Evening star., 1937-10-24
BY MARK SULLIVAN.
~ RESIDENT ROOSEVELT says
u that one of the reasons he
called a special session of Con-

cdlleO special SeSSlOn Ol COH-
4 gress is to enact crop con-
troll law. The crop control is to be
one of two kinds. compulsory or volun-
tary. Which kind shall be adopted
has not yet been decided. Persons in
the administration are understood to
favor compulsory control.
We have had both kinds. during the
four and one-half years since the New
Deal began to practice this sort OF
thing We have had compulsory con-
troll of cotton and potatoes We have
had voluntary control of large num-
Der of other crops.
Compulsory control, in its extreme
form. is illustrated by what was done
about potatoes. The potato control law
enacted in August. 1885. provided:
That each farmer should be pro-
hibited from raising any more potatoes
for sale than quota imposed on him
by A. A. A. at Washington.
Quota for Each Farm.
That A. A. A. should fix for each
farm quota, the quota being based
in part on the average number of acres
of potatoes grown on the farm during
five preceding years.
That If a farmer raised more than
his quota he was penalized by puni-
tive tax on the excess, the tax being
about the whole value, As cents per
bushel
That all potatoes sold by a farmer
must be in packages prescribed by A.
A. A.; that each package must bear a
Government stamp.
That any farmer attempting to sell
potatoes in packages other than those
prescribed by the Government should
be subject to criminal penalty.
That-this was the most stringent
provision of albany person who
bought potatoes not packaged as the
Government dictated. or not bearing a
Government stamp. should be subject
to criminal penalties.
Information on Demand.
The compulsory potato control fur
ther provided that any farmer or
other person having information
about the growing or sale of potatoes
should be required to give that in
formation to the Government on de-
mand or be subject to criminal pen
alties
This "informer" section of the po-
tato control law of 1885 and the
bootleg" section were the most strin-
gent regulations ever attempted in
this kind of field in America. The
bootleg" section went beyond any
thing attempted in the enforcement
of prohibition when national prohibi-
ton was in effect. for no prohibition
law ever attempted to put any penalty
on the purchaser of bootleg" liquor.
The compulsory cotton control law
was less stringent than the potato
control one. In cotton control the
punitive provisions did not go beyond
a tax. so high as to be punitive, upon
any cotton grown above the quota
dictated by A A. A. The tax was
so high as to amount to fine; it
was so per cent of the value of the
cotton. Cotton control was also at
tended by regulations for the viola
ton of which there we're criminal
penalties.
Voluntary Control.
| In the other kind Of crop control,
the voluntary control, there we're no
penal provisions. Here the control
was exercised by means of payments
made to the farmers. Farmers raising
various crops we're offered specified
cash payments If they would limit
the amount they grew. In effect, the
/ farmer was given bonus on. for ex-
ample. each hog he raised. provided
| he did not raise any more than q
Quota fixed by the Government. In
the voluntary controls, the farmer
could take the Governments money
and limit his crop to what the Gov
ernment dictated-or he could de-
cline the Governments money and
raise as much as he pleased.
Both the compulsory and the vol
untary controls were ended by the
Supreme Court decision of January
1886. which held A. A. A. unconsti-
tutional. Since then A. A. A. has nc
power to impose quotas on farmers
and it has no direct authority to pay
money out of the Federal Treasury 10
farmers for not raising crops.
Indirect Control.
But A. A. A. has been practicing
an indirect control by a curiously
devious route Under the soil con-
servation law A. A. A. has authority
to pay farmers for conserving then
soil. So A. A. A. says to farmers. IN
effect: IF you will plant so many
acres of a soil-conserving crop, sucf
as clover, we will give you so many
dollars per acre" But what A. A. A
wants is to limit the raising OF or
binary crops, such as cotton anc
potatoes, for example. So A. A. A
adds a proviso to its offer of money
for raising clover. A. A. A. will give
money to the farmer for raising
clover-but only provided the farmer
at the same time reduces his acre