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About The Bend bulletin. (Bend, Or.) 1903-1931 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 29, 1921)
TAOV- 4 BBND nCtLK-MN. KN1), OHICOON, TlitJlWDAY, )KCICMUklU:o, tf2t. The Bend Bulletin (Weekly EdlUoa) Published By THE 11E.YD DCIiliETIN (Incorporated) .Established 1003. ROBERT W. SAWYER, Manager An Independent newspaper standing for the saunro deal, clean business eloan politics and the best Interests or Bond and Central Oregon. One year . .. .........$2.00 Six months l.o Three months ............. .50 THUUSDAV, DECEMBER 29, 192 THE PARMER'S COND1TIQN' Ordinarily one docs not look to official reports for anything mora than dry-ns-ilust statistics and techul cal discussions that havo no Interest to tho goneral public. Nevertheless there are occasions when a report will rise to unusual heights and pre sent either such good wrltlug, such able discussion, or such apt doscrlp 1 tton as to make It noteworthy. In Us opening paragraphs describing tho condition of tho American farmer tho annual report of Henry C. Wallace, secretary ot agriculture reaches these heights. Wo think our readers will welcome the opportunity ot reading this portion of the report and we re print It as follows: ' Tho farmer receives his money wages in tho, form ot payment for his crops and live stock. These wages nro not paid regularly- every week or every month, except in part In the case ot some dairy farmers, but at Irregular Intervals varying from three months to n year or more, de pending upon the naturo of the crop. Neither rate ot wages nor hours of work- is agreed-upon In advance. The consuming public pays, but It makes no agreement as to the amount It will pay. The farmer is urged to produce abundantly, but the price paid him for what he produces is set after the amount of his production Is known. The buyers drive the shrewdest possible bargain. The more tho farmer produces, the less the buyers want to pay. Thus we have large production penalized. Very often indeed, it is the general ruIe--a large crop brings the farmer fewer total dollars than a small crop. And often a large crop sells at less than It costs the farmer on an aver ago to produce It. Such is the con dition this year. The energy and the Intelligence with which the farmer works, the number of hours he works, the cost he Incurs In produc ing crops none of these is consid ered In determining the price. "The farmer, therefore must work on faith. He must himself carry all tho risks of weather, of heat and cold, of flood and drought, of des tructive storms, of Insect pests, and plant and animal diseases. He must plant enough to make sure that there will be food for all, with the practl cal certainty that in unusually fa vorable seasons the result may be a large surplus, and that this sur plus, which can not be hidden, prob ably will cause prices lower than the actual cost of production. He must be willing to accept these low prices with the best grace possible and ad- Just his living expenses to meet his reduced Income. The American far mer always has done this. He is a philosopher, as every man must be who works with nature and is sub ject to nature's varying moods. And he feels his responsibility to feed the people. If the farmers ot Amer ica should cease work for a single crop season, millions upon millions of pooplo would ruffor for food. They havo never censed work, no mutter what tho trials and hardships. "In nn orderly world tho furmor are ablo ono year with nnotlter t so adjust their production to tho needs ot consumption as to enjoy rainy rcasuuaoio sunro of tno nn tlonal prosperity. During tho period ot development when farm land Is In creasing in value, landowners look upon the enhanced value of tin-1 land as accumulated compensation to offset unprofitable crop years. Thl thought has consoled them under many distressing conditions of crop failures and low prices. As they ad vanco In age and come to tho time when they must censo hard work they have reaped this accumulated value through salo ot tho farm or through renting ou tho basis ot value, Tho people ot America havo until very recent years boon fed nt a price below the actual cost ot producing farm crops, it all ot tho factors which property outer into that cast are con sldcrcd and If tho farmer should bo allowed a wogo no larger than tho wage paid for tho cheapest labor. In tho case ot tho Investor or specula tor, increase. In tho vnluo ot farm land may bo unearned increment. In the case of tho farmer it is earned Increment "Tho farmer must carry also thoso risks, due to changes In business both at homo and abroad, which 1 n tluence the demand for farm prod' ucts; that is, his prices are Influenced by the ups and downs of business over which ho has no control. In per tods of disturbance, which Interrupt foreign