Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-14
HOOVER DROUGHT
CONFERENCE OPENS
Dry Spell Reported Broken
in Middle West and
Southern States.
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are: Caulfeld, Missouri; Louis L. En-
merson, Illinois, Leslie, Indiana; Will
liam G. Conley, West Virginia; John G.
Pollard, Virginia; John E. Erickson,
Montana; Clyde M Reed, Kansas;
Hammill, Iowa; Arthur j. Weaver,
Nebraska, and Myers Y. Cooper, Ohio.
Senator John M Robson of Kentucky
is representing the governor of his
State and Harvey T. Harrison, a Little
Rock, Ark, lawyer and T. Roy Held,
assistant director of extension at the
University of Arkansas, are representing
their State executive.
Others meeting with the President
are Secretary of Agriculture. Hyde;
James C. Stone, assistant chairman,
and Charles S. Wilson, a member of the
Federal Farm Board. Alexander Legge,
chairman of the Federal Farm Board,
Is hurrying East from an inspection trip
to the Far West to attend this meeting,
but it is not expected that he will reach
Washington before tonight.
To Continue After Dinner.
The conference was called for 2:30
o'clock and was expected to run right
on up to dinnertime. The conferees
will be President Hoover's guests at din
ner at the White House tonight and
afterward the group will resume the
conference.
The President planned to open the
meeting by first going over the general
situation and then asking for the ex-
preston Of views from the State repre-
sentatives. The President will submit
a tabulation Of the reports received
during the past week from the several
hundred county agents of the Agri-
cultural Department In the drought-af-
fected area, rs well as other reports he
has received, notably from the Ameri-
can Red Cross and the United States
Public Health Service and from the
railroads operating through the drought
areas.
1t was expected that the governors
and the governors representatives would
each report conditions in their re-
spective States and advance idsas rela-
tive TO the organization of a general
relief program. Inasmuch as the most
recent advices received by the President
indicate that the unemployment situ-
alton in the affected areas Is growing
more serious, 1t was expected that this
subject would occupy considerable OF
the attention of the conference. Many
farmers whose lands have been ruined
and are without funds to carry them,
as well as the loss of employment of
farm hands, must be taken care of for
the present at least, according to re-
ports the President has received.
1t has already been suggested to him
as q result of a canvass of the situation
that an increased bodybuilding pro-
gram might offer some promise of i'm
proving this feature Of the drought
problem.
Many Measures TO Be Discussed.
According to the manner in which
the President already has mapped out
tentative relief program, the other meas
ures to be discussed at length include
the extensions of rural credit for the
purchase of feed and the rehabilitation
Of farm lands; the extension of emer-
gency freight rates for the movement
Of food and water for live stock and
the movement of live stock from the
affected areas; the relief for families in
actual distress, which is expected to be
handled by the American Red Cross
through its local chapters: the question
Of price advances which might become
extensive as result of any food
shortage and the matter of health work
and sanitation.
Besides President Hoover's summary
Of the reports made by the Agricultural
will receive the survey reports from
Secretary of Agriculture Hyde, which
will be made public following the
conference.
1t was said at the White House to-
day that the President still Is Of the
opinion that there is no general short
age OF foodstuffs in prospect and that
there is no occasion for consumers to
become alarmed. Administration Of
flcials have been quick to warn against
any concerted movement on the part
of housewives to overstock their larders
with canned goods for fear Of rising
market this Winter. 1t was said in Of
fetal circles that while the Federal
Government proposes to keep its eye on
the food prices there is no authority
for the Government to act in the mat
ter of price boosting unless there Is
evidence of violation of the antitrust
laws, or the interstate commerce laws.
Gov. Leslie Makes Proposal.
The extension of credit to farmers in
the dry sections to enable them to carry
on operations and prepare for another
crop year drew more attention than any
immediate action to relieve suffering In
the preliminary discussions today.
Gov. Leslie sounded the alarm on the
crisis confronting the farmers. He made
no proposition, awaiting the outline of
a program by the President, but he said
1T is money we need and must have"
THE farmers for the most part have
nothing left TO put up even as security
for a loan" the Indiana Republican
stated, land he must have money If he
is going to try and carry on again next
year"
Gov. Caulfield presented the first plan
to q Government department for relief
measures.
Caulfield proposed to Secretary Hyde
that next years allotment Of Federal
aid for State highways be apportioned
on September rather than January /,
1891.
The total appropriated for Federal
aid for highways for the fiscal year
1882 at the last session Of Congress was
S125, 900 900.