The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1921-03-24
AGRICULTURAL SITUATION
REVIEWED By SECRETARY

40 per cent of the population. Any
thing which seriously effects their
buying power will bring trouble to the
people who make or bring things the
farmer buys.
1t is a terrible Indictment of our
modern civilization when this great
country Is In the period Of what might
be called economic chaos because of
our great surplus food supply, while
across the seas, In both directions, al
most half the world Is sufft ring for
want Of food. If our statesmen had
given more thought to getting the
world back on sound economic basis
and perhaps spent less time on ideal
istic schemes and theories, they would
have rendered a greater contribution
to the peace and orderliness and hap
piness of the people Of the earth.
Now. as to this present situation,
surely the duty Of the Department of
Agriculture il evident We should do
everything possible to find an outlet
for this great food surplus. We should
search for ways to produce more
cheaply. Our scientific men should try
to find new uses for our surplus crops.
We should help develop more efficient
marketing system, Strengthening cur
YES and lowering grades between the
producer and the consumer. 1t Is
time for every man who can help to
take hold. As In the days when we
Dragged our fire engines by hand to
the scene Of the fire and every good
citizen rushed out and took hold of
the long rope and did his bit, SO we
must do now. Every good citizen, No
matter in what business he may be
engaged, should do what he can to
help the farmers through this period
of depression, not for the sake of help
ing the farmer alone, but for the sake
Of helping himself.
We cannot hope to reach normal
conditions until we arrive on price
level which will be fair to all our peo-
pie and all products. Farm products
must come up in price and other pro-
ducts come down until the normal re-
lation between them has been restored.
This talk of bringing prices, whether
farm prices or other prices, back to
pre- war normal Is morally wrong and
economically impossible We incurred
a heavy national debt on the inflated
prices. IL we could force all prices
back to the pre- war normal-which
we cannOt-it would be equivalent to
just about doubling that debt. We can
pay off our debts much easier IL we
maintain a price more nearly the level
at which the debts were incurred. OF
course, the excessively high prices
which prevailed during the war can
not continue, but II we should try to
bring about level, say 20 per cent
above the pre- war normal, everybody
would be better off
We will get through this period. The
nation Is not going bankrupt The far
mers are not going bankrupt Neither
are they going to lie down on their
job. Gradually farm prices will be
brought into fair relation with other
prices and we will go ahead hitting ON
all cylinders. But there is another
thing in the long run--a more impor-
tant phase of our agricultural problem
which we have been slow in consider
ing. Let me sketch briefly the devel-
opment Of our agriculture.
The farmers Of the United States
during the past 20 years have, on the
average, produced and sold grain and
livestock at less than the cost Of pro-
duction II we take into consideration
all the factors which properly enter
into production costs. What / mean Is
that If the farmer would practice the
sound sysbim of business ECONOMY.
charging a fair interest on the capt.
tai Invested, both in his farm and his
farm equipment, fair wage for the
actual labor expended on the farm
against his receipts from the market
Ing Of his crops. 1t will be found that
he has not received for them enough |
to cover his actual costs. We will
omit the value of the fertility of his
soil which is, in effedr, aportion of |
his capital and which he has marketed |
In his crops. but which we will simply |
throw in for good measure, although |
This must be replaced If crop product |
lon Is to be maintained l know that |
when statemenr of this kind is made |
many people question it. They think |
Of individual farmers whom they
hava known and who have become
very well to do, hut am speaking of |
The average farmer. the farmers as n |
mass, and the statement I have Just
made is an absolute truthful Statement. |
which has been abundantly corrobor-
ated by scientific Investigation.
The farmaro hova kaa,. ,x,;JIg..s. :. :. a /