In the late nineteenth century, which political demand was a central goal of farmers movements such as the Populists in order to improve their economic position?

Introduction / Context:
During the late nineteenth century, many farmers, especially in the United States, felt squeezed between low crop prices and high charges imposed by railroads, grain elevator owners, and banks. This led to the rise of farmers movements and the Populist movement, which demanded various political and economic reforms. The question asks which specific demand reflects a central political goal of such farmers movements.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The period is the late nineteenth century, often associated with agrarian distress.
• The actors are organised farmers movements and the Populists.
• The focus is on political goals that influenced legislation and public debate.

Concept / Approach:
Farmers at that time were often in debt and dependent on middlemen for storage and transport of their crops. They demanded fairer treatment, including regulation of railroads and grain elevators, lower interest rates, and sometimes monetary reforms. When comparing options, you should identify which demand would actually help farmers by reducing their costs rather than increasing them.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recognise that lower costs for grain storage would directly increase farmers net income. Step 2: Higher prices for machinery would hurt farmers, so that cannot be a genuine goal. Step 3: Higher freight charges for shipping crops would again damage farmers interests. Step 4: Lower tariffs that make imported goods cheaper may not directly address farmers main complaints about storage and transport. Step 5: Completely removing regulation from railroads and banks would give large corporations more freedom to overcharge, which is opposite to what farmers wanted.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, recall that farmers organisations pushed for laws such as the Granger laws and later federal regulation, which limited the rates that railroads and grain elevator owners could charge. These measures were aimed explicitly at reducing the burden of high storage and transport costs. Therefore, a demand for lower prices for grain storage matches the historical record.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B is wrong because higher machinery prices increase farmers expenses. Option C is wrong because higher shipping charges are exactly what farmers opposed. Option D is not central to agrarian demands and can even harm domestic producers in some cases. Option E is wrong because farmers wanted more regulation of powerful corporations, not less.

Common Pitfalls:
A common pitfall is to read quickly and assume that any option mentioning prices is correct without examining who benefits. Another mistake is to confuse modern free market slogans with historical agrarian demands, which were often in favour of state intervention. Always ask whether the proposed change benefits farmers or their business opponents.

Final Answer:
The correct political demand that reflected a central goal of farmers movements was lower prices charged for grain storage and elevator services.