THE STORY OF THE NONPARTISAN LEAGUE 



Farmers often take for their profits what a manipu- 

 lated or speculative market offers, without any regard 

 for the law of supply and demand. For as long as the 

 captains of industry have the power to fix their own 

 compensation for services rendered, they will be gen- 

 erous to themselves and appropriate for their own use 

 a part of the farmers' share. 



President Yoakum of the Frisco railroad system 

 asserts that the consumers pay $13,000,000,000 for 

 what the producers receive $6,000,000,000. In other 

 words, it costs $7,000,000,000 to distribute $6,000,- 

 000,000 worth of farm products. We know who re- 

 ceives the $6,000,000,000, but who gets the larger sum, 

 the $7,000,000,000? 



It would be folly to expect the origiaators of the 

 present system voluntarily to improve it. If improve- 

 ment is made it must come through the efforts of the 

 producers themselves, moved by the same selfish im- 

 pulse for profit-making that originated the present 

 system. 



To make progress farmers must stick together. The 

 general belief prevails that farmers will not stick to- 

 gether. Farmers themselves have come to believe this 

 fallacy. This is not at all surprising, since this doctrine 

 has been most vigorously promulgated by those inter- 

 ests, political and otherwise, which are best served by 

 cultivating individualistic instead of co-operative effort 

 among farmers. Farmers, therefore, must organize. 



The college was under the control of the 

 state administration, which was the prod- 

 uct and exponent of the old political condi- 

 tions in North Dakota, had zealously sup- 

 ported "Better Farming" and proclaimed 

 "Appreciation Week." It is hard to see 

 what there was in these remarks that was im- 



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