The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-03-02
COTTON RELIEF
BILL is PASSED;
Up TO HOUSE
Pocket Veto of Measure to
Reduce Surplus, Hike
Price Is Seen.

BIZ Scripps-H0trgrd Newspaper Alliance
WASHINGTON, March 2.-Legis-
lative hopes Of the cotton raisers Of
the south. the cotton spinners Of the
north and bankers who finance cot
ton and textile industries rest with
President Herbert Hoover and his
two remaining days in office.
The senate cOncurred Wednesday
in house amendments and sen to
the President the Smith cotton Dill,
an unusual piece Of legislation de-
signed to raise cotton prices by alb
sorbing in the market 100000 bales
held by governmental agencies and
designed to reduce next years crop
by the same amount.
Administration spokesman in con-
gress are convinced that President
Hoover will either veto the measure
or refuse to sign it, and thereby let
it die with a pocket veto"
Powerful influences, however, are
" nd the bill. It was passed by a
coalition of Democrats from the cot
ton south and Republicans from the
cotton spinning sections of New
England.
Planned to Cure Surplus
Both sections favor it, believing
it will raise and stabilize cotton
prices and wipe out the govern
ment's price-depressing surplus
which has lowered over the cotton
market since the farm board began
its Inflated sterilization operations.
Bankers who have large assets
tied up in cotton loans likewise
favor the bill, because it would en-
able them to liquidate their cotton
loans Immediately.
The bill creates a cotton board, in
the department of agriculture, with
power to take over all Of the cotton
holdings of the federal farm board,
its sterilization corporation, the
cotton c~o-operatives, and the cotton
held by the agriculture department
as collateral for seed loans.
The pooling of the cotton would
be financed by credits from the Re-
construction Finance Corporation.
Cotton raisers who agree to re-
duce their acreage by as much as
30 per cent under last years crop
would be allowed to taKe options
at current prices, On pool cotton,
to extent Of their curtailment.
Pushed Through Congress
Thus if Farmer Jones of Georgia
who produced thirty bales of cotton
last year, agreed to raise only twenty
bales this year, he will be given ar
option on ten bales of pool cotton
at the current market price-Say {
cents a pound.
Then if Farmer Jones fulflls his
contract, and actually produces only
twenty bales, he will be allowed tc
market his twenty bales of new
cotton, and also his ten bales OF
pool cotton.
If the plan works and the cotton
crop is reduced to three and one
half million bales and the price OF
cotton rises, say to 9 cents a pound
Farmer Jones will realize a profit OF
SIS a bale for the ten bales of pool
cotton, which he didn't raise, and
also get a satisfactory price for the
twenty bales which he did raise. Out
of this, however, he will have to
pay the warehousing and other
carrying charges.
The Smith bill, originated by
Senator Ellison D. Smith dem,
S. O., and Senator Walter F.
George Dem, Ga.), was passed by
the senate without a record vote.
and railroaded through the house
by a coalition Of southern Dem
ocrats, Tammany Democrats an6
New England Republicans.