W* RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1163 
Replies From Candidates for Governor 
Last week we thought the discussion of “farm 
problems” was concluded. During the week two 
other letters have come in, and we prolong the dis¬ 
cussion another week to give them an opportunity to 
fie heard. The discussions have stirred up a great 
deal of interest in all parts of the State, and all 
commentors agree that no matter what is done the 
discussion will be fruitful of good results. It is 
creating a situation that no Governor will feel at 
liberty entirely to ignore. 
FROM FRANCIS M. HUGO 
1. I am in favor of repeal of the daylight saving law. 
2. I am in favor of the revision of the State agricul¬ 
tural law. so that legislation and administration of that 
law may be brought up to the present needs of the farm. 
3. As the tendency in the State seems to be to 
shorten the ballot, i doubt very much the advisability 
of electing the Commissioner of Agriculture and the 
Commissioner of Foods and Markets by direct vote. 
4. I believe that none should hunt or fish on farm 
lands without written consent of the owner, where the 
property is properly posted, aud that the killing of birds 
and wild animals and the sale aud transportation of 
same might be permitted under proper regulations. 
5. I believe that the school law should be revised to 
give greater authority to local boards for the manage- 
tneut of country schools and that the proportion of State 
moneys for the support of country schools should be 
increased. 
6. I believe that the back country roads should be 
improved in order to keep pace with the development of 
the trunk lines. 
7. I believe that farmers and other industrial groups 
should be protected in the right of collective bargaining 
within proper limitations. 
5. I am in accord with the principle that farming 
is a business, and that to keep people contented on the 
farm to produce food the product must sell for enough 
m pay the cost of production and a reasonable profit. 
0. I believe there should be developed through the 
Foods and Markets Department an economic and effi¬ 
cient system for the distribution of food, to the end 
that prices may be regulated by the law of supply and 
demand, and an open market, that the producer may 
receive an accurate return and a fair share of the con¬ 
sumer’s dollar. 
10. I am in favor of legislation that will provide a 
system of distribution of farm products in the interest 
of producer and consumer. 
11. The transportation and marketing of food should 
be regulated in the interest of producer and consumer. 
12. I am in favor of any plan that will result in a 
more economical system of distribution of milk, and one 
which will result in a fair price to the farmer and to 
the consumer. Francis m. Hugo. 
FROM GEORGE F. THOMrSON 
I. I see no objection to cities and villages estab¬ 
lishing an artificial standard of time if they want to. 
but do not believe that rural residents should be forced 
to do so to their inconvenience and annoyance. _ The 
repeal measure which passed the State Senate is the 
correct solution of the question. 
2 and 3. The present Farms and Markets law ought 
to be repealed and replaced with a new act which will 
eliminate the self-perpetuating Farms and Markets 
Council. The Agricultural Department should be main¬ 
tained solely for the assistance of production aud the 
producer, and not in any sense a persecuting or prose¬ 
cuting agency. The Markets Department should be 
maintained in the interests of producers and consumers, 
and this department should be required to establish and 
maintain market facilities which shall be most possible 
direct and expeditious for the producer, as well as 
accessible and convenient to the consumer. The scheme 
should be so devised that the heads of these departments 
'hould be directly responsible to the producer and con- 
sumer. It occurs to me that the best solution of that 
would be their appointment by (lie Governor, with power 
■ f removal to the Governor. This would make the chief 
elective officer of the State directly responsible. 
4. It is not necessary to maintain wild game condi¬ 
tions on tillable lands. The sportsman should be sports¬ 
man enough to expect fish and game only on wild lands. 
The farmer should be easily and fully protected against 
trespass and interference to his crops and stock, and no 
hunter should be permitted to enter tillable land with¬ 
out consent of the owner. The farmer should also be 
permitted to take such action with respect to wild game 
animals or birds as will protect his crops. 1 doubt the 
advisability of allowing the farmer to sell aud transport 
in the same manner as domestic animals, because it 
seems impossible to protect euch a privilege as this 
against abuse. 
< r>. Your fifth proposition is right. The State must 
give adequate support to the country schools, and the 
local management should be secure. The American 
people should not be required to give up the right of 
original thinking nor to surrender complete control of 
the education of the child to a bureaucracy anywhere. 
6. The answer is “Yes,” except as to uncompleted 
links of existing trunk lines. Back country roads can 
be wonderfully improved at comparatively small ex¬ 
pense, and this course should have been pursued by the 
State before now. Whenever possible all roads should 
be built by local contractors and with local help. There 
are seasons of the year when considerable labor is avail¬ 
able in a locality for road-building, and local pride in a 
road will insure very efficient construction. The State 
should encourage such a policy. 
