New-York tribune., 1920-12-25
Early Passage
OfFarmLOan
Bill Assured
Measure to Extend Credit
to Relieve Conditions
Will Be Prepared and
Pressed Through Congress
Senators Told of Needs
Question of Giving Aid to
German Buyers Discussed
at Committee Hearing

From, tho Trsbure's Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON, Dec. 24.-As an out
growth Of a hearing before q Joint
meeting Of the Senate Banking and
Currency Committee and the Senate
Committee on Agriculture to-day, az
which officials of farm organizations
expressed their views, commemorative
Dlll Will be prepared and pressed deal
ing IN broad way with the subject
or farm credits. It's purpose will be
to extend government credit to farm
ers and agricultural producers, includ-
ing livestock raisers, on the security
of their crops and herds, and it prob
ably will have back of it the united
torce Of the agricultural membership
IN both Senate and House
President J. R. Howard, Of the
American Farm Bureau Federation and
Gray Silver, who has charge of the
Washington Office of this organization.
urged strongly the need of such a
measure for the purpose Of furnishing
much-needed credit system for the
agricultural producers between the
time their products are harvested or
are ready for market and consuming
time. They pictured the present credit
system as practically breaking down
just at the time when the crops or
products mature and resulting in a
general demand on the farmers to pay
up loans at such time, thus forcing the
bulk of the agricultural production on
the market at once and demoralizng
prices. The effect, they said, was to
cripple the producer and hurt the con-
sumer because it drove the foodstuffs
into the hands Of spectators.
The thing they wanted most Of all,
they declared, as representatives Of
the farming industry, was to finance
the farmer until such time as lie could
market his products more gradually
They said this would tend to stabilize
prices and help the farmer and the
consumer.
Prospective new credit legislation
relating to this sort of personal credit
for the agricultural population was the
feature of to-day's hearing, though it
lad other phases.
Three Essentials for Farmers
Mr.. Howard, in summing up his
views, said:
"The three essentials for aid of the
farming industry are credits, an ade
quate market system, whether CO.
operative or otherwise, and protection
commensurate with that received by
other industries"
He also favored the opening up Of
foreign markets wherever they could
be found, whether in Germany, Russia
or elsewhere.
Amendment of the farm loan act
is suggested as the most practicable
way Of meeting the credit needs OF the
farmers. 1t is unlikely this proposed
an important effect on the credit ma
chinery of this country, can be put
through before the extra session.
A million and 4 half of dirt farmers
are in the American Farm Bureau
Federation and it is represented as the
most powerful organization Of farmers
in America. The plan with respect to
getting a new credit law enacted is to
have d group or committee of inter
ested Senator'S cooperate with officials
of the Federation in preparing bill
which will be introduced in both
Houses this winter.
While the plan Of 100000, 600
credit arrangement with Germany was
discussed, it was plainly the impress
sion Of Senators that it would be an
impossibility until the German in
demnity was fixed
Senator Mclean, chairman OF the
Banking ard Currency Committee, who
presided at the meeting, made public
a letter written to him By Governor
Harding, Of the Federal Reserve Board.
in the opinion of che reserve board the
Hitchcock measure for loaning to far
ners the surplus or profits of the re-
serve system would not be very eff
fective.
What the agricrlturalists chiefly
DESIRE" said Governor Harding, "is 4
satisfactory market for their products,
and the credit embarras ssments in the
farming districts are due mainly to
the slow liquidation Of ind. btedness
already existing, many banks being
unable or unwilling to extend their
loans further"
The board, said Governor Harding,
advocated a bill authorizing Federal
land banks TO make dlrect loans to the
public FOR agricultural purposes and
authorizing the Secretary of the
Treasury to deposit funds with or pur-
chase debentures of such banks.
Senator Hitchcock in his bill pro-
posed to use the Federal Reserve
banks in making the proposed loans
20 farmers, but Governor Harding OBJ
jected that the Federal Reserve banks
could not deal with the public, but
could only rediscount paper for mem