The Lehi sun. [volume] (Lehi, Utah) 1913-1949, 1921-09-01
VESTS DEMANDS
HAVE BEEN MET
BILL REGULATING GRAIN Elk,
CHANGES IS PASSED AFTER
TWENTY YEARS WAIT
Many Measures OF Direct Benefit To
Western Farmers Enacted into
Laws During Year; Farmer
Seems To BE Factor

washington - Under normal con.
ditions. the session Of congress Just ad.
journed would be called ''The Farmers
Congress" II the farmer Legislation
had been overwhelmed by taxation
and the tariff. It would be realized that
more measures demanded BY the farm.
ers and presumed to be ID their inter.
ests have been passed since April than
In probably any other i've months Of
congress In history.
The passage Of the bill regulating
grain exchanges In an answer 10 de.
mand the west has been making for
twenty years-a demand which In the
beginning was regarded as grotesquely
radical. On the same day mat Presl-
dent Harding signed the bill for the
regulating Of graid exchanges he sign.
ed also the bill regulating the packers.
This, too. 10 the answer TO N agitation
that began a generation ago.
IL these two bills alone had been
passed during Roosevelt's time. when
the agitation for them was compare.
lively new and loudly lnslstent. they
would have been regarded as some
thing ep0ch-mehing. II IL true that
neither the grain exchange regulation
bill nor the packer control bill Is in
the extreme form originally demanded
by their proponents. Nevertheless,
they are strong, bills, and from now on,
In erect, the secretary Of agriculture
has the power to scrutinlze the bust.
ness operations Of grain brokers and
packers, TO review their actions, and
70 regulate them subject to appeal IA
commission.
This extension Of government regu.
latlon TO grain exchanges and the
packing houses is analogous to the e.
adjustment, generation ago, of the
interstate commerce commission IA
regulate the railroads. II the interests
OF the country were not so intent on
the German treaty and on taxation and
the tariff. this striking expansion OF
the governments regulatory power
would get an attention In proportion ID
It's significance. Incidentally, II is q
marked extension Of government lntl
business at a time when an admlnistra
ton slogan is LESS government n
business"
On the same day that these two reg
ulatory measures were signed by the
president, congress passed the bill
whlcfr provides that government credit
and government money shall be used
through the agency OF the War Fin
ance corporation, to aid bankers and
others carrying agricultural commodit
les, and to facilitate new loans on
those commodities, as well as 70 ex
tend old loans. Here, too, the bill al
passed Is short OF the original demand
OF the farmers. which was that the
government should loan money direct
TO the farmers on their grain, stock
and other commodities.
Between the thing the farmers do.
handed and the thing that congress
has given them. the only obstacle 10 the
difficulty OF setting up a mechanism
to reach individual farmers in time to
do them any present good. The ball AZ
passed foreshadows the next step
which will be a government mechan
Ism for the facilitating OF credit to In
dlvidual farmers on their crops.
Aside from these three measures
two other important ones passed by
the present congress In the interest OF
the farmer are the bin adding S35,0OO,'
900 OF government money 20 the farm
loan banks and the emergency tarin
passed at the beginning OF the session
in the interest OF the farmer
These measures reflect the fact thai
the farmer is the strongest factor In
the present congress and is likely Il
continue to be so during the remain
der Of the Harding administration.