CHAPTER II. 



THE FARMER AXD AN EXPORT BOUNTY. 



AMONG the minor questions upon which effort is being 

 expended to secure political action is a proposition that 

 the United States shall pay an export bounty on 

 "staple" agricultural products, the word "staple" probably' 

 being intended to include cotton, grains, tobacco, and any 

 other important agricultural products which we might export 

 largely, and whose home price is entirely controlled by the 

 prevailing prices in the markets of the w^orld outside the 

 United States. I speak of tliis as a " minor" question in the 

 sense that it has never yet obtained sufficient following to be 

 able to secure the endorsement of any great political party. 

 It has, however, been energetically pushed among the farmers, 

 and has been indorsed by one or two State Granges. It has 

 never, however, obtained tlie support of the National Grange, 

 or any other important national body. 



A bounty on exports is a tax paid by the entire nation for 

 the benefit of tlie producers of the article on which the bounty 

 is paid. The supposition is that, although the bounty will be 

 paid to the exporter, who is not likely to be the producer, the 

 latter will be able to obtain for his product a price increased 

 by the amount of tlie bounty. 



In the case of the United States it is claimed that such a 

 bounty is just and necessar^^ for the reason that our stai)le 

 agricultural exports, like wheat and cotton, are produced 

 enormously in excess of our home consumption, and, although 

 nominally })rotected by the tariff, are in reality not protected 

 in the least, for tlie reason that, as we always have a great 

 overplus, there is and could be no imports from any source, 

 of any consequence. The price of the produce exported is 

 determined by the competition of the entire world at the 

 centers of consumption, and will always be, as compared with 



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