Imperial Valley press., 1942-04-28
CAPITAL TALKS
by
Peter
Edison


may be hearing more about an
other senatorial investigation of
war defense and related activities,
with particular emphasis on how
they affect farmers. The noise will
come from a subcommittee on agri-
culture and forestry.
Its chairman is Guy NJ. Gillette
of Cherokee, Ia, and its other
members, who can make plenty of
trouble if they have mind to, in
clude Senator's Charles L. McNary
of Salem, Ore. Burton K. Wheeler
of Butte. Mont, George w. Nor
riS of McCook. Neb, and Elmer
Thomas of Medicine Park. Okla.
For counsel. the committee has just
taken on Paul Hadlick. who has
been battling special interests in
Washington for years, and knows
all the tricks.
In a way. this Gillette COM
cittee investigation might be
considered slight infringe
ment on the work of the Tru-
man committee investigating
national defense. But the Tru-
man committee is concerned
primarily with industrial pro-
ductiOn and war contracts,
while the Gillette committee is
interested solely in looking af-
ter the interests Of the farmer.
First problem the committee has
tackled is industrial alcohol, OF
which some 275 million gallons will
be needed this year and 1865 mil
lion gallons will be needed next
year. as compared with normal.
peacetime consumption of 100 mil
lion gallons. This alcohol-known
variouSly as grain alcohol, ethyl
cohol or denatured alcohol-is
needed primarily for explosives, but
it also is needed for hundreds of
industrial uses and in addition has
long-range potentialities as a mo-
tor fuel and as source of syn
thetic rubber. This last makes it
particularly interesting just now.
FROM MANY PRODUCTS
AM way you look at it, indus
trial alcohol is an agricultural pro-
duct. The normal source is from
blackStrap molaSses which is what's
left of cane or corn syrup after the
sugar is taken out. But the alcohol
can be made from other farm pro-
ducts such as potatoes, corn and
wheat.
These last two particularly
interest the farm state sena-
tors because of the tremendous
surpluses - 336 million bushels
of corn and 440 million bushels
of wheat-carried over from
crops dating clear back to 1887.
These SURPRISES are owned or
held as security for loans adj
vanced to farmers by the gov
ernment's Commodity Credit
Corporation.
Unless the demand for these
grains goes up, the government can
stand to lose nearly billion dol
lars. 1t hardly seems profitable. |
though the individual deals have
saved thousands of !
farmers from bankruptcy in these
past lean years.
When the increased demand for
alcohol first became apparent, it
was natural to look for the sup
ply at the usual and cheapest |
sources-the rectifiers, or distiller
les which made the stuff from
molasses. When it be-
came doubtful that the sugar mills
could supply enough blackstrap, it
was proposed that some of the
sugar itself be reconverted back to
thereby further cutting
the available supply of sugar
available to consumers. At the be-
ginning of the year, it was be-
lieved that IL million tons of sug
ar would have to go into alcohol. |
This has just been cut down by the |
War Production Board, which now |
figures that only some 100000 tons |
of sugar will be needed for alcohol. !
FACTS /
This situation simply didn't |
make sense to the Senate Agricul-
tural Committee, particularly in
view of the fact that there was all |.
this grain surplus from the last
five years. The senator's started |
digging about a month ago, and |
they have uncovered veral /
strange situations.