BIG DIVIDENDS 359 



this increment in price was turned back to the farmers' company. 

 Obviously, the more competition of this kind, the stronger would 

 grow the farmer company. The fight was then shifted to the 

 terminal market, and every effort was made to prevent the com- 

 mission merchants or other dealers from handling grain from these 

 farmers' houses. The fight now reached a critical stage, and the 

 farmers' elevator movement was on the verge of being quickly 

 put to death. Two commission firms on the Chicago Board of 

 Trade at this time (1903-1904) came to the rescue of the farmers' 

 movement. 6 They sent speakers and organizers into Iowa and 

 soon organized a large number of farmers' elevators. They re- 

 ceived and sold the farmers' grain. The fight was won. The 

 opposition collapsed. The farmers' elevator movement soon 

 spread to twelve States, and in each State so-called Farmers' Grain 

 Dealers' Associations were formed, with their own federation and 

 their own official organ, the American Cooperative Journal. 



The immediate effect of the farmers' elevator movement was 

 to lower the spread in prices between the terminal and the local 

 markets. Here the farmer had won his greatest victory, had over- 

 come the greatest evil in the grain trade. He had won his fight 

 partly by his own organization, partly by the help of members 

 of the Chicago Board of Trade. Now a large per cent of the grain 

 received on all markets comes direct from farmers' elevators. 



The Fight in Canada. It is worthy of note that a similar fight 

 was had in Canada, and that there the farmers won a very signal 

 victory, and succeeded in forming the largest cooperative company 

 on the American continent, with a business exceeding in volume 

 one hundred million dollars a year. 



Farmers' Elevators Copy " Regulars." The farmers' elevator 

 movement having become a successful commercial venture is now 

 copying many of the practices of the "regulars." The farmers 

 have secured seats on the grain exchanges two in Winnipeg, 

 three in Minneapolis, and two in Chicago. The Canadian com- 

 panies are already operating "line elevators." They own their 

 own terminal elevators, including hospital elevators. They have 

 their private wire from Winnipeg to Calgary (one thousand miles) . 

 In the United States many farmers' companies now operate lines 

 of elevators. One farmers' company owns a terminal elevator. 



Big Dividends. One great weakness of the farmers' elevator 

 is its undue fondness for big dividends, many of these houses 



6 These firms were Eschenburg & Dalton, and Lowell Hoit & Company. 



