Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 243, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 October 1912 — GRAIN PRICES IN 1896 AND NOW [ARTICLE]

GRAIN PRICES IN 1896 AND NOW

Financial Distress Marked Patti of Farmers Who Helped the Democrats into Power. Indiana farmers who am deliberating over which political party should have their support are reoalUng the prices they received for their prodsots in <1896, when the Democrats bad control of the nation’s affairs. Corn is thatiyear was quoted as low as 19% cents a<bushel; oats, 14% cents, wheat 48% emits. A few days ago the quotations on these products at Indianapolis were: September wheat, $1.02; corn, 77% cents; oats, 86% cents. In 1896 the low prices and hard times were caused by tariff juggling by the Democrats in the House of Representatives, assisted by President Cleveland. Upon the election of McKinley and the re adoption of a protective policy, business revived and prioes ot s farm products started upward, and have continued an upward trend to this day. “Don’t you realize,” asks the Madison Courier of the farmers along the Ohio river, “that the new wealth produced from the soil in this good year of 1912 will* approximate the stupendous total of $9,000,000,000? Subtract from that {lmmense sum the difference in the , prices for your farm products now aud in 1896, and you will then realize what a continued Republican' administration is worth to you. Wheat is worth more than twice what it was in 1896 and the crop experts put the 1912 crop at 700,000,000 bushels. .That makes a neat little addition to . your bank roll, does it not?

“The crap experts! say the corn crop this year will reachi a total of 3,000,00<k000 bushels. Thijs cereal is worth better than four tlmels what it was in 18-96—77% cents mow' against 19% in 1896. That heipstout the right side of your ledger some, don’t it? The oats crop 1b simply immense thiß year and the grain was quoted* at 35% cents per bushel in Indianapolis Saturday. That beats the, 1896 price *©f 14% cents by better tMan 20 oents on the bushel. That’s some help. It Is the same thing with hay, clover seed, thogs, oattle, and everything else you hone,produced on the farm. You who have* farmed sixteen or twenty'years know the difference between Cleveland free trade times and the prosperous times under William H. Taft in 1912.”