Evening star., 1924-02-06

corporation would undertake the
functions of middlemen between pro-
ducers and consumers. 1t would
tend to do away with all other mid
dlemen, boards of trades speculating
in food and commission houses. 1t
is the spread" between the producer
and consumer which is grinding the
farmers into bankruptcy, while bleed
of living" according to farm experts
This bill does not undertake to
fix prices" by any arbitrary stand
ard. nor to buy up surplus crops. Its
aim is to economize the excessive
cost of marketing. not only in the
domestic market but also in foreign
shipments. This would not be
temporary relief, but it is planned
that the net profits shall be covered
into its treasury until they amount
to $1O0,O00,000 as a working capital,
and all beyond that sum shall go
toward refunding the capital advanc-
ed by the government. The corpora
ton would be authorized to issue its
securities for the longtime sales
abroad Of such products. The limit
Of the bonds would be five times the
amount of its capital stock.
X X +
These three measures would not
save the immediate crisis which
mortgaged farmers, but 1t is claimed
by the supporters of the respective
measures that they would add to the
profits of future farming.
For immediate relief the President
called a conference this week of the
best minds" of farming to consult
with Secretaries Wallace and Hoover
of the Departments of Agriculture and
Y lIfla f~pG. HG <snrl fnyVn II
about 100 experts to Washington, who
appointed committees on mortgage
extension, on financing and on bank
ing.
The outcome Of this conference was
support of measure known as the
Norbeck -Burtness bill to organize a.
corporation with. capital stock of
s10.000.000 subscribed by private in
vestors to finance loans to be made
through the government War Finance
Corporation. 1t is believed that the
S10,000,o00 will be obtained from per-
sons whose interests are involved in
the stability of the northwest and
that with that machinery of finance
some S50,000,000 loans will become
available, to take care Of such coun-
FARMERS whose mortgages are due,
but whose equities are still good Sc
curity for extensions of loans.
The foundation of all relief must be
something to enable farmers to make
n profit. Already credit extension
has been overworked. A survey of
6.094 farms. made by the Department t
of Agriculture for the year 1922,
shows that the results Of the labor of
the farmer averaged SS17, plus food
valued at 1924. Total $1.211. Deduct
the value of unpaid farm labor by
family and farmer, $716, leaving re-
turn to capital invested $495, which
was per cent capital earning If the
family labor is counted, at the rate
paid to hired men, and IL interest on
investment Is counted at per cent
50 a year for his own labor. That Is
the average for the whole United
States. In the east north central
region the years earning of the farm
operator is $13, and in the west north
central, he not only gets nothing for
his work, but loses an average of
$1S2, and in the western section $170
loss.
This is not the first crisis which that
region has faced because of crop fail
ures. In the early days there was
the grasshopper pest. followed by the
Russian thistle plague. Farms were
abandoned then as now. But better
methods brought profits.
1t will encourage American farmers
to learn that in England there Is agi-
tation to increase the wages of farm
hands now averaging % shillings z
pence (about $50 a week, and to pc
nalize farmers who raise weeds in
place of crops.
Copyright. 1924. by Paul v. Collins.)