The Sentinel=record. (Hot Springs, Ark.) 1900-current, 1918-02-24
PRICE RAISING BILLS HAVE
CHECKED FLOW OF WHEAT
President Issues Statement Explaining
Why Wheat is the Only Cereal That
1t Was Found Necessary to Regulate
the Price cf-Price is Bound on Chi
cago Market.
cago Market

Washington, Feb. 23.-A price OF
S220 a bushel-the same as for last
years crop-was fixed by President
Wilson tonight for tn ecoming sea-
sons wheat yield. The price is for
number one northern spring wheat
at Chicago with a scale of differen-
tials or other markets.
Differentials differ to a slight ex-
tent from those now operative and
range from minimum OF 81 to a
maximum of 1928.
In fixing price now for the new
crop which will nos be harvested
until June the president was believed
to have two objects in view. The
first was to halt legislation pending
in congress to fix prices at from
$2.2'5 to So and the other was to
stimulate spring planting.
lntrodpction of the price raising
bills had begun to check flow of
wheat to market and food admins
tration officials feared mills soon
would have to close. Hoping the
legislation would pass, farmers it is
declared, have refused to sell at the
present price OF 1920
In enacting the food control law,
congress put guaranteed price of
50 on next seasons crop and this
has been construed as a minimum
price. To draw wheat to market the
president fixed a price of 1920 on last
seasons yield and It had this effect
until the price raising bills were In
troduced. Then the flow began to de-
cline.
Food administration officials have
declared that il the bills passed the
government would be forced to raise
present prices to the new levels and
that to do so would upset the food
Administrations flour and bread pro-
gram.
'It seems not to be generally un-
derstood why wheat is picked out for
price determination and only wheat
that while normal distribution of all
our farm products has been subjected
to great disturbance during the last
three years because of the war con-
ditions, only two commodities, name
~ wheat and sugar have been so seri-
ously affected as to require govern
mental Intervention.
THE disturbances which affect
these products (and others in less de-
gree) arise from the fact that the
overseas shipping is now under gov
ernment control and that the gov
ernment is obliged to assign tonnage
to each commodity that enters into
commercial overseas traffic. Ii has
consequently been necessary to es-
tablish single agencies for the pur-
chase of the food supplies which must
ge abroad. The purchase of wheat in
the United States for foreign use is
Of so great volume in comparison with
the available domestic supply that the
price of wheat has been materially
disturbed and it became necessary in
order to protect both the producer and
the consumer to prevent speculation
1t was necessary, therefore, for the
government TO exercise a measure OF
direct supervision so far as possible
to control purchases of wheat and the
processes of its expectation. This su-
pervisI0n necessarily amounted to
price fixing and ], therefore, thought
1t fair and wise that there should be
a price stated that should be at once
liberal and equitable.
These peculiar circumstances gov
erning the handling and consumption
Of wheat put the farmer at the very
center of war service. Next to the
| soldier himself. he is serving the coun-
try and the world and serving it in a
way which is adequately fundamental
to his own future safety and prosper
| ity. lie sees this and can be relied
upon as the soldier can"