The times-news., 1937-12-11
1T IS ALL DANGEROUS

III Is ALL DANSENoOo
In these columns notice has been taken
of the stand of the North Carolina Grange
i'm reference to the enactment of the Black
Counery bill. We are quoting today an
other farmers viewpoint on this issue. The
following is an editorial quotation from
The Farmers Federation News:
The Farmers Federation News does not often
discuss legislative matters, but the Blaek-Connery
bill in its present form, is so dangerous to the
farmers in our territory that we must call It 10
their attention.
Proponents Of this measure claim 1t Will e!e-
vatc the standards of living but for farmers espe-
cjally in this region, it would have the opposite
effect. The bill calls for minimum wages of 40
cents an hour in industry and commerce, and Tor
shorter hours II certainly would result in higher
prices for almost everything the farmer buys. 1t
would increase the cost of manufacturing and
handling For many years the tendency has been
for manufactured articles to cost and more
in proportion to the farmers income. Years ago a
bushcl Of wheat could be exchanged for days
labor of a mechanic or carpenter. Todays bushe
Of wheat will buy scarcely an hours time of skilled
labor. We have all noticed recently the cost Of
manufactured articles going up and the price OF
farm products going down. This bill would legis-
late so that the costs of manufactured articles were
held up 20 a high level by law, but there is moth
ing TO prevent the prices of farm products sinking
tp the bottom. The Black-Connery bill, with its
provision for shorter hours and higher wages in
industry and commerce, would diminish the farm
crs purchasing power still further. Farmers must
miHtautIy oppose every movement to increase the
cost Of what they buy unless their own income IS
increased propOrtionately.
The Black Connery bill provides that five
man board be clothed with full authority to regu-
late wages and hours, under certain limitations.
This would mean federal supervision Of private
business all over the United States. 1t would set
rn another tremendous bureau in Washington and
give il Hfe-anddeath control over small industries
and different sections of the United States. 1t
would increase taxes at a time when we must fight
to decrease taxes.
From the practical point of view, it would cause
tremendous confusion and parayze many small
business from the Atlantic to the Pacific There Is
no provision made for the farmer to be represent
ed % this board, and there is no farmer member
Of the board.
''The farmer is fighting for his very life and the
life of his family. He must not let organized move
ments that take from him to give to other classes,
roll over him and flatten him out"
The position taken by the Grange and
bv The Federation News in opposition to
the Black -Connery bill is undoubtedly
based on sound reasoning and is unassail-
able from the standpoint of the welfare
of the country population of the United
States, as we'll as all other classes of citi-
zens. However, this newspaper believes
that all of the arguments presented by the
farmers and farm organizations in Opposi-
ton TO the Black-Connery bill apply with
equal force to proposals to enact farm con-
troll legislation.
The farmers see that the country will
be hog-tied and that industry will be ham,
strung by the enactment and enforcement
of the Black Connery bill; and that in the
procedure the country population will be
numbered among the victims. They should
be able to see what they are being rushed
into by the political farm controllers. Are
they willing to trade with the federal gov
ernment for mess of pottage? Five hum
dred million up to billion dollars of pot
tagei may appear to be an Irresistible mess;
but It is advisable to count the cost and at
tempt to measure the consequences before
the plan is welded on the country popula-
ton directly and the entire country indi-
rectly for many years to come.
Are the farmers willing to sell their Am
erican freedom and their American sys-
tenn of government in order to have fast
ened on their class the chains of an alien,
socialistic experiment which has failed
every time it has been tried in the entire
history of the world for more than two