The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-10-11

at the seventeenth annual session
in Kansas City.
use the wheat - feed and enough
other farmers will stop raising
wheat and raise timothy. clover or
alfalfa or some other product which
might be used in comparison.
Price 1t World Maximum
Thus it may be said that the price
of wheat has reached q general min
imum for the world and no extraor-
binary surplus is likely to be car
ried over SO long as the market fol
poultry and eggs, pork, beef and 9th.
er dairy products. wool. ETC., remains
firm. In other words, while live
stock products maintain the sept
general level wheat price cannot 30
farther down or wheat will Be fed to
livestock in large quantities and
farmers will turn to the production
Of feed Of different kinds.
But, a. noted above. specialized
wheat growing is impossible at the
present world prices. In general
ever the United States, because Of
labor shortage, high wages, the high
cost Of everything else entering into
wheat production, and the fact that
free rent is a matter of history, eth
er rent or interest must now Be
counted in as part Of the cost. These
facts together with low yields make
wheat growing In specialized dis
tricts or belts Improbable with the
present world market.
Let Us frankly face the fact that
there is no possibility Of raising the
worlds market except when there il
q short crop for the world as .
whole. 1t Is unthinkable that the ma
lions Of the earth could get to4eth-
er. In fact the consumers Of the
world want II any thing lower. prices
rather than higher.
Cannot Raise Price. :,
Since it is uncomfortable that the
world price can be raised without .
world shortage, and since wheat can
not be produced on the present price
basis, in. specialized wheat growing
belts in the United States we face
clearly two alternatives. These are
first, we, must either dump our sur
plus wheat produced on American
farms. on to the world market at
world prices and force American con-
sumers to make up the loss-thus
make wheat growing profitable nm
der these circumstances. or We rnuat
stop raising wheat as specialized
form Of farm operation over great
stretches of the country. :.
= 1t il unthinkable that our farm.
ers will try to- compete with thu
world unless they are willing to fore.
60 all Of the comforts Of modern
citizenship or. live the lives of poems
or serfs. We do not wish for this
condition in our country, even II
farmers were willing to live in this
way. We have therefore clearly be.
fore u the two practical altefna.
tives. go
Adopt Long .time View.
American people, I believe. would
not be milling % q longtime or per.
manent policy to agree to support
ing an agricultural. program which
contemplated over-production at los.
ing prices, especially If the Amer
lean people were asked to carry the
losses. II on the average we pro.
duced two hundred million bushels
more than our requirements at n
loss Of so cents per bushel it would
be !. loss Of one hundred million dol
II these two hundred million bus.
hels were sold 1t wsrld prices and
American consumers were asked to
make up this floss Of one hundred
million dollars either through taxa,
ton or by paying higher prices fol
their bread, am satisfied that the
American people would not agree t.
the policy. As . matter Of long.
time view. therefore. it is hopeless
TO think in terms Of continuing
large special wheat belts.
As . matter Of temporary relief
during period Of reorganization
and readjustment in farming in the
special wheat belts. I have for three
years been pleading with our PEG.
pie and our government to re.estab.
lish the United States Grain Cor.
portation to carry on business in
somewhat the same manner a. many
manufacturing and other corpora
tions do.
Sell on World Marked.
That is to say, sell the American
surplus on the world market and
then bring the home market up to q
point equal to the world market plus
tariff and transportation costs
There 10 no doubt but what this i,
thoroughly practical and possible
plan II acceptable to the American
people Is . temporary expedient
After the. great war between thu
states during the sixties our national
currency fell to . point far below
the desired standard value which
We consider par. Dur government,
set definite date few years in id.
vance and brought the value Of pa.
per and other circulating medium
up to fair exchange basis viii
gold.
Time after time in the history Of
peoples, governments have rssorte<
to temporary expsdiency In orde,
that no class Of the people and nt
one set 81 institutions should .eufler
Il 10 not IN unfair request q thii
time, apd has not been for the pas,
three years. TO constantly plead VIII
our government and the American
psopls TO-. save Tie wheat belts .,
this country from complete ruin AMI
bankruptcy.
This position seems all the NOR,
reasonable and sound in visw 81 Is,