The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1941-10-09
ZZZAZZ.ZZZZZZZZZZ
Dangers TO Agriculture
Need Careful Attention
Ceiling on Farm Prices at 1000 of Parity
May Be Answer to Economic Problems
Of Lend-Lease Spending.
By BAUKHAGE

BY BAL
National Farm and He
WNU Service, 1343 II. Street N. w.,
Washington, d. c.
Defend me from my friends; I
can defend myself from my enc
miles,"
That is what the farmer is be-
ginning to say these days as he
casts a wary eye toward some of
his friends" in congress-, who are
shouting "let her rip when others
urge some kind of a ceiling" on
farm prices.
The people who really have the
interest Of American agriculture at
heart talk this way:
1.-THE farmer has been on the
downside Of parity for a long time.
He ought to be allowed to ride on
the upside awhile. But imitation
means defation and de1ation hits
the farmer hardest as he knows from
his bitter experience in 1921 and
49,"
So these more conservative folk
are urging a ceiling placed at ITO
per cent Of parity. And from the
way things look now, in spite Of
the farmers professional friends
who r shouting ''let her rip" that
figure will probably be established
in the pending price control bill,
plus a good set Of teeth to enforce
such a limit on runaway farm price
figures.
Well, says the farmer, how about
a ceiling on wages, too?
It would be a courageous prophet
who would predict that wages will
be limited by law now. although the
administration would like to sec that
happen-t congress made it happen.
There is just one argument that
the worker puts up against a wage
ceiling, and while it is hardly based
on sound economic principles it has
In 1t a certain amount Of the quality
Of Justice that cannot be denied.
The workman says:
There is no limit on supply. Ma.
ture a 60 on producing and the
producer can reap the benefit as
long as there is a demand. But
the amount Of labor a man can do
IL limited no matter what the de-
mand is. There are just SO many
hours in the day."
And that is what the government
faces when it sits down and tries
to figure out a price control bill
that will be fair to everybody.
Prediction impossible
Nobody can sit here in Washing
ton and predict just what is going
to happen to farm prices. wages,
peace, war, love or silk stockings in
the next few years. The officials
as the farmer knows, what
to agriculture in and aft
the last war-chills and fever,
with the feverish days Of high prices
and land speculation followed by the
chilly days when the banker owned
most of the farms and there were
more absentee landlords than there
were ticks in a grandfather's clock.
That is history and the job the
of agriculture has done
the help of the farm organi-
cations and congress-is to try to
keep history from repeating itself.
This is the way one official summed
the situation up for me:
"A billion dollars is going to be
spent for food for Britain in the
next year. Wages r up all over
the country. Pretty soon when de-
tense production pushes a lot of
gadgets off the market, folks will
spend more on food because they
have a lot Of other things to
it on. 1t will be a case Of
going down to the corner and get
ting another dish of ice cream in
stead of going riding in the new car
you can't buy because there aren't
enough cars to 60 around"
So far, so good for the farmer.
But what about the time when
spending ends, when there
may not be so many dollars in so
many pay envelopes? Will the farm
er be faced with more SURPRISES on
his hands?
Let's listen to my friend again or
that subject.
we've got a law, you know"
be said, "a law that says that this
extra production the government is
has a price guarantee Of IS
per cent of parity-a promise, an
on the part of the gov
eminent to support prices for milk
and eggs and pork and chickens at
per cent Of parity.
"And we also have a law-part of
the same one-that says the secre-
larry of agriculture has to give due
in advance when it is time
to stop extra production of these
products. So this time the farmer