Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-12
ny MARK SULLIVAN.

farming would be dramatic. II
| does have dramatic meaning
| but II l. not turning point.
| On the contrary, it is the acceptance
and flnal capitalization of n trend that
has been under way ion more Than two
| generations.
The new farm relief plan, when in
operation, should make many farmers
more prosperous. lt may even make
many farmers very prosperous indeed.
! mat depends largely on The men who
viii manage the new Federal Farm
! Board.
| The new plan will make farmers
more prosperous 50 long and this Is
important as the total number of
| farmers is kept down to the number
who can raise Just enough for the
American market. and no more. But
the new plan will hardly cause farm
| ing to become growing industry. 1t
will hardly .calSe the price OF farm
! land to go higher-which is one form
j Of prosperity that some farmers wish
| for Almost certainly the new plan
will not reverse the drift Of population
| from farm To city. On the contrary,
the new plan accepts that drIIt as
thing to be eontented with The new
farm relief plan cOntemplates bringing
greater prosperity to approximately the
|
not contemplate that the number shall
| increase.
Surplus FrOWRed Upon.
The plan OF farm relief about To be
adopted has a fundamental assunp-
4, ton The assumption Is that the
farmer shall cease raising surplus 1Or
export that he shall raise just as much
as can he consumed IN America, ana
no more. CWhat is here said refers To
| the familiar American crops such as
wheat. ana does not, OF course, refer 10
/ cotton, which Is and always has been
raised largely for EXPORT
The relief that Is about to so INTO
effect goes Oh the basic assumption
that the farmers export surplus Is an
embarrassment, thing TO be avoided.
The plan will tend ia its working out
| toward reducing the farmers export
surplus to as near nothing as Is prac-
ticable. 1t looks to keeping the amer
lean farmer prosperous by keeping ms
crop down To what the American con-
| sumner can buy, and at the same time
making the American consumer pay
fairly high price.
Ia effect, the policy Of this bill says,
LET the farmer stop trying 10 raise
crops for sale In Europe; let hlm con-
fne himself to raising crops mat
America can consume, ana only SO
much of them as America can COLI
sumo" Stated, with concrete reference
| To one crop, the policy says: Raise
Just rs much wheat as you can sell IN
America, and no more. As 70 the re-
laainder Of your wheat acreage, On
| which you nov raise wheat fsf Europe
turn that acreage into other crops
which America can consume"
Hand ia hand with this farm relief
policy SoeS tariff policy supplement
ing it and meant TO be equally helpful
to agriculture. In the tsrih bill about
to be passed 1t Is proposed to say la
effect: we will put protective tariff
| not only on all crops now raised ia
America. but Ola all crops that can rea-
sOnably be raised ia American short,
We will give to the American farmer q
substantial monopoly OF the American
market IS TO all products that Ameri-
can farmers can reasonably raise.
have said that this policy of keep
ing the export surplus as near zero as
practicable is fundamental in the pro-
gram now being adopted. 1t Is like
wise fundamental III the alternatives
proposed. While limitation OF the sx-
port surplus is not SO apparent la the
"debenture" OF bounty plan, o. ia the
equalization fee" plan, it Is necessarily
inherent there.
Ii bounty On exports should be
paid, either lay the farmers themselves
Or by the Government the tendency
would inevitably be t0 keep the bounty
low by keeping the exports low. Sen
ator Norris OF Nebraska, who supported
The debenture plan, understood this
condition and accepted 1t. His amend
ment 10 the debenture plan cOntsm-
plated, in effect that the export sur
plus should not become larger than it
now is.
In short, this policy, that The Amer
lean farmer shall not Try Ia he an eg-
porter 70 the rest OF the world, Is Ger
tain TO be basic in the immeu iate fu-
ture Of American agriculture.
Important Results Seen.
From this policy-limiting the Amer
lean farmer To raising as much as the
American market will buy-certain re-
suits Will follow. socially and perhaps
politically We can understand them
by comparing our policy about farming
with our policy about other industries.
To the farmer We say, in effect:
Limit yourself To producing just
enough for the American market, or as
near that as you can approximate. and
We will pay you American prices for 1t
prices higher than any other farmer
la the world gets. We will keep YOU
under the protective tariff cloak with
the rest Of America. and prevent any
Arsentinian. Australian OF Canadian
farmer from selling in competition with
you. America shall have the highest
standard Of living IN the world ana
You shall share It. C0nrine yourself
10 the American market and he con-
tent with American high prices f0r
your crops. Don't bother with trying
to raise anything f0r export, which, la
the nature OF things, mist be Sold at
low prices"
Now let lis contrast this policy for
farming with the quite different policy
We have for manufacturing. TO manu-
featuring We say:
Export. Export more and more.
Flood the world with American manu-
featured goods. Send American manu-
features To the farthest corner OF the
earth Make America the greatest ex-
porting nation--m manufactures in
the world"
There is no malice, no evil intent in
this contrast between what We say TO
farmers and what we say to manu-
of the business statistics now available