The Washington herald., 1917-09-30
UNDER THE DOME
The Farm Question.
BY THE OBSERVER.

The American farmer-if he has
time to do between the rush of
summer work and the preparation for
fall work-can take occasion to con-
gratulate himself.
He Is Americas hope Just now, and
Congress and the war emergency"
executive departments are turning
eyes upon him waiting to see what
are his thoughts. and what he is apt
to do once he assimilates the meaning
of everything that has happened in
the past five months.
The Rural Public service organiza-
ton Is one of the latest outside
factors to enter the soil-tiller's equa-
ton. 1t has half a dozen objects, but
the one fundamental upon which it
proposes to justify its reason for birth
Is that 1t will provide means
whereby private citizens and rural
villages and communities may CO.
operate more freely with national,
State, county and township officials
and all organizations interested in
the public welfare"
This Is the very end which other
interests have been trying for some
time past to serve, but even they,
with their abundance of information,
are not yet ready to say just what
attitude the farmer is going to main
tain toward them. The new organiza-
ton has opened headquarters in this
city, and will be here until the officer
in charge has had time to talk to rep
resentative men.
Senators today received copious
notes on the purposes of the organi-
NJ E,aYv a. u, A
their attention. Many Of them, who
are farm-bred, but who have not worn
their trousers tucked in their boots
or handled a pitchfork for years and
years, grew homesick when they read
the circulars. The rural problems
were set out in such a charming and
utterly truthful way that some of the
Senators insisted someone who must
nave been closer to the barnyard than
pennsylvania avenue wrote the cir
cular.
Others of the Senators declared that
the new movement may be launched
as a counter irritant" to the non
partisan movement. They declared
that the purposes of the North Da-
kota organization are to make the
farmer a selfish, narrow Individual,
tolerant of no other interest in the
world, and inclined to watch even
MS fellow farmers with suspicion
The purposes OF the newer organiza-
tlon' they pointed out. are to make
him more sociable in his makeup, to
broaden his vision; to make him meet
the other folks in the world Just a
mite more" than half way.
There has been a double complaint
from hn MiII1a
two weeks, which has not served to
make Conogress feel at all easy. 1t
originated in the farming sections of
the country, and scores of House and
Senate members are known to have
progressed the utmost concern over 1t.
1t is said that in most sections of
the West agricultural exemptions
have been few and far between under
the draft law, and that despite the
TACT that local men were responsible
Tor the administration of this meas
ure, bona-fide farmers of large in
terests-much too large, at least, to
leave now and hasten away to war
nave been refused exemption. The
boards have been insistent that there
IS no class exemption of agricultural
lists, and that those who claim ex-
~-NRNiOti bOi olileT reasons HdQ 10 snow
conclusive evidence If they wanted
to avoid being chosen at this time.
The other cause of complaint is the
food control bill The farmers have
not relished the thought that the price
OF wheat was fixed at lower than it
was under the old, non-regulatory sys-
TEN. Many Of them, even those who
have allowed their boys to volunteer.
and who themselves have subscribed
to some extent to the first issue of
liberty bonds and to the Red Cross,
are not exactly satisfied with regu-
lation. They think there are other
interests, particularly in the manu-
featuring sections of the country,
which are getting their haul dur
ing the war, and that they're entitled
to the same. 1t has not exactly
percolated through to the cornfieIds
that the government is undertaking
a general regulatory campaign-and
it will not suntil some of the things
the farmers have to buy are reduced
in price to them. II that time comes
the farmers will stand for regula-
ton like bankers stand for receiy-
ing interest. But until it does they
are quite apt to be skepticaI and
glum and perhaps stubborn.
The whole question is ant to take
on different aspect when CONGRESS
returns here in December. Most of
tho C1,, uy1o