The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-02-16
||InINE Relief
|nRUSSIA SENT
CORN PRICESUP
,.<..t Rise Unparalleled in Worlds
u,stery According 10 Speaker
AT Grain Dealers Meet.

:. sale. ILL.,, Feb. 16.-UBparal-
"a IN the history of the world
been the recent rise in the
- Of corn in United States re-
rMng from the large purchase of
- nv the United States govern
.,t for famine relief in Russia,
- yrooman of Bloomington, for
~ assistant secretary of agricul-
told the annual convention
"a today of the Farmers Grain
i a..lers' association of Illinois.
STbirty million dollars have been
.,,,onriated by the American con-
s-sss and the soviet government,
y yrooman said, land although
/ Il money has not all been expend-
y the price of corn has already
i sooa M several cents a bushel.
This means that the American
naople are making at least humid
"a per cent, and probably two or
,h,ee hundred per cent, on their
m 10 the famine stricken people
Il the Volga valley. l venture TO
say that never in the history of the
rorld has there been a parallel sit
satjon-when by giving away $780,
aa0 600 worth OF food a nation was
,usbled to make at least hundred
per cent profit, in few weeks.
eThe amazing thing is that every
body in the country Is not shouting
wildely from the housetops in d
eoncerted demand that this process
be continued as long as there are
hungry mouths in Europe and I'M
saleable SURPRISES in America
which are heavy national liabilities
rather than assets.
Values Depressed.
Our agricultural SURPRISES for
which there exists no domestic de-
mand or foreign cash demand are
not large, but they have so inter-
tered with the normal processes of
life as to bring about financial stag
nation and economic paralysis.
Though they only constitute about
five per cent OF our total crops and
are worth probably less than a bill
lon dollars, they have nevertheless
depressed the values of the other
IS per cent of our crops at least
five times their own value. The
damage they have wrought in the
business world is fully as great, sc
that If We could get rid of them in
no other way than as our recent ex-
perience with Russia has demon
strated we could earn the lasting
gratitude of mankind and make
money hand over fist by giving
them away.
For the most part, however, it is
rot necessary to give them away
There are number of countries II
Europe that have good security L
offer and are anxious to buy large
Quantities of them on credit"
Mr.. Vrooman urged passage o
tie farmers emergency export cor
pration bill, enabling this govern
meat to extend credit to foreigner:
having security to offer and oesir
ing to buy American agriculture
sarpluses.
Strong for Bill.
Not all the legislation that ha:
been passed, combined with all tina
is contemplated in the farmers in
terest, even though it succeeds III
TO hundred per cent of the antici
patton of its authors, can possibly
10 as much to furnish emergenc,
relief for the farmers and bushes.
men of the country, as would the
passage of this measure" he said.
IF Immediately passed and loyal
y and energetically enforced, tht
act ought to raise the price CT corr
| and OF all other agricultural crops
1 somewhere near the cost of pro
/ duction," Mr.. Vrooman declared
Until the bill is put through con
Tess every farmer in the United
States ought to lombard his con
1 gessman and senator's every weeE
With letters urging upon them the
necessity of enacting this legisla
ION without further quibbling oil
4delav"