294 HISTOET OP THE GRANGE MOVEMENT; OR, 



CHAPTER XVI. 



THE MIDDLE-MEN. 



A Leading Cause of the Distress of Farmers Working at Starvation Prices 

 High Price of Bread Who is responsible for it How the Middle-Men 

 grow Rich at the Expense of the Farmer An Unequal Division of Profits 

 The Farmer receives too Little Comparison between Agricultural and 

 Manufacturing Profits The Story of Two Brothers A Lesson for Farmers 

 Profitable and Unprofitable Labor Contrast between the Middle-Men 

 and the Farmers Where the Profit on Grain goes A Palace and a Farm 

 House Who pay for the Splendors of the Large Cities Need of the Far- 

 mer for Ready Money How this Necessity is taken Advantage of The 

 Local Grain Dealers How they Plunder the Farmers The Excess of Wes- 

 tern Production The Real Cause of it. 



ONE of the principal causes of the great distress pre- 

 vailing among the farming interest to-day is the low 

 price which the farmer receives for his products. There 

 can be no question that his labor is repaid at too low a 

 rate, and that until he receives a fairer price for his toil 

 and skill he must be content to struggle on as he is 

 forced to do at present. 



Now, we are aware that there will be many who will 

 take alarm at the idea of an increase in the price of 

 breadstuffs, and who will meet our assertion with the old 

 argument that the people pay enough for their bread 

 already. We are fully aware of this. We believe that 

 it would be a great evil to the country at large to in- 

 crease the price of bread, and that that article is already 

 sufficiently high ; but we maintain that this state of 

 affairs is not due to the farmer. 



