The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-08-16
WHEAT RA|SERS.
To GUT OUT
EUROPE
Farmers Will Limit Acreage
and Confine Selling to
Home Market.
By WILLIAM HARD.


American prices; and the State De-
partment need not worry to Xix
Europe's troubles on behalf OF the
American wheat farmers export
trade, because the American wheat
farmer is just about through with
It.
Such IL the epochal change which
Is foreshadowed by recent develop"
ments in wheat circles as commune
Gated and interpreted to this writer
by Congressman Sydney Anderson
of Minnesota, joint-chairman Of the
recent congressional joint-committee
on agriculture and leading student
in the House of Representatives OF
agricultural problems.
1.-THE world price of wheat" says
Mr.. Anderson, who now Is president
of the Wheat Council of the United
States, els on a basis at which
the American farmer cannot sell at
a profit"
The Wheat Council Of the United
States, which is an assemblage OF
important political and agricultural
and industrial interests associated
with wheat, has for it's primary
purposes the following ideal:
ITO establish a balance between
The domestic production and the
domestic consumption of wheat and
thus to bring the control of domes.
tic wheat prices back from abroad
and locate it within the United
States"
Will Leave It to Others.
It is a fundamental, and, indeed,
from the standpoint of the whole
worlds economic life, a revolution
airy idea and movement. It means
the deliberate withdrawal of the
United States from its role as one
Of the cheap granaries of Europe,
and it means that the task of feed.
ing the self-impoverished peoples OF
Europe at pauper prices will be will
lingly surrendered by the Amer
lean farmers to the occupants OF
Of the cheap lands of Canada and Of
Australia and of the Argentine anu
to the coolie occupants Of the fields
of India
It means also, If carried to sue.
cess. that presently the Government
of the United States will have no
wheat problem to solve and that
the White House and the Depart.
ment of Agriculture and the State
Department can go to bed without
a pile Of wheat reports under their
night reading lamps.
That the wheat council OF the
United States is making determined
and hopeful progress in it's agitation
is evidenced to this writer by Con-
gresham Anderson in the resolu.
tons recently adopted by the con.
ference of Southwestern Wheat
Growers at Wichita, Kan.
This conference resolved specifi.
cally that "the increasing world
output Of wheat means the disap-
pearance of a profitable export
market for the American wheat
farmer"
Cannot Compete Abroad.
The American wheat farmer, said
the conference, has high standards
Of living and eduaction." He can
not compete with the cheaper lands
of Canada and Australia and he can.
not compete with the cheaper lands
and cheaper and lower living habits
of the Argentine and Of India.
According to the Southwestern
Wheat Growers Conference, there.
fore, the needs of the moment for
the American wheat farmer are as
follows:
To reduce his hard wheat acreage.
To increase his other crops. To
raise more of his own home food
necessaries. To cultivate the Ameri.
can market and to let the profitless
foreign market take care of itself.
There would be no difficulty"
says Congressman Anderson to this
writer, "in finding world market for
American wheat II the American
wheat farmer could go low enough
in his price,
That is. no feats of diplomacy
would be needed in order to get Eu-
rope to buy American wheat if
America could sell as cheap as the
low-cost countries from which Eu.
rope is able increasingly to purchase |
its agricultural supplies. The fact |
8. however, that irrespective of |
what the State Department. may 10 |
we cannot compete with those coun- |
tries except, as Congressman Ander. |
son argues. by selling at q loss.
Therefore, says ne. we shall turn |
side from the foreign outlook to |
more and more on the |
domestic prospect and to try to |
which the Wheat Council of the |
United States, with immensely influ- |
initial forces behind It. in now daily |
striving to impress on the con |
'ciousness Of the wheat-growing eIe. |
Inent .of the country.
These evils, from the standpoint |
If the Wheat Council, are the fol. |
owing:
1.-The great war--through Eu.
-ope's demand then for wheat
gave us 1900. 900 acres Of excess !,
wheat area in the United States.
THE great war--throaggfr the |
abors Of our Food Admin st ration-- !
decreased our per capita cnnsunp. |
ion Of wheat and appetite for |
wheat to a lower level than Is found !
II almost any other leading country. +
Grow Less, Fat More.
We must now, SAYS COner essYnau !
4 anderson. reverse rhe results ut fht,
war. We must grow wheat Iesz
md eat wheat more. In time r,rne |
:ntly, through this program. ther. |
will he A. ''halancA" betwanYl Arnnri. |
an production and American ron.
and me price If wheat !
will be determined nv American
conditions and viii yield an Arnnrj !
IAN standard Of living TO the ArnerI- |
IAN producer; ard The foreign world !
orlc@ Of wheat may sink as IL |
plea ses.
This program Of indepenfence-of
seIf sufficing isolation"--- is hearth |
" hacked by the American Farm |
Bureau Fedora ton, one Of our two
strongest general farm organiza- /
tons: and the president Of the
American Farm bureau Federation |
Is an officer, along with Congress-. |