The Washington times., 1934-04-21

WAO1AA11 @NOuU
paper cents of
a year ago.
During the life Lewis A"ney
of this option 1t has been up to
$1.28 in paper. The low was 71h
cents. Thursday it touched 72N
cents.
Measured in gold, wheat is
down to below IS cents a bushel!
OF courst, the chief trouble is
too invA wheaC. and restrictions
on trading it. A large carryover
and a larger winter wheat crop
in prospect, coupled with practi-
cally no exports at our artificial
price level, are ample explanation.
Cotton and silver are other COM
moditieS which have weakened for
similar reasons.
Another trouble is the in
stability of paper money and the
uncertainties of what the next
initiation move will be.
The break in wheat makes
the issue acute. Politically
something will have to be done
about it. We can either try
more initiation, or allow things
to take their course under the
law Of supply and demand.
II the Administration takes the
former course, it will do one OF
two things: either C) it will re-
duce the size of the dollar, in the
sense Of cutting the purchasing
power of our money: or (2) 1t
will increase the size of the buSheI
basket, thus increasing the pur'
chasing power of a bushel OF
wheat.
Either procedure would be ef'
fective. II the dollar is cut, the
wheat farmer will get more dol
lars, but each dollar will buy less.
II the bushel is made bigger, he
will get more dollars per bushel,
but he will have fewer bushels.
If we 60 back to q definite
monetary standard, and quit
fighting the law of supply and
demand, it will be as Secretary
wallace said-inevitably "sOOner
or later Chicago and Liverpool
wheat prices would work closer
together" That would mean
lower prices.
What will actually be done re-
mains uncertain. But undoubt-
edly the Administration will "do
something" Evidently foreigners
Judge that a further depreciation
Of the dollar will be the outcome.
At least they sold dollars. and the
dollar fell in foreign exchange to
a point where some began to talk
of the possibility of gold exports.
It is strange to find the Presi-
dent objecting to silver initiation
on the ground that it would dis
turb his scheme for trades with
foreign countries. Where are his
nationalistic policies? Who broke
UP the London conference by
maintaining that our monetary
manipulations were our own busi-
ness?
Just now, however, it seems
that the demand for silver ire
monetization" has become so
strong that he will accept a per-
missive bill, just as he accepted
the Thomas initiation amend
ments.
Incidentally, we note that those
amendments have mostly been
used-open market operations,
dollar devaluation, and accept
ance Of silver payments on for"
eign debts.
As to Senator Thomas talk
Of CONTROLLED initiation" We
should note the controls he pro-
poses. They are: Silver notes
will not be issued "when silver
purchases have been made to
the extent thought to be neces-
sary."
What that limit may be is sug-
gested by the Senator when he
says the purpose is to permit the
people to secure money with
which to pay their taxes, their in
tereSt, and their debts!"
One little question Is: How Is he
going to give the silver certit1'
Gates to the people?
Another one is: # prices are
boosted, will the people not need
oraI ciV1ya,. aor&ifi Ia IA q