Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1937-08-05
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National Topics Interpreted "a %%@SSS
by William Bruckart ffTYFfM7FA



with the necessity of closing their
mills. 1t is this feature that causes
long range buyers to resort to what
is called hedging. That is, they sell
on option nearly as much as they
ouy on contract. They are thus able
10 Offset losses whether the price of
wheat goes up or whether it goes
down and the losses or the gains
are distributed throughout the in
dustry. 1t is the only way by which
the industry can protect itself.
Mr.. Wallace's scheme proposes
dong away with that sort of thing.
not directly but through the effect Of
the ever-normal granary. In other
words, the net result of the ever
normal granary would be for the
government to hold these stocks and
iced them into the market as de-
mand for supplies requires. This
sounds feasible and it probably
would be except for the fact that
we have no means of controlling
production in the other wheat pro-
ducing countries, and I repeat that
l am using wheat as illustrative of
all farm products. In fact, the Wal
lace plan. provides no control of pro-
duction in this country and that
question is vital. AS far as can
see, nature is going to operate to
give us rain or give us drouth in
accordance with the judgment of
the Higher Power. No human is go
ing to be very influential in that
regard.
To get back to the question Of the
price level, it should be said that
while the Wallace plan provides
what appears to be an insurance
against fiuctuation, it is more likely
to have the opposite effect. Be
cause OF the influence of world
prices, great storehouses Of wheat
in the country will hang over the
market like an epidemic. No one
can tell when it will strike and since
markets are made up Of individuals
who are human, a portion of the
markets is always going to be
frightened by the uncertainty of
when government wheat will be Of
fered for sale. 1t is a perfectly
human reaction because it involves
the pocketbooks and humans nat
urally want to buy as cheaply as
they can and sell as high as they
can.
One Of the things that happened
in the administration of President
Hoover h a is
Tried Once sure to be remem-
and Failed bered is the utter
failure of his farm
policy. That farm policy conferred
at one time in what was called the
Federal Farm board. If you will 60
back a few years and recall the OPP
erations of the Federal Farm board,
I think you will agree that the things
it undertook to do were exactly
comparable to, if not exactly the
same as, the scheme set up by Sec
rotary Wallace in his ever-normal
granary idea. The only difference
that ! can see-and I watched the
operations Of the farm board from
close at hands a change in the
name. It must be admitted that
the phrase ever-normal granary has
a pretty sound. But when it comes
to a question of an attractive ex-
preston, one that is soothing and
one that should convince us all
that every problem is solved, I sub
NIT those favorites which Mr.. Wal
lace used to use when Professor Tug
well was with him in the Department
Of Agriculture. Who does not re-
call the "more abundant life," and
who has forgotten the doctrine Of
scarcity to assure plenty?"
AS far as I know, neither the
house nor the senate committee on
agriculture has held hearings on
this ever-normal granary phase OF
the Wallace legislation. Thus far,
the discussion has been largely on
questions involving benefits and
subsidies and means of marketing.
No attention has been given to the
ever-normal granary threat, and !
regard 1t as a menace.
If this discussion were devoted to
only the consumer phase of our
economic life, think / should be
selfish enough to urge enactment of
the Wallace plan. believe ! can
see where the ever-normal granary
idea win make bread cheaper,
where it will make cotton textile
goods cheaper and when cotton is
cheaper other textiles are cheaper,
and where other food and neces-
saries of life that have their origin
on the farm will be reduced in
price by such a legislative policy.
But that is not my idea Of sound
economic structure. 1t is just as
necessary for the consumer to pay
his fair share toward the mainte-
nance of living agriculture as it is
for farmers to pay their fair share
10 a living commerce and industry |
of whatever kind it may be.
The senate Democrats have elect
ed a new leader to succeed the late
senator Joe Robinson, Of Arkansas.
He is Senator Alban Barley, OF |
Kentucky. In a previous column I