The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1943-12-03

In the Case of Flax.
Our Reserve Line.
IF Deflation Comes!
When the house of representatives,
C. S. congress, voted on Nov. % by a
more than two-thirds majority to i'm
pose a prohibition on subsidies, it
in the opinion of many-opened the
door to initiation. 1t is argued that
such subsidy payments, made by the
u. S. government, served to keep
down the prices of goods to the con-
sumner and thus prevented the Exit
ing of commodity prices. In other
words the payment of a subsidy re-
placed the profits which might other
wise have been exacted Free enter
prise demands that it be made free
to take what it wants and not what a
limited subsidy grants
The bill Oh. R. No. 3477) had for
its original purpose the extending of
the life of the Commodity Credit Cor
poration for 1 IL years. Somewhere
in it's legislative career there was
added Section 3" which is the sub
sidy prohibition section. To under
stand what all the shooting is about,
that section should be read. Here it
it:
mo funds appropriated to, borrow
pd hu m in one on.
of any governmental agency
shall be directly or indirectly used
by or made available to the Commod-
ity Credit Corporation or any other
agency to make any
subsidy or other payment, or to pay
or absorb losses on any agricultural
commodity or any commodity proc
essed or manufactured in whole or
substantial part therefrom, including
milk and livestock and the products
thereof" Any farmer should be able
to understand that and to understand
too the exception the law provides:
That none Of the foregoing provi-
sions shall apply to any payments or
losses incurred in transactions with
respect to competitive domestic vege-
able oils and fats and oilseed" That
.akes care nicely of the oleomargar-
ne trust, which, using cottonseed oil,
ian get fat subsidy.
Immediately following the reading
If the section above quoted, Congress-
nan Ford of California said: $50 my
friends, we have bill that abolishes
for the consumer, but con-
inues subsidies for the farmer" He
lid not explain-if this continued sub
idies to the farmer-why it was nee
'ssary to exempt from the prohibit
ion the cottonseed, peanut and other
'egetable oils, which assuredly are
manufactured from agricultural COM
oddities. A subsidy now paid to the
nils, which press linseed oil out of
lax, keeps the price of flax stabilized
round $500, Minneapolis, when a
ear ago - before the subsidy was
iven, flax brought around $2.35 in
But Congressman like
Ir. Ford insist that the bill they have
assed continues the subsidies to
armers!
What is subsidy, anyway? 1t
ONES from two Latin words which
lean "to sit under" A better deriva-
on is that of the Latin word Sub
dium" That meant, when the bat
Q was on, the third line of reserves,
h1ch was ready to be thrown into
elton if the first and second lines
ere broken. Subsidy therefore real
is our last line of reserves against
lie enemy, initiation. Later on it be-
'mes the same thing against the
her foe, deflation. But congress,
1idently animated by the industries
at want profits instead of mere sub
dies, says like the drunkard: can
,zzer little drink won't do us no
lrm!" We had one in World War |
Id that made thousands of million
res-but what headache of depres-
on and deflation followed The
rmer felt that one when hundreds
thousands of farm families were
ssed out of their homes into the
tch, from which they were in part
scued by loans and WPA.
1t looks as though the senate will
SIS the subsidy prohibition law. 1t
oks also as if President Roosevelt
II veto it and it is within reason
argue, from the big vote in the
use, that his veto will be over-rid-
n. Evidently the industrialists and
3 corporation farmers of the coun-
2 are weary of nibbles of profit.
ley insist on being set free to gorge
full meal while the going is
cd. They are the ones who will
ofit, not the family type farmer.
ey take no heed of consequences,
the time may come again as it did
1882, when they will be running
the U. S. government with hands
crying "Save us, save us
give us subsidy" That time
~ got it. Next time there may be
money available to lend them or
q them. We have a war debt in
ad of cash on hand