7. S and 9. These three suggestions should be adopted 
by tlm State, and the Farms and Markets law should 
recognize and provide for enforcement of the self-evident 
rights of the farmer contained in 7, S and 0. 
10. Yes. 
II. The producer and consumer are entitled to 
prompt and safe transportation, adequate terminal mar¬ 
ket and storage facilities and economical distribution 
facilities, and it should be tin first duty of the State to 
take such course as will insure them. The State lias 
the power and it should be exercised without hesitation 
or pussy-footing. The principal difficulty of the present 
day.lies somewhere between the producer and consumer. 
" hile we must have and maintain sufficient means of 
■transportation and the legitimate commission merchant 
is also essential, yet this route is apparently beset with 
a lot of non-producing and unnecessary factors which 
the State c-au. if given a set of public officials who desire 
to do so. expeditiously eradicate. 
12. Yes. 
Should I happen to be elected Governor I would 
immediately appoint a competent farmer as a com¬ 
missioner under the Moreland law to inquire into the 
Agriculture, Foods and Markets Departments and re¬ 
port what is needed—and then act on his report. 
GEORGE F. THOMPSON. 
The New York Agricultural Council 
Being familiar with the workings of the Depart¬ 
ment of Farms and Markets, I believe you define the 
condition in reference to the Commissioner of Agri¬ 
culture as it existed and as it is today. However, 
there are, I believe, at least three members on this 
council who have tried repeatedly to correct certain 
evils that were started by the first council by Wiet- 
ing, Betts and Whitman. They have been unable to 
do anything. Why? Because the powers that con¬ 
trolled the first council have kept a controlling ma¬ 
jority on this council, and any changes suggested 
that threatened political fences may be discussed, 
but when the pinch comes, are squelched. At least 
one member, and I understand two others, have been 
at the point of resigning several times because of this 
situation, and one at least has sent in his resigna¬ 
tion to the Legislature, later withdrawing it because 
he had reason to believe that things might even be 
worse and his resigning would give the legislative 
leaders a chance to appoint a successor that would 
t>e more in sympathy with the present situation than 
he was. 
Personally, I have thought that with a proper 
council and single-headed department the plan would 
work. It has failed absolutely so far and, at pres¬ 
ent, is no better and probably no worse than the sys¬ 
tem it superseded, except that in the superseded sys¬ 
tem it was easier to place the individual responsi¬ 
bility. 
The point I wish to call to your attention is the 
fact that there are some members of the council that 
are trying to improve conditions, and that these 
members are in disrepute with the majority of said 
Council. FARMER. 
R. X.-Y.—As we have repeatedly said, everyone 
familiar with the facts admits the hopeless condition 
of the department as now' organized. It is not a 
pleasant duty to criticize men in high place and 
power, but someone must speak for the plain farm¬ 
ers who pay for the maintenance of a department 
intended to help them, but which actually co-operates 
with the speculators and food trusts to plunder them. 
When farmers fully realize the conditions they will 
be corrected. If detailed publicity and a fight is 
necessary to force a reform, then so much the worse 
for those who are responsible for present conditions. 
Fruit and Sugar 
The people of the Hudson Valley and other fruit 
producing sections are feeling a prudent concern for 
the outlet for the fruit crop on account of the 
scarcity and high price of sugar. The sugar supply 
has simply been manipulated into speculative control, 
and the public has been stampeded by the propa¬ 
ganda of scarcity actually to increase the demand 
against themselves. There is no shortage over nor¬ 
mal demand to justify any approach to present 
prices. The Food Administration consolidated the 
control of sugar in the hands of the sugar trust at 
the - beginning of the war, and the trust has made the 
most of its opportunities since. The government is 
now either unable or unwilling to undo what the 
Food Administration accomplished for the trust. 
The following letter has been addressed to the 
Federal authorities: 
Armin.W. Riley, Esq., 
Special Deputv Asst. Attorney General, 
New York, N. Y. 
Dear Sir: The crops of the Hudson River Fruit 
Exchange and other growers of New York State are 
threatened with less because of the bigli price of sugar, 
which will prevent housewives and canners from buying 
the fruit. We feel that ir is speculation aud not. short¬ 
age that causes exorbitant prices. We‘demand of the 
Government an immediate embargo on the export of 
sugar: also we demand that steps be taken to insure the 
fair distribution of the sugar on hand to housewives and 
canners. Hudson river fruit exchange, ixc., 
F. W. Tail, President. 
The Federal government is strong enough and has 
authority enough to locate all the sugar in the coun¬ 
try, and to enforce a fair distribution at reasonable 
prices. Failure to do so is a virtual admission of the 
power of the sugar trust to nullify the functions of 
the Federal administration. 
