Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-04-08
RELIEF BILL
DEFENDED AGAINST
UNJUST CRITICISM
BY DAVID LAWRENCE
Neased Wire Service to The Journal)
downright, 1920

/
sevens over the McNary Haugen bill
which provides machinery for the
purchase of the export wheat crop.
The critics are numerous, the at
tack on the bill extends all the way
from cries of unsOundness to the
statement that it will take an army
greater than the prohibition force to
police it's operation.
Charles J. Brand, consulting spe-
Cialist at the department Of agricul-
ture, who is probably more familiar
with the proposal than any one else
, IN Washington today consented to
! explain some of the provisions of
The measure.
IF people will only read the bill
and examoine it carefully" he said,
they will not find in it on reflec.
ton the imaginary dangers they
Fthink they see. For instance, it has
been said the bill would put the
grain exchanges and traders out of
business. 1t will not The u. S.
agricultural export corporation will
act through existing trade bodies
and organizations. The corporation
is to be actuarial and not a, trade
BODY itself One thing it may do, I
admit. 1t may reduce the amount
of fluctuation in grain prices due
to world rumors, but the exchanges
will always he influenced by domes-
tic factors and rumors.
Participation Certificates
What is proposed in the McNary-
Haugen bill is nothing more nor
less than what the agricultural CO.
operatives now are doing We sim.
ply would buy the exportable sur
plus of wheat for the farmer. not
out of government funds, but out of
funds provided by the farmer him
self and, when the time for settle.
ment comes at the end Of the year,
the farmer would get his patronage
dividend as the farm co-operatives
call 1t, in the form of participation
certificates which is a better name
than script. 1t is a mistake to at
tribute to these participation GER
tlflcates' any legal tender value.
They will be commercial paper pure
and simple.
L have heard statements that the
farmers wouldn't accept these CERT.
flcates. But let us take an actual il.
lustration of how the bill would
work. Suppose a farmer has 1000
bushels of wheat to sell. The do
nestle price is $1,000. The ratio
price OF wheat to other commodities
would call for a price Of $3.50 2, bush
Ell, II things were normal. But in.
stead of paying the farmer that
amount in cash or $4,000, he would
be paid for illustration, about So. 700
The remaining $500 would be with
'held and in its place he would be
given a participation certificate.
Now, how would we determine the
value of that certificate at the end
or tn eseason? We are producing
about 100000 bushels Of wheat
OF which 150,O00O00 bushels would
be the stimated amount needed for
export, based on previous years fig.
ures.'
How It Works
But in the export market. we
would have to sell at a loss say at a
dollar a bushel. This would mean a
total loss Of about $75,000,00O. Add
TO that an approximate cost of SIS.
600, 900 the expense Of the CORPORA.
tion though l believe if would be
lower than that. and YOU have A
total cost of $90,000,00O But if ont
"SS'tI "
bushels, you withhold fifteen cents
bushel from the farmer for the
equalization fund, YOU will have on
hand about $500, 900 Subtract
ing the $90,000,000 Of expense, it
leaves $22 500 in your fund and
dividing that sum by the number of
participation certificates gives the
value of each which in this case
would no oh I
as the final value of each certificate.
That would mean for 2 900 bushels.
a total of $50 in addition his original
1900 or $3.50 in all.
Now, compare that with present
conditions when this farmer gets at
present prices approximately $4,000
Tor the crop. Wouldn't he accept a
scheme that assures him of more
than he is getting? l am sure he
will"
Mr. Brand denied that plan inter-
tels with the preOrogatives of con.
gress IN fixing tariffs and said that
Just as congress had delegated au.
thority in the case of the present
flexible provisions of the tariff act,
1t could give the proposed corpora
ton authority to raise the tariff
N4t'AlA d Gel TAIN MEAS uTaDIe proper
ton.
To Fix Low Price Level
The whole purpose, of the bill. Mr..
Brand claims, is not to guarantee or
fix price, but to establish a mini
mum price level for export. He in
sisted that there would be no sub
stantial increase in production, ar
Suing that. during the war. with
wheat above two dollars a bushel,
the was 90S, 10000 bushels and that
the limit of easily disable wheat lands
had been reached. s. He declared that
the bill would help other products,
of course. besides wheat and would
be especially helpful to the hog rails
er since a ratio would be established
based on the prices other COmmOdi-
ties. He did not see how there could
be any material increase in the hog
production because the price of corn
would regulate that. In fact. his
theory is that a stabilized relation
would obtain between all farm prod
uctS.
Mr. Brand has against him some
of the influential advisers of the ad-
ministration on agricultural eConom-
les. President Coolidge is endeavor.
ing to maintain an open mind The
bill has been reported favorably to
the senate by the agricultural com
mittee and has the support of the
secretary of agriculture. 1t is being
considered in executive session by
the house committee on agriculture.
and already there is evidence that
the bill will be the center of atten-