Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1929-06-14
Lowest Farm Prices In Fifteen
Years.


While the administration at Washington
dallies with the agricultural problem, with
little promise of action that will give real
relief to agriculture, the prices Of wheat
and other agricultural products are tum-
bling at rate that threatens thousands
OF farmers with bankruptcy before the end
Of the present crop season.
President Hoover called the Republican
Seventy-frst Congress into session on
April 18th for two purposes. to pass farm
relief legislation and to pass Limited
tariff revision bill. the declared purpose Of
the legislation being to relieve agriculture
from its distressed condition. Since the
extra session was called. the drop in wheat
prices has cost the farmers not less than
$250.00U.000. with the fear entertained
that prices will 60 even lower and that the
total loss to winter wheat producers may
reach the staggering sum Of $500, 200. 900.
At the middle Of the present week, the
price Of wheat on the Chicago grain ex-
change had dropped to fraction more
than So cents per bushel, the lowest price
10 fifteen years.
For May wheat. the price was 48 l-8 cents
lower than one year ago. and for July
wheat. 46 l.6 cents under the price pre-
vailine at this time last year. This means
a loss Of nearly fifty cents bushel to the
farmer on his wheat, and as the estimate
on the winter wheat crop is 625.00O.0OO
bushels. the farmer will suffer through the
sharp wheat decline loss Of approximately
$SO0,O00,000 on this years crop. For
this years crop of 825.00O.0OO bushels,
he will receive probably good deal less
than dollar bushel. or less than $780,
100000. whereas for last years crop of
579.OOO.O0O bushels. he received $685.
100000. In fact. il the price should
stabilize at one dollar per busheI on the
Chicago market, the farmer will actually
receive probably less than even $780,
100000 for the total crop. because the
price the farmer actually receives is some
less than the Chicago price.
That the Republican administration at
Washington has done absolutely nothing
to make the tariff effective on wheat is
shown by comparison Of Chicago prices
with those prevailing at Winnipeg. There
Is tariff of AZ cents per bushel on Ameri-
can wheat. II the tariff were fully effec-
tive. the price Of wheat at Chicago and
Minneapolis should be AZ cents per bushel
above the price at Winnipeg. Canada. But
the Chicago and Minneapolis prices are
below those prevailing at Winnipeg.
On the day that May wheat dropped to
SO IA cents per bushel at Chicago, the
Winnipeg price was 10 l-2 cents above the
Chicago price. while July wheat was 8 l-2
cents higher at Winnipeg than at Chicago.
To put it another way. If the American
farmers marketed their prospective $685.
100000 bushels winter wheat crop through
Winnipeg at Winnipeg prices. they would
receive approxim +tely $80.0OO.0OO more
for their crop than they are receiving at
prices prevailing in Chicago and Mime
apolis. This proves that the Washington
administration. in spite of all the pledges
made during the election campaign last
year and despite the promise Of early farm
relief made by President Hoover when he
called an extra session of Congress to deal
with the problem. has done absolutely
nothing to make the tariff effective on
farm products. 10 the United States. there
Is duty of AZ cents per bushel on wheat,
while Canada has no wheat tariff, yet Cana
dian farmers are getting 10 cents bushel
more for their crop than the American
Growers.
Losses 70 farmers are by no means con-
fined to the wheat crop. Corn. oats and
rye prices also broke sharply. with sym
pathetic" downward trend in evidence on
all produce. On the day that May wheat
broke to SO Ia cents bushel. as COM
pared with Si.44 IA at the same time
last year, May corn dropped to 81 cents
per bushel. as compared with $i.0l on
the same date in 1929. Oats dropped
the same day to Al "a cents per bushel
as compared with so 1-2 cents the same
date last year. Rye tumbled to 81 cents
per bushel as compared with $l.3l ga
on the same date in 1928.
With wheat. corn. oats and rye all reach
ing the lowest prices in years. and farmers
actually receiving prices for their products
several cents per b1shel less than the
Chicago quotations, 1t Is a conservative
estimate that the recent break has cost
the farmers well over a half billion dollars
on this years crop. loss certain to bring
bankruptcy to additional thousands OF
farmers. who again see campaign pledges
ignored or forgotten. Bumper crops. pro-
duced at high costs, and sold at prices
actually below production costs, with no
means in sight for controlling the huge
SURPRISES. cannot mean other than heavy
losses for every grower Of these products.
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