trade or Interfere with homo Industries and thereby decrease do mand for farm crops, the farmer Buf fers through tho reduction ot his wage by decreased prlcess for his crops. When such periods come at a time when the cost of production is unusually high, and especially if one bad year has followed another and thus finds the farmer heavily in debt because ot the losses ot tho previous ear, the result is serious'and makes trouble for the farmer nnd every one else. But the farmer always works. Ho always produces. Ho grows food In abundance. "The crops of tho year 1920 wcro produced at the greatest costs ever now. These costs were jujtlffed by prices which prevailed at planting production mid far fewer Velntlvely than tho prices ot other commodities, Tho farmers' wages had thus beult re duccd to about tho prownr level, hut tho wages ot other people, whether paid direct or through tho prodltcts of their work, remained very .near tho war level and from CO to! 100 por cent or more nhovo tho prownr level. This was t disturbing condi tion, but tho farmer hoped and had n right to expect that by tho 'time his crops of this year wero rendy for market other .workers and other man ufacturers, for tho' farmer Is 'both, would bo willing to accept tholr shnru ot tlio burden of economic rebuild ing and that tho prices ot other things, Including wages, which havo tho greatest Influence on such prices, would come down to a fnlrer nnd more nearly minimi relation to the price of fnrm products. Tlieru was no attempt on tho part ot tho farm ers to restrict production. In sotno cases, ns with the cotton farmers of the south, there was nil effort to re adjust acreage by substituting oliu crop for another. Hut It can nut bo said that tho farmers of tho Unit ed States combined to hold up their wage. They showed tholr good faith nnd tholr sonso of responsibility In trying times by planting plentifully. reducing' their own expenses In every possible way, and working harder nnd longor hours. As In wnr time, ninny -women and girls worked In tliu fields the gasoline sales tax hill, tho prop erty tax Iden being ahniidoned, and in any ot those who hud opposed tho latter, voted to plnco tho burden of fair finance upon the motorist, Arguments against .tho property tax, also hold against tho giiHollmi tax. Tho principle Is tho snnui dis criminatory class legislation for sec tional bonoflt. Both sot vicious pro. codonts ami aro an nhitso ot tho tax ing powor. In addition, the gas bill robbed the highway repair fund. What might ho called tho "ngrnr Ian bloc" consisting ot 1 1 senators stood pat ntfilnst tho fair bill and prevented ItH lognl passage. (Irent credit Is duo tholr efforts and they truly reflected tho .BontlnttiiitH of tho rural sections they represented, Tho road protection and roguhi (Ion hill program went through with out n struggle nnd much other lee Million of emergency character was enacted. As It Is, tho special session only cost $220,000, much of which would hnvo been covered in defici ency appropriations next year, In stead ot over $3,220,000. Real Estato Farms Insuranco Rentals Bend Investment Company (The oije of Service) 8120 Wall Street, Henil Loans Investments PORTLAND INTER KST Tho people of northeastern Ore- east by way ot Halt Lake and Idaho nnd to tho latter all California tra vel. Whether this menus they would oppose tho designation of the Central Oregon and The Dnlles-Cullfoi'iilu nn primary highways under Ilio Hilpps McDowell net, which would put thtim In line fur federal ulit, does not tip pear In the news hut It Is apparent Hint they nro quite willing, at least thnl these two should he passed over No one hero, wo Imuglue, has any objection to the Old Oregon Trull or the Pacific hlgltwuy, but we are Meet1 ly Interested In the Central Orego nnd The Dnlles-Cnllfnrnlu. Appar Fifteen Years Ago .,tlt ,1... 1 1, oil i, ,i,l l ,1..,,. I If mil. mill Kutintlnllv (I,,,-,. f ll...,.ll,. "" " ., , ' '.. . . 'rouil committee nro not Interested And yet Portland wants on for a 1'ortlaml fair. fnn. linvn fit,-,.,, 111" ,,in,l.. t. Ml vm fleht niriilnst Dm ,l,,l..iinilMi, i,v n, "" l.l-l..v.i. .. '.'