The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-08-03
NORRIS BILL
FARM Relief
TOO RADICAL
Senate Considers Means Of
Restoring Prosperity to Ag-
riculture - May Extend
War Finance Powers.
MUST RENEW EXPORTS
BY MARK Sullivan

the senate is how far the government
Of the United States should go in ex-
tending direct financial relief to farm
ers who are embarrassed by their
inability to find market for their
crops.
The distance that the senate Is
willing to go, as expressed in the most
moderate of the three measures now
before it as compared with what 1t
was willing to do six months ago,
shows how far we have gone in the
direction of those experiments in gov
ernment relief which always come to
the front in a time of financial
distress.
The most moderate of the measures
before the senate, and to be acted on
within few days. provides that the
government shall loan money on the
security of farm products.
Norris Most Radical.
The most radical of these measures,
fathered by Senator Norris, of Ne
braska, provides that the government
shall go the whole distance of buying
goods direct from the farmer and sell
ing them to European consumers and
to European governments.
sure will not pass, but it is only being
prevented from passing by the fact
that the administration threw it's in
fluence against 1t.
When congress came together last
December the chief proposal for the
relief of distress among the farmers
was the revival of the war finance cor
poration. The functions of this cor.
nj hot
were far short of what is now under
discussion.
Functions Were Limited.
The functions of the War Finance
Corporation as revived last January,
were practically Limited to loaning
government money to exporters in
transactions in which an order for the
goods had already been secured from
abroad. and the intention was merely
TO provide banking facilities for trans
actions already arranged.
Even this simple plan for the revival
of the War Finance Corporation was
opposed at that time by the secretary
Of the treasury and by President
Wilson
But the bill was passed over the
Presidents veto, and the corporation
months. during which it has loaned
something over ST. 1000, 900. chiefly tc
facilitate the export of cotton.
South Has Been Helped.
That the operations of the War
Finance Corporation have been skill
fully conducted and have done much
to help the distress among the farmers
and bankers of the cotton states is one
of the most obvious facts in Washing
ton today
But as the difficulties Of the farmers
continued there arose a demand for
more direct and radical form of gov
ernment relief This expressed itsel1
in the shape Of the bill introduced BY
Senator Norris, of Nebraska, chairman
of the committee on agriculture, pro
viding that the government shoule
become middleman and a dealer.
That it should buy the goods which
the farmers have on hand and sci
them to individual consumers and Il
governments in Europe.
Fear Government in Business.
This was so radical proposal. ant
the failure of the government as {
business man had been so recently ant
so forcibly demonstrated in the case o
the shipping board and in other re
spects that several prudent member!
of the administration were alarmed.
Senator Norris's measure had gained
so much momentum that it was no
possible to defeat il as the bonus bill
was defeated But it was decided tt
offer a substitute which should remair
within the bounds of what the admin
stration regarded as a prudent ant
~ -
This substitute eliminated entirel.
the idea of the government becomin,
a direct buyer and seller Of farm
products. II also eliminated the ide;
of forming separate government cor
poration for this purpose.
Would Extend Powers.
Instead of that, the substitute, pre-
vided that the functions of the Wa
Finance Corporations should be eS
tended to permit the corporation to B.
not a merchant but banker.
Under the terms of the administra
tion substitute. states broadly, the GOV
ernment is permitted to loan none
TO persons. corporations and associa
tions having farm products on thei
hands. on the security of thes
products.
he IHITOOUCllOU Ol lulS SuDSllIul
and the blocking of the original Norri
bill have caused as much politica
commotion as any thing that has com
up in the senate this session.
Senator Norris and the members c
what has come 10 be called tn
Farmers bloc" are bitterly resentfu
of the administrations side trackin
of their measures. Undoubtedly tn
activity of the administration has bee
successful in blocking the origins
Norris bill
Want Elaborate Machinery.
All that remains in dispute toda
are certain details of the substitut
bill. Some of the farmer senators il
sist that the government shall not col
fine its loans to dealers. but shall loa
direct the individual farmer on tn
security of the crop in his barn.
The objection to this is that in orde
TO take on such mass of individus
transactions with isolated farmers a
enormous government machiner
would have to be built up.
What will come out of it all that tn
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