28 The Tariff and the Farmer. 



the amount of $42,137,000, and of this over $29,000,000 

 came from tobacco. The total value of Class 2 imported 

 into the United States in 1900 was $146,908,000, or 34.97% 

 of all agricultural imports. 



Duties are nominally levied on all agricultural prod- 

 ucts that are similar to those produced in the United 

 States when these enter our ports. Cotton is the most 

 important if not the only exception. But what has chiefly 

 given color to the view that agricultural interests were 

 protected has been this 4% interest. The producers of 

 this insignificant fraction of agricultural production, 

 such as are mentioned in Class 2, have made noise enough 

 to be what they have represented themselves to be, the 

 agricultural community. In this respect they resemble 

 that interesting but not very valuable creature, the coy- 

 ote or prairie wolf. It is said -when a few of these are 

 around a camp, the volume and variety of sound is so 

 great that a tenderfoot can hardly be convinced that he is 

 not surrounded bv a multitude. It is a case where the 

 tail seems to wag the dog. 



Outside Class 2, who ever heard of farmers organized 

 to advance their interests in the political field! The two 

 of these most heard from are the growers of wool and 

 tobacco. The latter received greater public attention in 

 1902 from the resignation of the President of its associa- 

 tion, Mr. Frey. The selfish near-sightedness of his asso- 

 ciates concerning tariff legislation was more than he 

 could endure. 



For many years the wool-growers have made them- 

 selves felt in Congress, undoubtedly making a greater 

 uproar over their sheep interests than has been made by 

 all other farmers put together. These men are respon- 

 sible, by reason of high duties on raw wool, for more than 



