The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1933-04-13

a. a preparatory COMMISSION named
for the purpose of preparing an
agenda for the economic conference
has listed the following subjects for
consideration:
The original and present weight
of debt and interest obligations.
"Price Of primary commodities
and price of manufactured goods,
both wholesale and retail.
1.-THE existing volume Of produc-
ton in different staple commodities
entering in. world trade.
"The willingness Of creditors to
make international loans and their
unwillingness to receive payment in
goods and services.
"The distribution in different
countries of the available gold sup
plies of the world.
''The disharmony between the
stable and fuctuating rates of ex-
change"
Prime Minister Ramsay MacDon-
aid, of England, will preside at the
economic conference and will name
the date for it's converting.
DROGRESS of the farm relief bill
l in the senate has been slow. SEN
atorial dignity would not permit
of the speeding up of the ponder
Gus machinery of the upper house
regardless of the plea of Secretary
of Agriculture Wallace for speed
and for the passage of the bill as
originally written by the President
and his advisers. There just had
to be hearings on the bill, and
everybody, for and against, must
have chance to talk, and they have
talked.
At this writing it seems that "a"
bill will eventually pass. but wheth-
er it will be the bill that passed the
house, and is acceptable to the adj
ministration, or whether it will be
so radically changed as to be un-
recognized by its proponents, or un-
acceptable at the White House, is
for the future to reveal.
EARM relief in other directions
Z moved along more rapidly. The
proposal for refnancing farm mort
cages has taken form and the
proposition is for selling of farm
mortgage bonds ito the extent of
from nine to ten billion dollars on
which the government will guaran-
tee the interest. but not the prin-
cipal. 1t is expected the govern
ment's guarantee of interest will
make the bonds marketable at a
comparatively low interest rate
Farm leaders have urged a gov
eminent guarantee of the principal
on such bond issue, but such guar
antee would make them direct OBJ
legation on the government, and
mean simply an increase in the ma
tional debt of nine or ten billion
dollars. Guaranteeing the inter-
est only means that should there be
a complete default on the part of
the farmers. which is never prob
able, the treasury would have from
three hundred to four hundred mil
lion dollars to pay annually until
the bonds had matured.
THERE is a growing belief In
! Washington that the budget will
not be balanced during the next
fiscal year beginning July 1, regard
less of the economies made by cut
ting the pay of government en-
ployees. reorganization of bureaus
and departments, and reductions In
payments to veterans, amounting to
an expected total of some seven hum
dred millions. and regardless of an
added revenue from the tax on beer,
estimated at about one hundred and
fifty million.
The relief grant of five hundred
millions provided for in a bill now
before congress, and the two hun
dred millions for the reforestation
plans, will alone offset the econ
omies. 1t is probable that the more
ambitious plans of the President will
be financed through new bond is-
sues. but there will be increased In
terest charges and a sinking fund
to provide for which will run into
hundreds of millions annually.
Along with these things tax yields
are falling short of estimates be-
cause of the continued prostration
of business.
1--WE hundred million dollars to
be provided by the federal gov
eminent and distributed as unem-
ployment relief by the states is
called for in bill xsszg sR
introduced in the
senate by Senators
Wagner of New
York, Costigan of
Colorado. and La
Toilette of Wiscon-
sin.
The bill provides S
that the huge sum |g
shall be given out SS