Farm Headquarters at Washington 
Are you not wrong in your theory that farm organi¬ 
zations should keep their headquarters away from.Wash¬ 
ington? It would seem to me that they ought to be 
right at the national capital. j. F. B. 
What for? What is the object of “headquar¬ 
ters"’? Possibly we are in error; we are all 
liable to be mistaken, but it will depend on what 
you expect “headquarters” to do. Did you ever 
know of a man who went to Washington with dele¬ 
gated power who was not finally drawn into the 
political game? We have asked that question a 
number of times, but have never had a single name 
presented as answer. By “delegated power" we 
mean the authority given by a body of farmers or 
laborers or school teachers or others to some man 
or men to speak and act for them. Come, now, name 
the men who with this political weapon in their 
hands have not caught the political disease at Wash¬ 
ington! We are personally acquainted with Con¬ 
gressmen who tell ns privately just what they think 
of political farmers, and the remarks are not flatter¬ 
ing. Washington or New York or other big cities 
are well enough if we are going to play politics 
against the other interests, but, as we see it. that is 
not what farmers ought to do. They will get the 
worst of any secret deal, and the one thing above 
all others they should work for is to bring political 
and business matters right into the open, where all 
hands can have a chance to know what is going on. 
That is the only way to make America safe for de¬ 
mocracy—or for farmers, and no class except farm¬ 
ers can develop this safety. We think the farm 
i rganizations should keep away from the big cities 
and keep near the country workers. That will keep 
up the power of the organization and fill Congress 
up with its friends. Then when the leaders are 
ready for action they will really lead. The average 
Congressman does not care so much for the “leaders.” 
lie is kept awake night by “the folks back home.” 
The Non-Partisan League 
One argument against the Non-Partisan League 
of North Dakota has been that it is a one-man 
affair with no power in the hands of the members. 
Ti hile it is true a comparatively small group of lead¬ 
ers make plans and execute them wirh strong power, 
it is also true that few organizations are more thor¬ 
oughly democratic. During the meeting of the Legis¬ 
lature the members who belong to the League meet 
frequently and discuss frankly the events of the day 
and the program for the future. No politicians or 
groups of politicians can get in a dark room and 
make personal deals. The questions come up in 
frank discussion and the majority decides. Nor are 
the rank and file of members neglected. Before any 
great question is made a campaign issue it is put up 
squarely to the members. Great meetings are held 
in various parts of the State, and thousands of 
schoolhouse meetings follow. There the question is 
explained or discussed freely. Those who are famil¬ 
iar with the history of farm organizations know that 
the League could not have continued strong and 
growthy for four years imless its policies were fully 
endorsed by the members. It seems to us that too 
many farm organizations through contact with pol¬ 
iticians fall into the great error of thinking that you 
cannot trust the common people. The trouble is that 
because of their political wire-pulling the common 
people do not trust them. When will our farm lead¬ 
ers learn that the surest way to obtain confidence ia 
to earn it by example? 
Dispersal Sales of Dairy Cows.—Central New 
York has never seen so many big auction sales of dairy 
cattle as this Spring and Summer. T.ast month three 
sales of purebreds, 321 animals in all. made a total of 
$247,S35. all being dispersal sale of high-quality ani¬ 
mals. The slight increase in milk prices secured in the 
late price contest with the Milk Conference Board will 
be unable wholly to check the stampede to dispose of 
dairy stock, as labor problems are too acute. On .Tune 
22 a fine herd of 90 head was closed out near Carthage, 
on the Strickland farm. It has seemed a good time 
during the drop in prices on dairy stock for beginners 
to get a start in high-class purebred animals. Fine 
cows in milk have sold for around $200 that not many 
months ago would have brought $1,000 to $1,500. 
Growth of Jersey Breed. —The annual report of 
the American Jersey Cattle Club shows an increase of 
25 per cent iu registration of animals over last year; 
also a similar increase in the number of transfers 
There are now over 0.000 Jerseys under long period 
tests, the biggest number of cows iu this test of 'any 
breed. Testing is being done by 775 breeders. A rec¬ 
ord price was paid for a three-year-old Jersey cow in 
this State, when Ayer & McKinney of Meredith paid 
$15,000 for Fern Oxford Triumph at the annual Jersey 
cattle sale at Mt. Kisco. Gipsy Lad, a three-year-old 
bull, brought $23,000, m. g, f. 
