The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1932-11-03
A THIRD OF A MAN?

The Democratic Campaign Commit
tee, in a political advertisement ap-
pearing only in agricultural maya
zines, calls the American farmer "a
third of a man." This advertisement,
which is as frankly deceptive as have
been the so-called farm speeches of
the Democratic candidate himself,
says many things which are not true.
The advertisement declares that the
farmer was "ruined in prosperity"
He was. He was ruined in 1918 by the
Democratic free trade Underwood
Tariff Act. This was one of the
worst tariff bills ever enacted. 1t
placed most of our leading agricultu-
1al products on the free list and so
drastically lowered rates of duty on
other products of the farm that the
duties were not at all effective. This
was demonstrated after the World
War, when the flood of competitive
farm products from abroad so mum
ddDCu Jul IIldIhCU ludIy opAN
the property of those days in 1918
and 1920, the prices paid for farm
products hit such low levels that many
farmers did not attempt to sell. They
did not do so because our home
markets were glutted with Argen-
tine beef, Australian wool and NUT
ton, Canadian wheat, Chinese eggs
and millions of tons of other farm
products from the four corners of the
earth. 1t took a Republican tariff,
the Farmers Emergency Act, which,
by the way, was vetoed by Demo-
cratic President, but re-enacted in
1921, to stem this flood. This act and
the Fordney-McCumber Tariff of 1922
was just one step taken to assist agri-
culture toward recovery by Repub-
lican administration. Twenty-one
measures, which were hailed by the
legislative Representatives Of the
American Farm Bureau Federation as
Far more important to American ag-
riculture than all the legislation relat-
ing to agriculture passed since the
adoption of the Constitution" were
enacted by Republican Congress and
signed by a Republican President.
This false and misleading advertise
ment also asserts that in 1928: Gre
publican leadership promised the far
mer equality with industry" Before
the tidal wave of world depression
struck our shores the Republican par
ty had taken steps to fulfill that
pledge. The Hawley-Smooth Tariff
Act, which is the only tariff in Amer
lean history that ever gave the far
mer the rates he wanted, was en-
acted. This law increased the duties
on $50 farm products. The average
increase on farm products was 30
per cent. The average increase grant
ed non-agricultural products was only
IL per cent. This was the first step
toward placing the farmer on an
equality with industry. 1t was fol-
lowed by others. Had it not been for
these measures conditions would have
been vastly worse than they are to-
day.
Further on this typical deceiving
advertisement asks the farmer to vote
for the Democratic candidate on his
record. Franklin D. Roosevelt has no
farm record. He deliberately attempt
ed to deceive the farmers of the coun-
try by saying, at Topeka, that he had
lived on a farm for fifty years. This
is not fact. 1t is another example
Of the sort of loose talk that won the
designation "demagogue" that was
applied to him by former Governor
Alfred E. Smith. Franklin D. Roose-
welt has never lived on a farm. The
place he calls farm is typical coun-
try gentleman's estate located at
Hyde Park, New York. 1t consists of
a mansion of 25 rooms, stable of
eight riding horses, an eight-car ga
rage, cultivated woodlands, elaborate
flower gardens and it commands an
excellent view of the Hudson River.
Not a single farm crop and no stock
is raised on this imaginary farm for
sale in any market. Furthermore, as
Governor of the State of New York,
Candidate Roosevelt has done nothing
to help the farmers of that state. On
the contrary he has vetoed many
measures designed to help these farm
ers. He does claim credit for the en-
actment of one excellent law. This
credit does not belong to him. The
law in question is the Commission
Merchants Bonding Act. 1t was in
troduced in the State Legislature