Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-16
STONE VETOS LIMIT
ON WHEAT ACREAGE
Farm Board Chairman Says
Plan Would Benefit Those
Outside Pact.
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
A suggestion that the wheat surplus
be controlled by a plan involving a
Nation wide acreage reduction agree
ment was vetoed yesterday by Chairman
Stone of the Federal Farm Board.
Stone. in a letter to State Senator
F. j. Wilmer of RoSalia, Wash, said
the problems solution and higher prices
lay in individual effort toward smaller
crops. He held as impractical control
measures which are contingent upon
participation under contract Of rs per
cent of the growers.
Wilmer, an official OF the North Pa
cific Grain Growers Cooperative Asso-
citation, had advanced a proposal
entatling financial aid and moral sup
port of the board. 1t encompaSSed a
Nationwide campaign to obtain control
Of the next three crop SURPRISES and to
limit acreage in 1892 and 1888 by a
Slgn-up Of at least rs per cent Of the
farmers in a surplus control association
with a three-year membership contract
The chairman outlined the boards
attitude in these words:
I'VE believe 1t would be impossible
even with intensive efforts, to get
enough farmers to cooperate under the
proposed contracts TO give the plan a
fair chance OF success. A uniform
Nationwide contract for surplus con-
troll or acreage reduction would not be
appropriate under widely diverse con-
ditionS.
Whatever benefits the plan might
yield would go most heavily to those
farmers who did not share in its obli-
cations. There Is no assurance that 1t
would actually yield the majority of
signers better returns for their wheat
than they will otherwise get The plan
would put large additional burdens on
the agency charged with dlsposing of
the surplus and commit us to a con-
tinuouS policy OF export dumping that
We believe would prove injurious to our
wheat growers in the long run"
Winners plan would bind a signer to
surplus association without advance
payment an amount set by directors
based on q percentage Of the entire
crop. The delivered grain would be
sold through the Farmers National
Grain Corporation in a manner not to
affect domestic markets and the sur
plus, after handling and transportation
charges, returned to the growers. The
contract also would limit 1882 and 1888
acreages to q percentage determined by
the associations directors.
Stone said the present situation
would lead farmers to store wheat on
their farms, feed 1t literally and cut
acreage, thus reducing the heavy sup
plies. He said the board counted upon
Federal, State and farmers organiza-
tions to emphasize these facts, and
1--WE are confident that in such ways
as these the difficulties Of the stu
alton will be met and surmounted."
"The history Of even regional sign
I'D campaigns among farmers" he said,
lis extremely discouraging and 50 is
the evidence of results to farmers from
such campaigns"
Because Of varying conditions and the
reluctance of growers to sign con-
tracts affecting their future actions,
particularly where actions two years
or more in advance are involved ."
stone said, lit is not practical or
economically desirable to secure ad-
herence to uniform plan OF acreage
reduction"