Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1919-02-05

Head Of Grain Corporation Says
Fears Of Slump on 1913 Crop
Are Unfounded.

Manager John sandin at the Farm,
ers Elevator has received the follow
Ing letter:
.''I find your letter of Jan. %, and a
copy Of The Eastern Seaboard Flour
Trade, on my return from Europe yes
terday.
I confess that am at loss to
understand why there should be-, in
the trade and on the part Of the pub
lie any feeling that the present guar.
anteed price Of wheat represents, on
this years crop: situation, any In
fiatfon, with a possible consequent
decline, should that imitation be re-
lieyed. Entirely outside Of any: large
programme Of relief shipments to
enemy countries abroad, q careful
survey Of the requirements OF the al
lied countries, OF. the neutrals, and
of the newly liberated people whom
We are bound to help feed, would In
dicate that every bushel Of surplus
from the wheat crop of 1918 will be
required before the end OF the har-
vest year.
It would be the hight Of business
folly, this being true, for the Grain
Corporation to- contemplate allowing
to- develop any such situation as the
resolutions of your club would seem
to apprehend.
by executive order, the Grain Cor.
poration' will continue to pay, until
June next at least, the present level
Of guaranteed price to the producer,
reflected in the various markets by
the buying scale hitherto In effect.
There is no necessity apparent,
and it would be a most unsound poll
cy, to sell those holdings at less than
the established purchase price; In
fact, it Is very doubtful whether the
Grain Corporation can contemplate
providing the domestic market from
its present holdings to any extent
whatever, for the obligations at pre-
sent definitely assumed. and those
contemplated for shipments abroad
will exhaust entirely the present
holdings of wheat Of the Grain Cor:
poration, and the balance Of wheat
supplies In this country would seem
to be barely more than sufficient fol
thu ordinary domestic requirements
1 feel justified in saying, therefore
that the -four dealers and millers Of
this country may operate for the bal
ance of this crop year In the fullest
confidence that the government agen
cy will, at no time, put into effect 8
policy of resale of wheat at lower
than the present established govern
ment buying basis.
AS to a policy for the crop Of 1919
on which subject I find a great dea
of current discussion Indicating al
apprehension that, while the goven
ment guaranteed price level may bt
continued through next year, a re
sale may be made on a supposed!
tworld basis, which most Of this dis
cussion contemplates as being on .
lower level, and 1nasmuch az tn,
crops to be cared for next year ar
still in the making and half of tn
contemplated crops of North Americ,
are not even yet in the ground,
would seem as If a great deal Of ad
vance anxiety were being unneces
sarily created, and that the policie
themselves on which the 1919 cro]
guarantee may be executed woul,
have to develope with the progress o
the crop still to be grown and witt
the demonstration Of world require
ments not possible yet to accuratel
ascertain.
For the present, at least, tn
'tworld basis" would seem to justif
our American wheat prices, for Their
Is steady flow of purchases from
America Of wheat and -four, by. buy
ers perfectly free to send their ship
to other sources of supply, shout,
those other sources offer superior al
fractions for a buyer over the Amer1
can price, plus the short ocean voy
age saving from America.
Yours very truly,
JULIUS H. BARNES,
President"