The labor world., 1921-12-03


pressed farmers and assurance Of
a normal supply Of bread to the
country is possible at once, says
A. c. Townley, president Of the
Nonpartisan league from his pres
ent abode in the jackson Jail. He
gave an interview to A. B. Gil
bert, editor of the Minnesota Lead
er, and declared that such relief
would come at once if congress
will revive the Government Grain
corporation.
Mr.. Townley has come to this opin-
Ion since congress has revived the War
Finance corporation to aid the rail-
road financiers. His organization Sc
verely critized the Grain Corporation
during the war.
Mr.. Townley would have the Grain
corporation used now to stabilize the
wheat price, as it held the price down
during the war. so the farmer could
have assurance Of cost Of production
and the workingman his bread with
out the high costs sure to occur in
wheat famine.
"WheFt is the most essential food of
civilization" says the leader Of the
militant farmers organization, now
jailed for alleged disloyalty, "and the
normal course of events will not pro-
vide proper supply of this food.
Farmers Are Bankrupt.
"Thus our wheat raisers have been
made bankrupt by selling away be-
low production cost during the last
two years. Normally they will go out
OF business. and there will be sharp
increase In the wheat prices for two
or three years and then new farmers
will have an inducement to back to-
the industry.
During this period wheat might 70
up as high as IS or SO bushel and
our poorer people will have to turn
to the inferior food grains as they
did during the war;
Mr.. Townley would have the coun-
try catch the situation in time to save
the Western farmer now and to save
the consuming public from this ca
1anity to come.
Probable Methods.
Under the Townley plan, the Gov
ernment Grain corporation would take
the wheat from the farmers, paying
SO much down and giving also war
rant to the raiser. This warrant
would entitle him to participate in
any profit the Grain corporation
might make over this first payment.
This wheat would then be sold di-
rect to the mills and the vast horde
OF m1ddlemen who infest the wheat
market and who find propaganda
cheaper than paying fair price for
wheat, would be eliminated. The gov
ernment would save much by financ-
ing its own grain pool.
Great saving could also be made by
shipping direct from the producing
points to the consuming points and
by using idle ships to compete With
the British freight combine.
Knowing what wheat would be in
1922 bankers would have a standard
by which they could advance loans
more freely to the producing farmers.
The farmers would be more free in
buying. And wholesalers and jobbers
would be a great deal more open and
anxious to serve the local merchants
on reasonable terms.
stabilizing Of wheat would go a long
way toward relieving the entire West
Plan Has Worked.
This plan, of course. is not an un-
tried experiment. Canada operated a
wheat board exactly along this line
in 1919 with the result that farmers
got $2.6s bushel for top grade wheat
at terminal points throughout the
year. Australia handled its wheat
crops including the chartering of ves-
sells to take the wheat to the Euro
Of the Australian states. New South