Twin-City herald., 1939-10-28
WASHINGTON
JOTTNGs


There's going to be quite scrap /
down in Washington to get funds for
the relief of farm areas affected during
the last summer by drouth, flood,
grasshopper and the many other pro-
blems the farmers must face every
year.
Sixty House members have voted to
join in the Senate fight for Federal
funds and special compittee has al
ready decided to ask this session Of
Congress for a $5O,0O0,000 appropria-
tion for relief
Neither an appropriation nor a
specific remedy was proposed by the
House members BUT the Senators
took the problem in hand and worked
out the plan which is just about ready
for presentation.
Maps have been prepared by Federal
agencies and they show that there
were 80 drouth states, three flood
states, and two affected by both floods
and drouths, and that 10000 farm
families were affected.
The widespread commercial use OF
motor fuel from corn, plastics from
wheat and newsprint from straw, was
envisioned by Secretary of Agriculture
Henry A. Wallace at the dedication
of the new U. S. Research Laboratory.
The laboratory is one of four author
lied by the Department of Agriculture
and Secretary Wallace said that the
laboratories really will be small COM
mercial plants and that they will pro-
vide a gap between test-tube agricul-
ture and commercial production.
The laboratories will permit actual
tests of the commercial values and of
by-products of principal farm COM
modities for the first time and that the
work probably will open new fields
and provide a new income for our
farmers.
Meanwhile, the Treasury has sold
$3,OO0,OO0 worth of gold to Brazil in
step designated to use the govern
ment's vast gold holdings to promote
trade with Latin America.
Brazil, l understand, will leave the
gold on deposit in the New York
Federal Reserve Bank and use it as
collateral for temporary borrowings oi
dollar exchange on revolving FUND
basis with the Treasury's stabilizatior
fund.
Last week Mr.. Roosevelt revealed
that negotiations were near completion
with two or three Latin American
countries on the use of gold from the
Treasury to improve trade.
In the case of Brazil, which may
serve as a precedent for similar pro
cedure with other Latin American
countries, the gold will enable Brazi
to provide its businessmen with dolla
to pay for United States merchandis
in seasons when Brazil has dolla
shortage.
Brazil paid milreis currency for tn
gold but promised to make good tn
value of the Brazilian money if
should depreciate in financial market:
Of interest to the Northwest is tn
report from the Agricultural Depart
ment which revealed that the Nation
meat supply, now at the highest poir
in six years, will continue to increas
at least through next year.
The Department did not forecas
price trends BUT agricultural econc
mists predicted that the increase
slaughter on hogs and cattle this wiz
ter would result in lower prices
housewives and some decreases
farm prices.
Meat prices were forced sharpl
higher by the 1884 and 1886 droutf
which resulted in reduced number {
livestock on farms. Three years (
large feed supplies have enabled farm
ers to build up their livestock hearc
again.
The number of grain
livestock on farmers including wo
stock, will increase this year about
or per cent.