DIVISION OF PROFITS. 147 



free ground for the producers of Massachusetts to meet the 

 consumers daily, face to face, — much as I respect and believe in 

 our agricultural societies, our agricultural colleges, our agricul- 

 tural science, and our veterinary science, I believe you can do 

 more for the interests of agriculture in ten years by such a law 

 than by all these other agencies combined. 



I heard of a case the other day of a man who went to a pro- 

 vision store in Boston, and said, " What do you sell your straw- 

 berries for?" "Forty cents." "But I want to sell: how 

 much will you give ? " " Well, if they are well picked, I will 

 give you ten cents a box." I want you, gentlemen, to reflect 

 on what is involved in that remark. It tells the whole story, 

 and if I should talk from now until doomsday, it seems to me 

 that I could not say anything more than is contained in that 

 illustration. 



Let us demand that some system shall be adopted under 

 which there shall not be one, two, even to four or five middle- 

 men standing between the producer and the consumer, and if 

 we can succeed in securing the establishing of such a system, 

 we shall do something that will be of immense value to the 

 agricultural interests of this State. 



I think this question is more important than any other that 

 can be presented, so far as the wants of the common farmer 

 and gardener are concerned. Why, even here in the town of 

 Framingham, there are very many persons engaged in manufac- 

 turing and in professional pursuits, who do not raise what they 

 consume from day to day, and if there was a free, open market* 

 to which everybody could resort, it would be of service to the 

 farmers in this immediate vicinity, and of greater service to 

 those who purchased from them. Let us divide this profit, 

 which is made by three, four or five middle-men, equally be- 

 tween the producer and consumer. Let the man who by the 

 sweat of his brow produces all these articles of our daily food 

 and sustenance get better pay, and let those of us who pur- 

 chase the same pay less, and both of us will be better off. The 

 tendency in this country to-day seems to be, in everything, 

 towards monopoly. We see it in railways and telegraphs, in 

 banking and speculation, in breadstufifs and staple provisions, 

 and in dry goods ; but it has even reached the market for our 

 daily food. And it seems to me it is time for the farmers of 



