Payette enterprise. (Payette, Canyon Co., Idaho) 1909-1935, 1923-12-20
FARM LEGISLATION
To RECEIVE
CONSIDERATION

WASHINGTON. D. C. = From
numerous conferences he has held
since arriving in Washington Senator
F. r. Gooding makes the prediction
| that legislation to aid the farmers is
| going to receive early and very serl-
Gus consideration at the National
Capital this winter. The Senator
first discussed the agricultural sit
uation with the President, and has
since talked with many Senators,
OongresSmen and members of the
| Cabinet, and his conferences have
convinced him that there is very
strong desire on the part of many
men here to grant much needed re-
lief to the farmers in general, and to
the wheat growers in particular.
In laying before the President the
situation of the farmers of Idaho,
Senator Gooding declared the gov
eminent is in honor bound to help
at this time because the government
is largely responsible for the en-
! barrassing situation in which the
farmers, especially the wheat grow
ers, find themselves today. During
the war the government fixed the
price of wheat and it developed that
the price fixed was below the cost
of production. Then the govern
ment made a horizontal increase in
freight rates which proved to be an
undue discrimination against agricul-
turai products; 1t raised the wages OF
railroad employees with the result
that wages generally including wages
paid by farmers, were forced up
and have remained up, and then
when the war was over the Federal
Reserve Board staged a campaign OF
deflation that resulted in debating
only the Prices of manufactured ar
ticies, railroad rates or wages
Because the government has been
directly responsible for the low prices
of farm products, particularly wheat
Senator Gooding told the President
that Congress, In all fairness, shoulf
now stabilize the price OF wheat, and
maintain that price for two or three
years until the industry can once
more get on its feet. Generally
speaking, he does not favor goyenn,
ment price-fi1ing, but under the pc
culiar circumstances, thinks the
. sterilization of wheat prices is nov
fully justified. Senator Gooding fur
thermore talked with the President
about the disastrous effect Of pre-
vailing high freight rates on the
. farmers of Idaho, and make plaiI
. his conviction that until freight rate!
come down, agriculture cannot AGAR
thrive as it should in Idaho ant
other Weston States. He declared
3 his purpose to fight for freight rat'
! reduction this session.
: Senator Gooding will introduce il
the Senate a bill authorizing thu
Army Engineers to make a survey O.
Snake River from Lewiston t
Shoshone Falls to determine wheth
er or not it is measible, by canaliza
!. ton and other improvements to oper
: this stretch of river to navigation, Sc
!. that the products Of the farms Of
. southern Idaho may be shipped tc
the seaboard by water and thus es
. cape the payment of high rail freight
; rates on low price farm products
Congress never makes a ppropria
; tons for river improvements until
surveys and estimates have been
made by the Engineers and through
;. his bill Senator Gooding hopes to
have the survey made next season, in
) order that the subject of the i'm
provement can be considered by
Congress in its merits at the next
; regular session. Senator Gooding
has taken the matter up with all
members of the Idaho delegation and
finds them in full accord with him
on the development, and they will as
sist him in seeing that proper plans
for opening up the st. Lawrence
primarily to afford cheap rates for
farm products grown in the north
ern states, and is working to bring
about the manufacture of nitrate at
Muscle Shoals for the benefit of
farmers generally, the Idaho Sena-
tor wants the Snake River improve
ment considered, as being an equally
meritorious scheme for giving the
farmers of his state the benefit of
low water rates to the seaboard.