The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1935-09-06
Farmers Look to a New Party
by John II. Bosch
Vice Pres. Natl Farmers Holiday Assn.

from Common Sense Magazine is particularly timely since
its author chosen chairman of the American Common
wealth Political Federation at the recent third party gath
erng in Chicago.
When are governed by governmental decree, when
farmers told what they may raise how much they may
raise where they may raise and largely when they may
may SELL when aborers told where they work. what
they may work at how much they may and largely
what they buy with what they dictatorship is only
step away The distance becomes merely matter of me-
hOds and the extent and force of their application Methods
dctatora and brutal the situation demands
In the California strike dozens were shot and hundreds club
bed, with Blue Eagle Hugh Johnson applaudmg.
There is danger then immediate danger of a dictator
ship in the United States The Republican and Democratic
parties synonymous in principle and in action in reality
party and when necessity arises may become the fas
CYSTIC party They hardly be looked to for leadership Not
fall of the people realize this but many and day more
of them particularly in the Middle West ready for
la national third party
Farmers Being Swindled
Consider first the farmer. He is not ignorant of the
fact that he has been Swnded again The Farm Board of
Hyde and Hoover bad enough but the AAA is worse
1t has failed completely to help him it never in
tended to help him. True his income in dollars more in
1884 than in 1888 but his increase is than
counted for in the increase in the price of the things he
buys and in the decrease amount of goods and stock he
The drought has compelled hundreds OF thousands
of farmers to sell nearly all of their STOCK often for very
How prices On November 1884 to take specific example,
Fred Hotz of Raymond Minnesota shipped ten pigs weigh
ling 90 pounds The federal government collected 2047 in
processing taxes The shipper received the Of S2 At
about the time William Honebrnk of Atwater shipped
al pigs weighing 2145 pounds The government collected
S4826 in processing tax Mr. HOnebrn and his trucker re-
ceved absolutely nothing. On June e. 1884 A ESen Wav
ey Minnesota shipped eight pigs weighing 545 pounds He
received fifty four cents with which he had to pay the truck
commission weighing inspection and other charges
1t cost him in addition to what he received approximately
twenty cents per head The federal government collected
lS1O26 in processing tax
Department Refuses Data
1t would be interesting to know the total amount OF
processing tax collected by the federal government in this
hog reduction program compared with benefit payments
Farmers receive Complete statistics of the amount collected
Ito give them However, from such figures as are available
lit appears that the government in it's hog reduction pro-
gram 1885 will collect in processing taxes about Tour
tines much as it pays in benefits
The inconsistency of the AAA is apparent
in their own press releases In AAA bulletin is the state
rent that he key the beef and cattle problem is the
elimination of from six to million COWS and hefers
now on FARMS Frederick Howe later states that we must
increase daily production by 100000 COWS order TO
provide an adequate diet of dairy products Secretary wal
lace says must restrict hog production while an ofcia
bulletin of the AAA states that there grave danger OF
restricted meat diet for the next two years because OF
shortage.
Capitalism Creates Scarcity
The entire reduction is based upon the captastc econ
oy of scarcity in order to maintain price and upon the
philosophy that people incidental to economic sys
tenn that they must be made to conform regardless OF the
consequences to fit that system Some future historian VIII
Undoubtedly point to the reduction program as the absolute
height of stupidity To destroy food for which humanity
starves order to lessen starvation is more than stupid
it is criminal.
Mr. Roosevelt apparently has much wiser political advis-
ers than Hoover had but for stupidity the Democratic adj
minstraton of drought relief is unique. farmer must
be bankrupt before he may receive relief that is when ne
no longer has equity in his livestock he borrow from
the federal to feed his creditors cattle and later
q pay the loan either with work money.
In Swift County, Minnesota out of approximately 1'760
farmers 1926 receiving relief which means that 1526
in one county bankrupt In Lincoln County there are
1723 farmers with 400 of them receiving relief In the
two counties out of 1928 farmers 1926 bankrupt The
federal government has ruled that farmer on relief may
keep more than ten units of livestock and that those ten
units must live $25 worth of feed per month $25 worth
of feed will do than maintain three units Of live
stock and keep them in normal condition Thousands OF
horses and cattle dying of starvation Is it wonder
that in several instances recently farmers have taken gov
eminent stores of feed and distributed it, Is wonder
that they hate Wallace than they hated Hoover
Labor Becoming Aggressive
Or consider the laborer. Section (a) of the MIRA hrs
hailed abors guaranteed right to organize later becom
ing something of joke has passed out of existence en-
rey Labors real wages less than they were betor
the NRA and their attempts to organize have been tough
even more bitterly.
Unemployment in industry in spite Of the fact tina
the federal spent about $5OOOOOOOO IN 1853
remains practically static 1t is bound to increase Koosevel
lis swinging more and to the right He will be compee
Ito 90 farther in that direction There be no middle ro
lin the struggle between the producers OF wealth and nos
who take the wealth produced Harry Hopkins is quoted
saying that the Democratic Party is making an honest an
sincere attempt to capitalism 1t is more and more ap
parent that regardless of honesty and sincerity the De9