Evening star., 1933-05-27
MILK PRICE CUT
/ ACTION PROMISED
+ Within TEN DAYS
Agricultural Adjustment Ad-
: ministration Officials See
Reduction Possibility.
NEW ADMINISTRATORS
WILL BE APPOINTED
General Farley to Be Called of
Farmers, Wholesalers, Retail
ers and Consumers.

Action looking toward the possibility
of reducing retail milk prices in Wash
1ngton will be taken within 10 days, Of
Ncials Of the newly created Agricultural
Adjustment Administration promised
today.
The first step in the move to bring
the consumers price here down to
level more nearly equal to that paid
in other metropolitan centers through
out the country will be the appoint
ment of national milk administrator.
This appointment probably will be an
nounced Monday. after which a re-
gional milk administrator for the Wash
ington area will be named.
Will Call Conference.
A general conference of dairy farm
erS. wholesalers, retailers and con-
sumers will be called by the Agricul-
tural Adjustment Administration as
soon as the Washington milk admins
traitor has been chosen. according to
the officials This move was decided
upon as the result of discussions which
Charles j. Brand, co-administrator of
the Adjustment Administration, had
with William H. King of the Senate
District Committee and George Peek,
the other administrator
With the price of milk in Washington
the highest in the country, Agriculture
Department officials and leaders of the
two congressional committees have been
besieged by consumers for relief. Sta
tistics compiled by the Agriculture
Bureau of Economics disclosed the
prices here range between IL and l3
cents, with the average about IL or
IL, whereas in other principal centers
the price generally is 10 cents or less.
CorreSpondingly, the producers price
in the Capital area is approximately
$2.70 per hundredweight-465 quarts
as compared with 50 or less in most
other big centers. The only cities hav-
ing price per hundredweight of more
than 50 are Boston, New York, Rich
mond and Cumberland
However, officials said, it is not the
desire of the Agricultural Adjustment
Administration to beat down the pro-
ducers' price, but rather to lessen the
spread between the price the farmer
gets for the milk and the price the
consumers pay.
At present the dairy farmer is get
Ting only 40 per cent, or 51a cents per
quart, of the consumers price.
1t will be the task of the national
milk administrator to review milk
prices throughout the country. and,
through trade agreements. attempt to
boost the farmers price in line with
prices being received by farmers in this
area.
Under the agricultural adjustment
act, the function of the milk admins
traitor will be to help the various in
terests In the business, stabilize the
market, prevent ruinous price cutting.
protect the interests particularly of
the producer and the consumer. and
protect the integrity of the market
fTom the standpoint of health and the
producers assurance of a continuation
OF a fair market),'' it was said.
Holds Licensing Clause.
In the effort to stabilize dairy prices.
the Agricultural Adjustment Admins
tration holds over the industrys head
powerful club in the form of the IL
censing clause of the agricultural ad-
Justment act. This clause would permit
ihe licensing only of those dairy inter-
ests which agreed to stabilized price,
mus eliminating any minority which
tailed to fall i'll line 1t is not the in
tention of the administration, however,
1t was said, to make use Of this licen-
sing clause unless absolutely necessary.
Oficials would rather set prices by
mutual agreement in the industry in
stead OF actually forcing a price fixing.
In addition to the Washington mar
ket, dairy expsrts at the Agriculture
Department estimated today that about
1,5o0 centers throughout the country
eventually would ask for assistance.
Six leading milk markets - Atlanta,
Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Los An
geles, Washington - already have ap-
piled fer help in meeting milk price and
trade problems in their respective re-
gions. DR.. ClydeSL. King of Philadel-
phia, nationally known milk price ar
bitrator, has offered to assist the Agri-
culture Adjustment Administration in
stabilizing the milk prices.