coast to Eu- 

 rope is more than $10 a ton. A fair profit is possi- 

 ble at $6. Rates on grain from Gulf ports to 

 Europe are $5 a ton about double the normal 

 rate. Foreign ships practically monopolize our 

 foreign carrying trade. On a 30-per-cent. advance 

 in ocean rates the American people have paid 

 $60,000,000 above the usual freight charges during 

 the past year, of which our farmers have paid half. 

 Legislation that will build up an American mer- 

 chant marine will, by substantially reducing 

 ocean freight rates, give our farmers larger mar- 

 kets and better profits. Unaided, American ships 

 can not compete profitably with foreign ships pos- 

 sessing the triple advantages of less cost of con- 

 struction, less cost of operation, and government 

 aid. During the past sixty years Great Britain 

 has paid out more than $240,000,000 in subsidies 

 to British steamships. If we do not change our 

 policy of national neglect of shipping we shall, 

 in the next quarter of a century, pay out $5.- 

 000,000,000 to foreign shipowners. If the United 

 States will pay in twenty years to American ships 

 in the foreign trade a sum of money no larger 

 than the American people now pay .to foreign 

 shipowners in one year, at the end of that period 

 the larger part of our foreign carrying will be in 

 the hands of our own people." 



He was followed by Mr. El wood Mead, of 

 Wyoming, in a paper on irrigation investigations. 

 Ha said : " In less than half a century irrigation 

 has transformed the appearance and possibilities 

 of the western third of the United States. The 

 very essence of success in irrigation lies in the 

 control and distribution of the water supply. The 

 importance of this was not at first appreciated. 

 The pioneers of irrigation paid no attention to 

 their titles to streams or to the volume used. As 

 a result, the water from streams is not used judi- 

 ciously. Some ditches have too much water, 

 others have not enough. Even in California, 

 where water is so valuable, there is no adequate 

 record of rights or systematic division of streams 

 among the multitude of users that depend on 

 them. In only 3 of the 15 arid States is water 

 divided under public supervision. It is the opin- 



