Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1926-12-10

ture have made progress. I'm
fortunately, the recent slump in cot
ton prices makes it doubtful whether
the crop year of 1926-27 viii carry
forward the story of Improvement at
the rate established in the last few
years. 1t is also true that over much
of the country farmers are still
/ struggling with q burden Of debt and
reduced buying power.
Farmers are getting results from
the steps they took, following the
depression of 1921, to curtail over
production and to bring their lead
ing enterprises into profitable bal
| ance. Last year, however, it became
| apparent that in most lines COTTON
being an outstanding exception)
practicable readjustments in produce
ton had largely been made"
Turning to the surplus problem,
Mr.. Jardine said he was convinced
that through organized and we'll
directed efforts much more can be
done than had hitherto been done to
eliminate the recurring SURPRISES
that prove so detrimental to the
farming industry. Better control of
the movement of agricultural prod
ucts into consumptive channels . is
needed through adequate marketing,
storage, and credit facilities, and
organization of producers for market
ing operations. Farmer controlled
agencies. he believed, couh best eff
feet an orderly flow of produce to
| market.
Legislative action should be de-
signed to u-eate and enlarge such
agencies and supplement their eff
I forts said Secretary Jardine. mo
general formula will cover all COM
| modities and all regions. What is
needed is concentrated and coordinat-
ed effort backed up by adequate
| resources. To do this may require
further enabling legislation"
Declaring that farm commodity
prices, especially in areas distant
from markets, are seriously depressed
by high freight rates, Mr.. Jardine
said it was his conviction there must
be substantial rate establishments.
Drastic reduction in farm taxes
cannot be expected at the present
, time, in the opinion of the Secretary,
who said the demands of the users
of automobiles for better and more
, improved roads and the necessarily
high coast of education will keep the
expenses of States and local u hts
|
! it was a mistake to suppose that the
tariff system benefits industry greatly
and agriculture little.
ut would be in the highest degree
unwise for farmers at this time 10
! launch an attack on the tariff" he
said without carefully considering
, the possibility that in the near future
f, they may need it more than any
other economic group in the coun-
try. Tariff duties on farm products
| prior to the war were largely hypo-
theticaL Now, with increasing popu-
| lation, with relatively declining farm
population, with declining farm acre
age per capita, and with increasing
efficiency of farming, the tariff is
/ becoming protective for crops for
merly Influenced mainly by the world
market Powerful forces are carry
ing us into a position in which the
tariff will have its intended effect In
the near future on a steadily length
ening list of important farm com
modities. Under our high tariff re-
gime, such tariff rates should be
placed ON farm products, article by
article, as will insure the producer
the home market. The experiences
of recent years have convinced me
that the system of basing tariff rates
on differences in production costs IS
inapplicable to agricultural products.
! The only method is to do what used
to be done decades ago for. manu-
featuring industries, namely, to fix
rates at such height as effectively
to give the home market to domestic
producers"