Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1943-09-24
WNU Service, Union Trust Building,
Wa shin gton d. C.

Washington, D. C.
Out of the part of the world farth-
est from the fighting, literally and
figuratively, has come an interest
ing international prescription for the
cure of the worlds postwar head
ache-the spell of depression that
we have to be ready for.
The formula is summarized in a
43-page pamphlet that 1 wish every
one could read. The title is 1.-The
Midcontinent and the Peace" The
cover is an earthly brown embel-
lished with alternating rows of gold
en- grain sheaves, fat porkers and
trucks.
1t is a report made jointly by the
Universities of Minnesota and Mani
toba. 1t has nothing to do with de-
! partments of state, it has no official
status beyond the fact that the
American and Canadian governors
asked their respective state univer-
sites to do the job. 1t is splendid
-brass-tacks example of the
recognition of the common interests
of two important areas lying on op--
posite sides of an international
boundary line.
The gist of the report is this:
I. Western Europe must arrange
greatly to increase its imports OF
wheat, lard and pork after the war.
II. Canada and the United States
must reorganize their automobile
producing industries so that maxi
mum employment in Canadian fac
tories can be maintained; cost of
autos be reduced to Canadian buy
ers and American car output in
creased.
III. Agriculture in the prairie
provinces of Canada and the central
northwest United States must con-
tinue along the lines of agricul-
tural specialization developed out of
necessity during the war.
The Connection
Now, at first glance, the connec-
ton between these steps may not
be evident, but the report makes
the whole effort clear and also
shows how the program can be car
ried out. There is nothing new or
revolutionary in the methods dis
cussed, nor in the reasoning con-
corning their results, but a striking
assemblage of data gathered and
arranged in such manner that it
offers what appears to be logical
program of action.
In the first place, the report shows
how domestic economic policies
(the ones l briefly summarized in
the three points above) are, in fact,
international policies. 1t demon
strates with figures and explanation
that "sound and strong internal
economies in Canada and the United
States" must have "resoundingly
important effects on the external
world"
Examples offered to prove this in
clude the figures which show how
the rise and fall of demand in Can
ada and the United States affected
other parts of the world up to and
after the depression hit US in 1929
In less than three decades, i'm
ports in the United States of ten
different commodities increased
from 300 to loo million dollars
worth. Take silk: the yearly aver
age importation of silk bought by the
United States from 1901-O5 amount
ed to As million dollars. In 1929,
it had jumped to 432 million dol
lars. But when the depression
struck, it fell to ia million dollars
in 1882.
The total imports of the ten COM
modities dropped from l,718 mil
lion to 534 million dollars-ad you
can imagine what happened in the
producing countries when these
markets disappeared.
One interesting point brought out
is that in this period of expanding
trade (both import and export) in
which Canada and the United States
shared, the MUTUAL interests of
the two countries greatly IN
CREASED and their competitive in
terests declined.
Industry Predominant
The report shows how agricul-
ture has ceased to be our greatest
source of wealth, how industry has
become pre-emnent and to main
tain our agriculture, healthy con-
dition of industry must be main
tanned. The old statement is quot
ed: Tell me the amount of factory
payrolls and I will tell you the price