The Washington times., 1931-07-07
QUITS PARLEY.
WITH FACE
- "IH HH
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GLOOMY
Mention of Farm Board Act
/ Draws DiII-PiCkIe Look;
Watson Urges Holiday"
By THEODORE TILLEE:

BY THEODORE TILLEE
Vice President Charles Curtis
as a quasi-member of the Presi'
dents official family, attended
the Cabinet meeting at the White
House today, but asserted, as he
left, that he hadn't brought up
the subject of wheat" He was
positive about that.
Now, this seemed rather ex-
traOrdinary, because, if there's
one thing close to the hearts OF
the Vice President and his col
league, Senator Arthur Capper OF
Kansas, it is the present price Of
wheat and the Governments hold
ings Of that grain, which is to be
dribbIed out among the markets
of the world, domestic and for
eign, on a basis of cumulative
maximum of 100000 bushels a
month" during :he next year.
The Vice President and Sena-
tor Capper, speaking for the
farmers of the wheat belt" had
put in two hectic hours yesterday
in conference with Chairman
James c. Stone and Carl Will
liams. of the Federal Farm Board.
Pie: Of Two Fails
They pleaded for, but did not
get, a modification of the boards
decree of July / that its wheat
holdings, in excess of 100000, 600
bushels, bought at peak prices
considering these depressing times,
would be unloaded on the 5000, 600
bushel-a-month basis.
All the two kicking Kansas
spokesmen obtained was re
iteration" of the boards position
that the dumping would not begin
"at present prices"
Then there were rumOrS that
they would go to the White
House and intercede with Presi-
dent Hoover. They said they
had neither time nor inclination
yesterday to do it, what with the
world fliers in town and other
official matters to meet, and thus
they called it a day, and a bad
one, with the Farm Board visit
Holiday Their Hope
What they really wanted the
hard-boiled board and its chair
man, Mr.. Stone, to promise was
a holiday in wheat dumping un-
til the prices range from IS cents
to 81 bushel. as compared with
IS to 40 cents on the farm now
prevailing. And Chairman Stone
wouldn't do it; and probably
won't.
So. wnen the vice president
showed up at the executive of.
fices today for his bi-weekly sit.
in at a Cabinet meeting, it was
generally assumed that wheat
would be mentioned: at least to
the extent of an official remark
that it supplies the weIl-knOwn
''staff Of life"
Although the President nova
days is engrosSed in such things
as an international debt morator-
ium, fleeting moment or so it
was expected might be given to
the plight of the disgruntled
wheat farmers.
After all. it could have been
said, farmers out West cast a
few million votes every four years
and generally they vote according
to their contentment or peevish-
ness. patting the old purse, full
or flat, as they march to the
polls.
Dill-PickIe Expression
Despite the ramifications of
such situation, one has it from
the Vice President himself that
wheat was not discussed at to-
days Cabinet meeting. AS he left
the White House, Mr.. Curtis
briefly recalled that he and Sen
ator Capper had had a conference
yesterday with the Farm Board
and got an answer there. Inter
viewers say he wore sort of dill
pickle expression as he recalled it.
Albeit. though the situation is
distressing to Curtis and Capper,
their valiant battle doubtless will
be acclaimed by the backbone
Kansas folks.
It's unusual for a Vice Presi-
dent to jump into his limousine
and off his rostrum and go down
to enter plea with mere
Farm Board-but perhaps Mr..
Curtis knows both his onions and
his wheat and. though defeated
in this one bread battle. he'll run
for Senator in Kansas in 1882 and
let Mr.. Hoover draft another good
presiding officer for the United
States Senate.