Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1922-02-03

acre III oO AdA 40 SlONipS poPui"7
tion and the economic returns de-
mand and justify such increase.
( When it comes to matters of re-
turns to the farmer for what he has
produced. we still have a long way
/ to go The recent excessive defla
1 ton in farm prices as compared with
the prices for manufactured goods
would seem to indicate that in this
respect we have been going backward
rather than forward. This would
seem to be indicated by the fact that
large crop for the country as
whole brings relatively smaller re-
turns to the farmer than small
crop. In fact this has been so no.
ticeable that it was stressed by Presi-
dent Harding in his first message to
this congress. He said. 1T is rather
shocking to be told and to have the
statement strongly supported that
nine million bales of cotton raised
on American plantations in year
actually will be worth more to the
producer than 100000 bales
would have been. Equally shocking
is the statement that 700, 100000
bushels of wheat raised by the
American farmers would bring them
more money than one billion bushels.
Yet these are not exaggerated state
ments. In world where there are
tens of thousands who need food
and clothing which they cannot get.
such a condition is sure to indict the
social system which makes it posi-
BILE. In the main the remedy lies in
the distributing and marketing.
Every proper encouragement should
be given to the cooperative market
ing programs"
Here then is condition in our ag-
riculture which must be corrected.
President Harding believes that CO.
operative marketing points the way.
This is also the belief of the secre-
tary of agriculture, many economists
and large proportion of the farmers
of America. Accordingly, we have
the tremendous cooperative market
ing movements that are under way
at the present time. Out of all of
these should come a system OF mar
keting more efficient than we now
have. That this will involve coop
erative marketing to a large extent
no one who studies the situation
closely will doubt. That at the same
time it is neither feasible, desirable,
or probable that cooperative mar
keting will replace entirely private
marketing enterprise is certain, Both
have a place, both will endure and
each will serve as a stimulus to as
well as a check upon the other.
But more than efficient market
ing organization will be needed, In
addition, there must be as complete
a knowledge as possible OF world
conditions in crop production and
probable world demand 50 that the
farmer may have some guidance in
putting in his crops, in determining
what crops to grow and to what eX-
tent. 1t would seem that this in
formation should be furnished by
public agencies rather than private
so that it would be available to CO.
operatives and private business alike.
The only present public agencies
which could do this with any great
degree of efficiency are the T. S.
department of agriculture and the
department of state in cooperation
and properly financed so that repre-
sentatives to observe conditions,
gather information and cable it home
may be placed in every important
producing country. Such reports to
be of value would have to be from
every important agricultural country
and as nearly accurate as possible
They would have to be analysed and
interpreted by experts and the results
flashed to the entire country for the
use OF everyone desiring them. Only
in this way will it be possible for the
individual farmer, private business
and the large marketing organiza-
ton to have facts on which to base
their proceedings.
But even this will not be suffi-
cient. The acreage planted does not
determine crop yield. Seven hun
dred million bushels of wheat might
be produced in one year on a certain
acreage and $50 million on an equal
acreage next year, depending entire
ly upon the climatic conditions I'M
der which the crop is grown. Here
, is a factor then over which neither
the farmer, the federal government
nor the public at large has any con-
troll. 1t is a factor which must be
taken into consideration if unusually
large production of any one crop in
any one year is not to be followed