Evening star., 1923-12-13

| the power to control and limit coffee
exports. and to carry on world propa.
ganda educating the public to use
more coffee.
The crisis in United States agricuI-
ture cannot parallel that in Brazilian
coffee raising, because our wheat pro-
duction affects only about a quarter
to a third of our farmers. while cof-
fee production affects practically all
the Brazilian planters and so per cent
of her exports II IL estimated by the
Department OF Agriculture that We
have a wheat surplus this year OF
from about 171.o00, 900 to 220. 600. .00C
bushels. Our export wheat amounts
to only Ga per cent OF the world pro-
duction, falling far short of giving
the United States a corner on world
markets, to dictate or seriously in
fiuence prices. All OF our northwest
ern hard wheat is now on an import
basis, cutting no figure whatever as
to exports.
X y ~
Secretary Wallace, in his annual
report. recommends that there be
formed a government export commits
sion to buy and export our surplus
wheat. He explains:
THE plan is to have the govern
ment undertake TO do for the wheat
growers what they cannot do for
themselveS-bring them into gen
sral pool. through the operation OF
which they may secure q. fair price.
Such an agency" says the Score
tary. would need money with which
to operate, and II ia proposed TO start
it with a wording capital of, say.
$1,000 900, that being tho approx
innate sum which the government
made in the way Of profit in the war
time handling OF wheat and -four,
trarily controlled and held below the
price at which it could have been
sold without such control.
I'm case Losses should be incurred
because of the character OF It's opera
tions II Is proposed to recover the
tax on the crop Of wheat itself. In
the end the cost would be paid, not
out OF the public Treasury, but by
the growers benefited, and should
not be large"
II the capital proposed-s50. .000.-
0o0-were all lost In this govern
ment specula ton. and then assessed
against farmers raising future grain
crops. II would cost at the rate Of
20 cents d DuSHeI on the LVV'VOVbNVO
sold, or or cents a bushel on all
of next years crop. The smallness
of the eKportable grain-6.4 per cent
of world crop-wouid make IL i'm
possible that II could be so manipu-
lated as TO affect world price materi-
ally, but it's presence in the visible
supply would be more likely to bear
the market than TO bull 1t. The gov
ernment does not expect to AFFECT the
world price. even though IL controls
the entire export surplus. 1t must
sell, therefore, say grain experts. at
the same price at which Individual
shippers would have to sell, while
the machinery for handling the ex-
port business would be in addition
to that OF regular markets.
It Is OF peculiar interest 20 note
that the average consumption Of
wheat in the United States. where
It IS grown. is only five bushels per
capita. while in France, prior to the
war. Il was nine bushels and il is
today seven bushels. II propaganda
can increase the world consumption
OF coffee, why not teach the people
the value OF bread. To increase Amer
icanR consumption of -four up TO that
of the frugal French, would consume
our entire surplus which we are now
seeking to export at world price. IL
can be done.
Copyright. 1923. by Paul v. Collins,