Evening star., 1942-05-15
Grain Belt Farm Chiefs
Rush Here 10 Protest
Cut-Rate Surplus Sale
Confer Tomorrow With
Senate Bloc; MeNoV
Gets Delay on Bill
~ tho Associated Press.

~ the Associated Press.
Grain belt farm group leaders
we're reported today to be rushing
to Washington in protest against
q pending war measure to release
millions of bushels of stored grain
for livestock feeding at cut-rate
prices.
An influential member of the
Senate farm bloc said q number Of
farm organization leaders expected
to reach here tomorrow for con-
ference with Senators in charge Of.
the annual farm appropriations
bill, in which the proposal Is con-
tanned.
The grain belt spokesmen were
said to be protesting an Agriculture
Department-farm bloc compromise
for below-parity sale of Government
grain surpluses for livestock feed
ing only. The administration backs
the compromise as means of meet
Ing the United Nations needs for
more beef. pork and mutton.
House Laid Parity Floor.
The House had written into the
farm bill a provision prohibiting
any sales of Government farm
stocks at less than full parity price,
one computed to give a farm prod
uct the same relative purchasing
power it had in a past period.
usually 19O9-1914
Tho Sapota Approprio tiopS Coy,o
mittee then voted to allow below
parity sale Of 125,0O0 900 bushels Of
wheat and unlimited amounts Of
corn, barley and other grains for
feeding purposes under an agree
ment with Agriculture Department
ofiicials that these sales would not
b used to force corn prices below
85 per cent of parity, the level Of
past Government corn loans. The
farm groups were said to be oppoS-
Ing this action.
The Agriculture Department has
warned that grain production must
be curtailed because of crowded
storage facilities, a limited foreign
market, and lack of shipping space.
1t seeks to turn some grain acreage
to meat production because meat
requires less shipping space for the
food value involved and because 1t
is the prime food need Of Americas
allies.
McNary Secures Delay.
Senator McNary, Republican, of
Oregon, minority leader and an i'm
portant member of the bipartisan
farm bloc as a wheat area Senator,
quietly got the Senate to delay any
action on the surplus grain provi-
sion until Monday after debate on
the farm bill opened yesterday.
Senators Russell, Democrat, Of
Georgia and Bankhead, Democrat
of Alabama, cotton and tobacco area
spokesmen, were expected to join
with Senators McNary and Gillette,
Democrat, of Iowa. from the i'm
portant corn-hog area. in the Sat-
urday attempt to please all conflict
ing groups.
Meanwhile, numerous other con-
troversial items awaited Senate de-
cision, including substantial in
creases made by the Senate Appro-
priations Committee in funds for
the various aid programs for low
Income farmers handled by the Farm
Security Administration.
Claims Big Deductions
Senator Byrd. Democrat, of Vir-
ginia protested in Senate debate yes.
terday that 100000 farmer commit
teemen who administer the present
Federal farm programs were deduct
ing more than s40,000,000 annually
from payments intended for farmers
Senator Byrd said there was a
tremendous variation" between
States and counties within the same
States on these administrative costs
for operating the farmer program.
Il have been unable to get salts
factory explanation of this wide
variati from Agriculture Depart
ment officials" the Virginia Senator
said.
Senator Russell told Senator Byrd
he was in error" about administra-
tive costs of the farm program, as
serting that most of this money went
not to the farmer committeeman,
but to employees of associations who
must keep records, measure acreage
and perform other services.
Buy bonds. Give up that trip you