Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-11-24


boards wheat and cotton purchases had
amounted to 1911 .737, TAG III two years.
Chairman MCNary of the committee
had asked Stone for the amount lost
in the deals. The board head said he
had no information beyond that in the
report, but later said he would get it.
Commute Room Filled.
The committee room was filled with
representatives of farm organizations,
members of the Farm Board and other
interested spectators.
In its report, the board did not at
tempt to estimate its loss in stabiliza-
ton operations.
The report said this must be reck-
oned only after the cotton and wheat
it holds are disposed OF.
On November / the board had 189.
656.l87 bushels of wheat and 1910, 789
bales of cotton The cotton will be held
another year, and wheat will be sold
for the next year at the rate of 5000, 900
bushels monthly.
The carrying cost of wheat is between
ia and IL cents a bushel a month
Stone said.
He added that the board handled
9,oOO, 900 bushels through millers I'M
der its agreement last January to lend
them wheat to be returned later.
This offer was made when wheat was
about 20 cents higher here than abroad,
a situation which was forcing American
millers out of the foreign market.
The wheat was handled, Stone said,
through so millers east of the Rockies
and 20 on the Pacific Coast.
Bares Price Differences.
The average purchase price of wheat
was 81 and a fraction cents, Stone
testified. The average price obtained
on all its sales has been between So and
81 cents a buShel he added
He said the board had sold 47,500,0 900
bushels of wheat to foreign govern
mentS.
Questioned by Senator Brookhart, Re-
publican, Iowa Stone said the board
had confined its export aid to wheat
and cotton
The board has done nothing to aid
corn, oats and livestock through ex-
ports?" Brookhart commented.
Suppose you had removed the ex-
portable surplus of corn, would that
have raised the price of corn?' Senator
Wheeler, Democrat, of Montana, asked.
Il don't know" Stone replied. The
price of corn is dependent on the live
stock market"
1T would have raised the price up to
the tariff levels" Brookhart said.
Norris Hurls. Question.
THE board made no effort to raise
the price of corn, did it?" Senator Nor
ris, Republican. of Nebraska asked.
I'VE believed the sterilization of
wheat would have helped the corn
market" Stone said.
IF you could stabilize wheat by buy
ing wheat you could have stabilized
corn by much smaller purchases" Nor
ris said. And wouldn't that stabiliza-
ton Of corn help the wheat market?"
Perhaps so, Stone replied.
Brookhart said it was the duty of the
board 10 ask Congress for additional
funds
Many groups" the board observed,
| in its report, want sterilization cor
porations always TO buy and never to
sell That is asking the impossible
Sterilization operations cannot main
tain prices continuously. SO long as
surpluses continue to pile up, artificial
measures can only temporarily offset
their effects
The growth of co-operatives was de-
tailed, disclosing that 900 farmers
were allied with these co-operatives, to
which $255 1861 58 in loans has been
made. They have repaid STAG 1867 ,203,
leaving an outstanding balance Of $lO9,-
| 499 ,254.
No recommendations were made for
amending the agricultural marketing
act. Neither were requests made for
| additional funds. On July the boards
| financial statement showed $159,977,6O8
remained in the Treasury of the orig
inal $500,000,000 fund. Since then,
however, additional commitments have
! been made to co-operatives, reducing
| this balance to an estimated SIS, 00O,-
! 600
Farmers themselves were complained
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