The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1929-01-31
DRASTIC BOOST OF
FLAX TARIFF RATE
N. w. Agricultural Group
Speaker Gives Plan to
Committee
IMPROVE CONDITIONS
Increased Agricultural Seized.
ules Go Long Way Toward
Bringing Relief

Washington, Jan. 26-The case
of flax, was put before the
ways and means committee today
by DR.. A. III. Benton, of the North
Dakota State Agricultural college,
representing the northwest agri-
cultural foundation.
DIR. Benton went over the figures
recently presented to the tariff COM
mission, showing the much lower
costs of production in Argentina
than in the United States. Argen-
tina is the chief competitor. He
recommended a drastic increase in
rates and with special application
to the mixed oils which enter the
United States in competition with
linseed oil made from flax. These
oils, a mixture of soybeans with
linseed, come in much cheaper than
do the pure linseed oils, making a
satisfactory rate for inseed in the
manufacture of inoleums and
paints.
DR.. Benton's plea for increased
rates was that it would aid in the
Investigation of farming through
out the nation, which is the basic
plan of the recommendations now
being made by representatives of
the northwest agricultural founda-
ton. 1t would mean added millions
to producers, would take land out
of the production of wheat, pota-
toes and other crops, thereby as
sisting agriculture everywhere.
HI. N. Owen, editor of Farm,
Stock and Home, filed a brief with
the ways and means committee ask
ing that sweet clover seed be given
regular classification and the duty
be advanced from two cents to
four.
North Dakota, South Dakota and
Minnesota produce nearly so per
cent of the sweet clover seed grown
in this country.
At present prices, due to large
imports, it is difficult for growers
to break even. An advance of
two cents a pound would add close
to a million dollars to the farm
income of these states even if there
was no increase in acreage.
Sweet clover is growing in popu-
larity as it's value becomes better
known, so that any probable in
crease in production would be
taken care of by the growing de-
mand.
A duty of 80 cents per hundred
weight on potatoes was advocated
before the ways and means COM
mittee of the house today, by Rep
resentative Godfrey G. Goodwin,
of Minneapolis. The, present duty
is SO cents per hundredweight. The
present duty of 1 3-4 cents on po-
tato starch is not sufficient, he
claimed "and the further fact" he
said, "that starch from sage, topi-
oca, cassave and arrowroot, all
competitive with potato starch, de-
prive the American potato producer
of the fullest benefits of the Amer
lean market.
The present duty on rutabagas,
he said, is IL cents per hundred
weight and with this small duty, the
Canadian grower has full oppor-
tunity to compete with the Ameri-
can producer. He recommended
the duty be increased to 60 cents
per hundredweight, claiming this
would increase the cost of living by
only a few cents per annum.
The plight of the Minnesota po-
tato grower, already recited to the
committee by representatives OF
the northwest agricultural founda-
ton, in advocating co-ordinated
production, was explained in detail
by representative Goodwin.
In 1927" he said, Minnesota
produced the largest amount OF
potatoes of any Of the states of the
union. In that year the potato
crop of Minnesota was SO, $4,000
bushels. In 1926 its crop was sec
ond only to that of the states OF
Maine and Michigan. In 1926 Min
nesota produced 29,8O0,00O bu-
shells.