Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-22
Rate by MaIl-PayabIe in Advance.
All Other States and Canada.
A Presidential Broadside.

President Hoover has turned the
heavy artillery of administration inf1u-
ence against the so-called export de-
benture plan of aiding the farmers. At
the same time he has presented an
array of arguments against the adop-
ton of the debenture plan which should
completely stem any tide of sentiment
which supporters of the plan and anti
administration forces have sought to
arouse.
Those who have complained that the
President has not taken definite
stand with regard to farm relief, and
the debenture plan in particular, can
complain no more. Mr.. Hoover has de-
clared himself fatty and unqualifiedly
against the debenture plan. He has in
dictated in no uncertain terms that If
the farm-relief bill should be sent to
him containing the debenture plan he
would send the measure back to Con-
gress with his disapproval.
1t is the Hoover method not to give
advice or opinion without first obtain
ing all the facts. The President has
made study of the debenture pro-
pcsai since a committee of the Senate
called to ask whether he would approve
1t or not more than a week ago. He
has been aided in his study by experts
of the Treasury Department and the
Departments of Agriculture and Com
merce. And now the President, in his
letter to Senator McNary. chairman of
the committee on agriculture, has given
o full answer to the Senate committee
which called upon him.
The arguments submitted by the
President against the debenture plan
have been summed up in ten points.
Any one of them shows the plan un-
sound. 1t would, if put into. effect, re-
suit in overproduction, with a .conse-
quent disaster to the American farmer.
1t would benefit the spectators and the
exporters of farm produce rather than
the farmer, even to the extent of the
subsidy which the debenture plan pro-
poses to grant the farmer. 1t would at
once, if put into practice, advance the
prices upon huge stocks which are in
the hands of spectators or exporters,
and which have passed out of the hands
of the farmers. In the end the Amer
lean farmer would find that this
panacea for his ills was delusion and
a snare. And finally, the President
points out that if there is to be paid
to the exporters, spectators or the
farmers a subsidy running into two or
three hundred millions of dollars a
year, it will be necessary to increase
the Federal taxes levied upon farmers
and consumers of the American farm
ers' produce alike. The debenture plan
in operation does not take money from
the Treasury. 1t merely prevents money
from going into the Treasury, which in
the end is the same thing as removing
the money and handing over direct
subsidy. The debenture certificates
which would be issued to exporters Of
farm products would be used in place
of money to pay the tariff duties Of i'm
ports into this country.
The President, through his message
to Congress and his addresses, has made
very clear his ideas of farm aid which
should be undertaken by the Govern
ment. The House leaders and the House
itself have accepted the limits laid
down by the President, and a bill will
soon pass that body by an overwhelm-
ing vote carrying out that program. In
the Senate committee, however, where
the opponents of the administration
have felt themselves stronger, the de-
benture plan was written into the bill,
a kind of monkey wrench to throw the
machinery out of gear. In the end,
however, majority of the Senate it
self is expected to go along with the
President in this matter. Chairman
McNary and several other members Of
the committee of agriculture have
made it clear they do not propose to
support the debenture plan in OPPOSE
ton to the President.