Henderson daily dispatch., 1938-05-06

ton cost-feed-has fallen sharply
Huge Wheat Crop.
Now the new farm season is under
way. Acreages of some crops will be
slightly under 1887, but wheat acrea &c
will be close to a record. The govern
n1ent forecast of the winter wheat
crop places it we'll above 100000, 900
bushels This would be the third La.
gest in history. The average of the
past five years is $4,000, 900 bushels
Even the so-called drought areas, par
ticularly the prairie provinces of
Canada, should produce the first real
harvest IN years. Moreover, we are
going into the new crop season with
huge carry-overs. The cotton surplus
for instance, is the largest on record
and almost equals an average annual
crop.
A new agricultural act was okayed
by Congress last winter. Under its
provisions, much of the various 1888
crops will not be alloWde to go to
market. This means an outlay of mil
liens OF dollars by the Federal govern
ment. In cotton alone the cost could
run as high as $500, 100000. This pro-
gram may temporarily help farmers.
But it may become a tremendous bur-.
den on the rest of the country. Fur
thermore, a big backwash of rural
sentiment is rising against govern
ment control and it's allotment plan.
Farmers are talking of refusing ITO
sacrifice liberty for prosperity" They
are rugged individualists and Secre-
tary Wallace's new program may
Recommendation
eerasshOpper Plague?
May farm forecasts, however, can
easily turn into July boomerangs.
This happened in "a and SO as June
droughts withered the Great Plains.
This year farmers are worried by the
possibility of a grasshopper plague.
Weather conditions have been ideal
for these insects. Scientists and tech
nical men are SO fearful of this
menace that they have already map
ped out their plans to combat the
'hoppers, should they strike. Those
who saw the moving picture, "The
Good EARTH have a realization of
what a real grasshopper invasion
means.
Drought, grasshoppers, or some
other event could change present fore
casts radically. Smaller crops sold at
higher prices would probably bring
moro far mincome than bumper har-
vests at low prices. Big crops will GER
tainly help those sinesses-railroads
elevators, etc.-which handle the
crops But regardless of the size of
the 1888 harvest, there should be i'm
provement in some prices between
now and fall as general business picks
up. doubt, however, if such an i'm
prCvement would bring farm income
up to the 1887 level, So farm prospects
for the new few months are question
able In fact, country retail sales are
only now beginning to reflect the
sharp drop in rural income which we
have already experienced this year.
Don't Pity the Farmer.
The longer-term picture has not
changed in recent months. The real
answer to the American farm problem
IS better farming methods, greater
diversification Of crops, the revival
Of world trade, and the development
of new industrial uses for farm pro-
ducts. Huge. one-crop farms operated
as big business aggravate the farm
problem. Farming is a manner of liv-
ing. 1t cannot be encouraged as a big
business. Remember that the farmer
enjoys many advantages that the city
worker does not have. With world con-
ditions as they are today I feel that
well-trained farmers who own small
fertile units have the safest long-pull
outlook of any class or group in
America.