Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-09-09
RESERVE BOARD
HANDED VI ORST
BLOW To FARMS
Head of Las Cruces Irriga-
ton District Urges Ap-
pointment of Farm Repre-
sentatives on Body.

Especial Correspondence TO The -Jounal|
Las Cruces, N. NJ, Sept. s.--"The
blow the farmers in the United
States received. largely at the
hands of the federal reserve board,
will go down in history as the FL
nancial Crime of 1920"
II. H. Brook, president of the Ell
ephant Butte irrigation district Of
the Rio Grande project, says this
in a letter to DR.. r. +. Hare, stat
istician in New Mexico for the bu-
reau of crop estimates and markets.
The letter is in response to an in
vitation from the division of crop
estimates. United States depart
ment of agriculture, to suggest
what is the matter with agricul-
ture and what Is needed to correct
any existing conditions that are
detrimental to the agricultural pro-
Queer.
Suggestions are invited In all
parts of the county to be submit
ted to the congressional joint
commission an agriculture, which
is conducting hearings at Wash
1ngton, II. =,
1.-THE greatest single factor
among many, causing the abnor-
NAL decline and loss of 192O-21,"
says Mr.. Brook, was the far too
rigid withdrawal of credit from
the farming regions by the federal
reserve board. Apparently ignor-
ant of agriculture and production
of raw materials the federal re-
serve board, instead of acting dis
creetly, cautiously and slowly, with
a view of gradually returning to
normal and preventing a crisis, ad-
vertised that they were going to
deflate prices and deliberately and
Intentionally withdrew millions in
credits at the most critical season
of the year.
an doing this the federal reserve
bank did exactly what 1t was Gre
ated to prevent. Mature reflection
and analysis compels the convicr
ton that had the federal reserve
board exercised the prudence, dis
erection and farseeing calculating
Judgment, reasonably to be expect
ed of the men in such powerful po-
stion, billions of dollars and thou
sands of tragedies would have been
saved for the American people.
The blow the farmers received
largely at the hands of the federal
reserve board will go down In his
tory as The Financial Crime OF
1920
THE obvious remedy would be
to appoint federal reserve board
consisting not only Of bankers but
containing representatives of agri-
culture, mining. transp ortation and
merchandising and not only from
eastern financial centers, but from
typical sections of the entire ma
ton.
1.-THE second largest factor is the
inefficient, cumbersome and ex-
tortionate system of marketing and
distribution after the produce
leaves the farmers hands. An ex-
travagantly costly system of distri-
button has been built up by reason
of the fact that in most instances
the costs and losses In distribu-
ton can be easily charged back
to the producing farmer. The cost
of marketing is generally one to
several times the cost to produce.
THE remedy, in which both the
farmer and consumer are equally
concerned, is for the farmers to
cooperate in building up their own
selling agencies and exercising such
control of prices as they are able
and not in conflict with sthe basic
laws of trade and exchange"