., I "I'lU'ei t - " J vuiiMtlinniWM II i IIU mi'VlllfVtl Wnlluln cut-off rond as a part of the becuuso reduced Iticomo ma da Ini-! um 101,(1 "ysteni. On the other side posslblo tho employment of Other held. As tho result of largo ocrenge very hnrd work, nnd a favorable season, the crops ot 1921, whllo not as large as in boiuo yoars, yielded moro than wo need for our own use, hut prices are most unsatisfactory. "Had some way been found for tho pcoplo In need to buy our sur plus nt prices which would cover the cost ot production tho American farmer would have boon prosperous and tho country would have pros- ered with him. It Is u terrible In dictment of modern civilization that witn sucli abundance hero there are millions of pcoplo overseas suffering for the bare necessities and other millions starving to death. And sure- wo are sadly lacking In our under standing of economic lawR or in our djustment to them when tho pro duction of bounteous crops grown by tho hard labor of 13,000,000 far mers and farm workers and their tho fight for the road lias'beoii led by the Portland Chamber of Com merce which bases Its nrgiimotit on tho deslro to divert to the Columbia highway some of the travel that now pnsses through Wnlln Walla and turns off toward Senttlu nnd other Wushlngton points. The opposing argument is Hint not only will such trnvel bo diverted but nlso much of thnt which now comes around I Won't they cuss? Of course they will through Pendleton will bo lost to that I Rob a real fellow of two cents and 1m section. In addition R Is said that before any new highway dcslgna- TIiniR NEW ANOLK (I. a (lrniide Observer.) It Is planned to Invite the world to come to Oregon In automobiles for Is this not to ho a "Highway Ex position," and those who came In machines will find mi extra two cents tax on gnsollne every guest buys Hons nro miido tho commission should sec to It that vnrlous other roads now on the highway map should bo finished. Tho question Is now being consid ered by tho commission nnd It is not likely that any hasty action will be taken. It would be desirable, never theless, for this section iih represent ed by tho Commercial club to give Its support to the Pendleton people hates you worse than If you robbed him of n large amount. Oregon can not afford such petty larceny tricks And still again, don't you know tho present gasoline tux for good ronils Is only hanging by Its eye brows. There Is not a legislator who worked on (ho highway laws which Included the special tnx ou gnsollne who would bet n slick dime that It will stand tho test of tho courts. Suppose some old chap from the would drop as low as they did, butIlvo ' during the winter they accepted these sold at lower prices per sale unit expressed In dollars and cents, but probably never boforo have our far mers generally been compelled to ex change their crops per sale unit for such small amounts ot the things they need. The purchasing powor of our major grain crops Is little moro than half w'hat It was on nn averago for the five prewar years of 1910 19H, Inclusive.' "When we remember that approx imately 40 per cent of all our pcoplo porting the action of the chnmher In favor of a number of primary high ways In Oregon and adjacent states under tho l'hlpps-Dowell federal highway net, which will link up ex isting highways and make thorn moro serviceable to tho public." These primary hlghwnys, accord ing to tho news Item, are tho Old Oregon Trnll and tho I'nclflc high- a - . .... I I I i I. l. .l l.i l. .1 time. They wero incurred willingly families Is permitted to play such a!"1 ,H"-',r " uccntiso , is m inn sn-u nnwuiu Kn.w rl because th farmer hn,i Wn im lorgo part In naralyzlnc our Indus-' of ""' local Interest in tho matter of this monkey mid parrot game Ore- over and over again that overseas tries and business at home. For Mint J but ticennso the Portland chnmher. U:on Is Blurting in to piny nnd take ho, wns n h.mrrv -nri,i .J is What has hamiened. The Durehas- Us road program. Is also slighting i the gasoline case to tho supreme h fed nnrt hnf th -i,i t, Inc nowcr of the nrlnclnal'farm croim Central Oregon mid wo may need , court, mid suppose the court should strong demand for all they could pro- of "r 1921 at tho present time llcl 1,1 0,,r "' '.'k'"- duce. Tho nrodiictlnn w. inr- .hlis lower than ever before known. In I wnn tnnl Portland program farmers worked very hard, and ell- t,mea Past 801,10 of thc8 "OP have''" nnl'en " recent news Item re matic conditions favored good crops. But before the crops were harvested prices had so decreased that at mar ket time the crops sold for far less than the cost ot production, consid ering the country as a whole. Hun dreds of thousands produced at heavy fluanclal loss. "The farmers had taken it for granted that war prices could not continue. They had expected lower prices for their own products. They had not thought that their nrlces rule the gnsollne tax gmuo out, then what would poor Robin do (hen? We would nut only lose the boasted plan of gutting revenue for the fair; we would not only sink under the weight ot bursli criticisms from guests of other states who drove here to the fair and were robbed of two cents a gallon on gas used, but we would lose the present money for roads which the gnsollne tnx Is now producing. Our Portland brothers are excel- way. To the former tho Pomanders i lent at figures, but sometimes they would sot go nil traffic from the 'figure without reckoning results, (From the columns of The letin of December 28, I PUD.) Dill- Thnt business