Imperial Valley press., 1938-08-29

1928, wheat prices are the low
est in three hundred years. Corn
prices are off so per cent from the
1887 level. AS a result, farmers are
losing faith in the whole AAA pro-
gram. In fact, the brass hats at
Washington are carefully avoiding
a referendum on marketing quotas
either for corn or for wheat. They
fear that the New Deal farm pro-
gram is failing.
Hence, many things will be done
between now and election to VIM
dow-dress farm prices, at the ex-
pense of taxpayers. The promises
already made will cost Uncle Sam
about half a billion dollars with
no beneficial results. Despite this
huge outlay, the program only COW
ers four major products whose
share of total farm income is not
more than % per cent. For in
stance, wheat normally contributes
only 6 per cent and cotton only
10 per cent. This means that near
ly 80 per cent of the total farm
output is receiving no subsidies.
Those farmers who are getting
nothing, but who are helping to
foot the tax bills, are unhappy.
Everyone recognizes that we have
a real farm problem. Consumption
has been declining and our exports
have been falling. The result is
that we have more farm products
than we can use. Consequently
prices are very low. Meanwhile
union wages, rising taxes, and higf
tariffs have boosted industria
costs. Hence, the prices the farmers
must pay have gone up while thu
prices he gets have gone down
In 1913, there was a good balance
between agricultural and industrial
prices. Today, however, the farm
ers products will buy only IA pc
cent as many industrial goods a
they would buy twenty-five year.
ago. So farm program" i
standard in every political plat
form.
Seven Major Remedies
The various remedies proposed b,
both Democrats and Republican
over the past few years can b.
boiled down into the following:
l. Regain our foreign markets
Secretary Hull is working hare
along this line. Secretary Wallace
has also just come out with /:
plan to subsidiZe the sale of ou
wheat abroad But if we want for
eign nations to purchase more o
our farm goods, we must buy NOR
of their industrial goods so the!
can pay us. Lowering tariffs bring.
terrible howl from manufactur.
ers; while getting foreigners tt
buy again is easier said than done
Many nations, who were formerly
not raising cotton or wheat, art
now doing it satisfactorily.
2. Reduce farm operating costs
One way is to cut the farmers
real estate taxes. Another is tc
stop the squandering of public
funds so that industrial taxes viii
be lower. This plan also involves
reducing factory wages and pass
ing along both tax and wage saw
ings by lowering the price of things
the farmer must buy. Such a pro-
gram, however, is not popular with
the politicians.
3. Make farming mode of living
have always felt that farming
should be a mode of living. Ou
farm problem became acute wher
people tried to turn farming int,
a 'big business. Much of the com
plant comes from those who rais
only one crop, and who do no
try to be self-sufficient. Encour
aging people to LIVE on thei
farms, to raise their own chickens
eggs and vegetables, and to diver
sify their crops is a sound, bu
long-range, method of attack.
PrOpping Prices Tried Before
4. Support prices artificially: Un
der Ex-President Hoover we had :
farm board which squandered mil
lions of dollars in trying to prof.
the price of wheat. Now we ar,
working on a program which i.
just the old idea dressed up in g
new bib and tucker. AS a result oi
it, the federal government already
owns 100000 bales of cotton-a
sull years supply. Furthermore. il