62 The Illumination of Joseph Keeler, Esq. 



the home production, the demand, too often assisted by com- 

 binations in almost every article of daily consumption, at once 

 advances the wholesale prices often after the farmer has sold his 

 crop at an average price. For instance, I saw the point finely 

 illustrated in the paper of yesterday. The cold season every- 

 where has prevented the tomato crop in Ontario, grown by the 

 farmers for the canneries at a price fixed in the summer at 30 

 cents per bushel, from ripening well and the farmers have hardly 

 got half the number of bushels per acre of other years. Of 

 course the canner was short, too; but as the last year's supply was 

 exhausted the demand is the same, so the canners agreed to add 

 to the price per can an extra amount to enable them to make the 

 usual amount of money or even an increase in profits, while the 

 farmer does not get a cent more per bushel than last year. And 

 so it runs all the way through the story and, until the farmer 

 finds some way of protecting himself or helping himself or being 

 helped by business methods and capital, whether private or of 

 government, this rural decrease of population through loss of 

 courage by the farmer will and must continue. 



"We have academic dissertations as to the depreciation of the 

 gold standard and too much gambling in stocks, all of which is 

 true; but I am sorry to say that the plain, simple, economic 

 causes affecting the farmers' capacity to produce cheaply and, 

 after producing, to get a fair proportion of the value of the 

 product, are too often quite overlooked by the exponents of 

 political economy. 



"Just how we are to help in bringing about a better situation 

 and enable the producer and consumer to be in the one case 

 assisted and in the other relieved of the excessive burden of high 

 prices, I do not wholly as yet perceive; but we shall not desist 

 until we have discovered a method. We must discuss it further. 

 Good night!" 



