Evening star., 1938-10-15
FalIacy of Policy Of
Scarcity Noted.

To the Editor OF The Star.
Responding to the needs OF the
times" said Secretary Wallace in his
radio explanation of his departmental
reorganization. move which has made
the so-called emergency experiment" in
enforcing scarcity not only permanent
but wholly dominant in the departments
set-up, "the Congress during the last five
years has directed this department in
more than a dozen different pieces of
legislation to bring assistance of several
different types to the farm families and
the city families of the Nation"
This department" he adds. has been
given general orders by the Congress to
preserve these fundamentals of the faith
that animates American agriculture"
and "never have I found more single
purpose than I have seen among
the Government workers during these
0owded days of the New Deal"
Yes, too crowded to think. And to
make sure that the singleness CD of
New-Deal purpose is not disturbed, the
modicum of freedom of thought left in
the department after the purging of the
Consumers Division (have our city fam
lilies forgotten this type of assistanceD
Is now blotted out ami one seeks in vain
for any provision for further research
into the economic principles governing
farm welfare. The New Deal having
planned it that way" and settled all
these problems to its own political salts
faction, future research is not to infringe
this perquisite Of public office but IS to
be confined to chemurgics-to the pro-
motion of industrial developments in the
utilization of agricultural products.
OF course, there are few who are
unaware of the assembling in which the
Secretary indulges. Does it now appear
that the Congress responded to any
needs but those of monopoly and bu-
reaucracy in its rubber stamping of the
more than dozen different false
alarms in farm relief forced on them by
the fallacies and misrepresentation OF
the brain trust which wrote these meas
ures? Is it not a fact that even delib-
crate deception was resorted to in
railroading clarifying" amendments
through under gag rule?
It is easy to agree with the idea OF
preserving the fundamentals OF the
faith that animates American agricul-
ture." But in determining the means
for attaining such an end, it is the Con-
gress that has been given general orders
by the department.; and it is less than
veracious for the Secretary to state the
contrary. There may, indeed, be less
confusion under his new organization,
for their will be at least no one to ques-
ton the economics of scarcity which
have transmitted farm relief into an
array OF relief rolls that are relieving
the farmer of the last Of his worldly
possessions.
But the time must come When the
notion that farm price levels are de-
pendent on supply is discarded and it is
recognized that not normal demand, but
the distortion of it produced by an un-
sound and unconstitutional medium OF
exchange, such as is our partial-reserve
system of establishing "credits" in bank
ing, is what really can and does produce
the relief problem of disparity in farm
price levels and wage slavery and un-
employment in the city. With the money
factor corrected, prices will control sup
,ples (not supplies, prices at normal
market levels without political meddling.
Without that correction, not even die
tatorships can afford permanent relief,
peace on earth, and goodwill among
men. ALDEN A. POTTER.
October II, 1885,