Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-04

reasonable and practicable to charge !"
However, makers of railroad rates
have refused to vary the freight charge
in strict proportion to the difference in
values, he finds.
Should the article worth 30 cents a
pound pay just three times the rate
charged against an article worth 10
cents a pound, or more than three
times or less than three times?" Mr..
Lorenz proceeds. "In actual practice the
answer has been very definite that the
relation should be regressive, when the
rate Is taken as a whole For example.
cocoa beans, worth 10 cents a pound,
take f1fth-class rates In the Western
classification, while sheet aluminium,
worth 80 cents a pound, takes third
class. Third-claSs rates are rs
cents above fifth class.
I'm other words, for an increase of
over 200 per cent in value there is a
rs per cent increase in the rate. A
study of the relation indicates that the
tendency Is to vary rates, not in pro-
portion to values, but in proportion to
amounts between the square root and
cube root of the values"
Stick to Beans.
In spite of the immense variety of
American vegetables regularly available
in canned form for consumption, foreign
purchasers are conservatively inclined
to stick to baked beans. This is dis
closed by a compilation of canned
goods exports from the United States
for the full month of January. The
total of baked beans sent abroad in the
period was Just short of $50 tons, and
the value was $41.322. Taking all other
forms of canned vegetables. aside from
beans, including corn, tomatoes and
the endless varieties of garden stuffS
available nowadays in cans. the Janu-
airy exports to foreign countries were
valued at but $8l 900, and represented
a weight of about 600 tons.
1t was further noticeable by the
January figures that the American
canned bean found some sort of a
market, small or large, in practically
every country and subdivision of the
world, though other vegetables did not.
So important an area as the Irish
Free State, for example, took American
canned beans, but no other American
canned vegetable in the period.
Another business investigation. shap-
ing up to break soon in Washington re-
lates to the cotton industry, and more
particularly to the practice of crushers
who buy cottonseed from producers.
Acting under instructions of Senate
resolution, the Federal Trade Commits
sion has for several months had its
agents spread out over the South in
curing as to the relation of cotton gin
holdings to cotton oil operations and
as to business practices. This material
is likely to be put into public hearings
shortly.
Elementary Probe Needed.
"The elementary inquiry, covering sew
eral weeks, has been necessary in order
to locate persons to be subpenaed to at
tend public hearings and to identify ex-
hibits which they should produce" a
commission statement just issued on
progress of the work says, THE examin-
ing attorneys are now continuing to
travel through the territory of cotton
growing States for the purpose of de-
veloping additional data. The commits
sion is DESTROYS of being in possession
of complete facts regarding the manner
in which the industry has operated dur
ing the past two or three seasons"
The original complaint on which the
Senate acted reciteS the charge that
cotton growers, by the associate rela-
ton of the gins and crushing plants, are
being deprived of proper return for cot
tonSeed,