Evening star., 1940-02-02
Roosevelt Hits
Terrific Cuts
In Farm Bill
Standing Firm on
$900,000,000 Fund,
Reporters Told
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
HYDE PARK, N. Y, Feb. a.
President Roosevelt told reporters
In firm tones today he was standing
on his budget and $900,000,0 900 ag-
ricultural appropriation for the year
beginning July l.
He said the House Appropriations
Committee, which slashed the farm
appropriations bill 20 per cent below
budget estimates, had made perfectly
terrific cuts. The bill is pending in
the House.
Volunteering to discuss the agri-
cultural appropriations at press
conference in the library of his home
here, Mr.. Roosevelt said he saw no
reason why some excerpts from his
budget message should not be re-
printed.
Excerpts Typed Out.
He had had some excerpts typed
out, and he read them to newsmen.
They said:
"I have carefully checked the in
dividual estimates under these broad
categories, and I am satisfied that
no lower figures can be attained
except at the expense of impairing
the efficiency with which laws are
administered or of working undue
hardship upon individuals or eco
nomic groups. I refuse to accept
the responsibility of adopting either
alternative.
1--WE must not only guard the gains
we have made, but We must press
on to obtain full employment for
those who have been displaced by
machines, as we'll as for the 100000
net addition to the labor force since
1929. We must therefore avoid the
danger of too drastic or too sudden
curtailment of Government sup
mort y"
President Roosevelt arrived at his
home here early today to spend the
week end.
Another of the presidential ex-
cerpts read:
Il do not believe that the major
tty of people feel that the agricul-
tural program should be reduced
below the figure of 5000, 100000, be-
cause this figure, in itself a large
reduction below the current year,
will be barely sufficient to carry out
soil protection and surplus removal
operations.
Has Nothing to Add.
While Mr.. Roosevelt obviously felt
those paragraphs applied with par
ticular force to the reductions made
tn the agricultural appropriation
he told reporters he had nothing to
add to what already had been said
He made no mention of a possibil-
ity of a vote should Congress enact
a bill carrying substantially less than
the budget recommended for gov
ernment agricultural activities.
Farm belt members of Congress
have been talking of trying to per-
suade the House to restore at least
a part of the appropriations which
were Whitfield away, but many of
them were none too confident of
success.
There were intimations that the
President, like some of these legisla-
tors. were hopeful that the Senate
would do something about restoring
the cuts.
Newsmen told Mr.. Roosevelt SEN
ator Harrison, Democrat, of Missis-
sippi, had said the Government had
a moral obligation to provide
$200000,000 for parity payments to
farmers. The budget carried no
estimate for parity payments and
the President said he did not know
what Mr.. Harrison was talking
about.
Mr.. Roosevelt recalled that he
had stated in his budget message
that he would have to recommend
additional amounts for farm bene-
fits If hopes were not fulfilled and
prices did not go up little further.
Third Term Query.
The Chief Executive had no an
swer, othe rthan a smile, when a
newsman asked whether the press
still would be coming up to Hyde
Park with him next February.
That was just another attempt, as
futile as numerous ones that had
preceded it, to draw the President
out on a third term. His present
term expires next January TO-
Mr.. Roosevelt said, too, that he
could not be drawn out on what he
said was discussion of liberal
principles at a conference a week
ago with Norman M. Littell, Assist
ant Attorney General; Marshall E.
Dimock. Assistant Secretary of La
bor, and Oscar Chapman, Assistant
Secretary of Interior.