In lliuiil Is on the Increase Is shown by a comparative statement of the records of the Bond Postofflce, Money orders Issued show a decrease, mid rulicellatlolia mi Increase The Buckley oxpicsti line Is to bo expanded Into a new singe nurvlcu from Khiiiilko to Bund, giving dully service both wnys. It will bo run by way of Mudins, Forest, Culver, Redmond, mid l.alillaw. Contracts have been let In Red innud for the clearing plowing, seed ing, nnd fencing two ncres of tho cemetery. John Hteldl loft Thursday on u business unit pleasure trip to Minne sota. I.. I). Wlest returned to Ilnnd Sat urday night after mi absence of three weeks. During that time he hits been engaged In nn exploring expedition In the Metollus river sec-Hon. Deer lire reported In he plentiful on the desert In the southern part of the county, and to were killed with in two or three miles of Redmond. The deer are being driven out of the mountains by the snow. Mr. mid Mrs. II. C. Kills repre sented Demi at a neighborhood guth- erlng on the Allen & llnrues ranch neur Clllto Fulls Christinas day, ROVIDK ICK RINK FOR IJKNI) CHILDREN Vacant Half llhx k Hooded To Allow Shilling Danger nf Ilex linti-. Itllil- To lb- .tloblr.l. To provide n skating rink for the hlldreii of Bend which will lark tho lancer of the ice margins nlonit the dge of the Deschutes, the vacant half block east of Bund street, be tween Louisiana and Kansas avenues was flooded lust week under the di rection of Fire Chief Tom Cnrloii The plan wus carried out at the suggestion of tloorge Hoover of his city. very low prices with their usual phll osophy. They borrowed more money to keep themselves going, and in tho face of a continuing decline In prices of almost all of their crops they put out ample acreage In the spring of 1921. At that time prices of farm products were much below the cost of Uhc Central Oregon Bank D. E. nCXTER, President OARLETO.V n. SWIFT, Vice President E. P. 3IAHAPFEY, VIco Pre.,nil Manager . H. M. STEPHENS, Cashier BEND, OREGON 70 Per Cent of Us Are Dependent at the Age of 60 t Are you to be ono of the hcven out of every ten pcoplo vtlio, when the MiiidovtK of ago creep upon them, must turn to friends or relative for charitable. Hiistulnrnca? Or will jou Mart prepulrlng now for the tlmo when you urc no longer nblo to work. Tlio New Yeir offerN u oplendld opportunity for you to start thnt MivJugs iiccount. A mnll saving each month will mean much to you In years to come. he QDimtgnl Oregon ai D 1!. HUNTEit, Prmldemt W. P. MAHAPKEY, Vlcn President In the open country and are I dent upon what grows out of )ll, tho baneful effect upon thojvJ M 1 of reducing tho purchasing; vv WW jm tm of that 40 per cent so far be- IjS MM L. Wi Is obvious. The farmer IbB-4 T ! to practice tho ft IB L k B1 depen the soil. nation power of that 40 per cent so far be low normal Is obvious. The farmci1 is compelled to practice tho most rigid economy, to wear his old clothes, to repair' his old machlnory, to refrain from purchasing every thing he can possibly do without, and to deny himself and his family not '3 alone luxuries but many of tho or-j'sra dlnary comforts of life. This In turn li-sj has forced the manufacturer to re-5$ strict his output to tho lessened do-iw mand, reducing his own purchases of ljjj raw material, and greatly reducing gj the number of his workmen. Men 5ra out of work must live on their sav ings and are In turn compelled to. practice economy by reducing their own buying, and thus still further re strict the farmers' market. And bo we find ourselves In a vicious clrclo which wo are having difficulty In breaking through." FAIR BILL KILLED (Salem Capital Journal.) Tho gasoline sales tax bill to ralso 13,000,000 for the Portland 192G ex position Is dead, as It ought to ho. If tho people vote upon It, It will bo because It Is revived hy Inlll ative petition for the general election in November. There is little question of tho Illcg allty of the senate procedure whereby It was sought to overrun tho consti tution and turn a minority Into a ma jority, and thereby place tho amend ment tfpon the ballot tor the special election, Tho constitution cannot bo altered by nomito nction. Tho fair promoters Induced tho govornor to cull the special session so as to adopt measures to submit to tho people tho raising of $3,000,000 for tho fair by direct taxation. Be fore the legislature mot, a majority of both houses had agreed to voto against direct tax measures for fuf fl'nancjnv . Announces Reduction in Price, Effective Immediately NEW PRICES IN BEND TOURING CAR, $ 1 365 COACH $1650 One hundred and twenty-two satisfied Essex owners in Bend will tell you that money can not buy a four cylinder ear that will give more satisfaction than the Essex. See one of the new models at the Pioneer Garage m m K9 m 4t The fair boomers then swltchod to; mmmm