Evening star., 1947-12-04
Real Volunteer Meat
Ration Instead ofPrice
Lid Asked by Flanders
By the Associated Press

Senator FlanQeTS, HepuUllCdIi,
of Vermont called today for a
real" voluntary meat-rationing
program and declared that any
American who refused to abide
by it ought to be branded "a
social menace"
The Vermont lawmaker told a
reporter that is his answer to Secre-
tary of Agriculture Anderson's
statement that he does not see "how
we can go through the spring with
out price controls on meat"
Senator Flanders reiterated his
opposition to price controls on any
ommodities-and to President Tru-
mans request for standby power to
impose them.
"If 60 for any controls on meat,
it would be rationing as last re-
Sort" the Senator said.
He is chairman of Senate-House
Economic Subcommittee which rec
commended enactment of hold-in-
reserve authority to ration meat.
But Senator Flanders declared to-
day he wants the voluntary method
given a fair trial first. And he
added that he does not consider the
Truman administrators "meatless
Tuesday" as anywhere near an ade-
quate program.
Secretary Anderson told the House
Banking Committee late yesterday
that an anticipated spring meat
shortage might be accompanied by
fantastic prices" which could cause
distress everywhere" on the cost OF
living front. "a,
Senator Flanders said he has in
mind a voluntary rationing pro-
gram which would fix the maximum
number of pounds Of meat each per-
son should eat a week.
Under such a program" the Sen
ator continued, anyone who ate
more ought to be branded un-
American and a social menace.
Servings quotas should be fixed
too, for hotels and restaurants, and
any that did not go along ought to
be labeled as trying to wreck ou1
economy"
Senator Flanders said the admin
istration should go after such q
program hammer and tongs."
The Vermonter expressed his
views as three congressional COM
mittees made ready to resume sep
arate hearings on Mr.. Truman's TO-
point anti-inflation program.
This was the scheduled lineup o1
witnesses:
? Before the House Banking Com
+ mittee, Secretary Of. Commerce
, Hartman on the overall program.
The Senate Banking Committee
Chairman Mariner Eccles of tht
p Federal Reserve Board on consumel
= and bank credit regulations.
The Senate House Economic
! Committee, representatives of com
modify exchanges on the regulation
O of speculative trading.
! Secretary Anderson got a coo
- reception when he told the BANKING
y Comittee that meat price control
i. will be needed soon to avoid dis
: tress everywhere" in living costs.
Y Representative Cole, Republican
of Kansas, told him there are som
things worse than high prices, an
one Of them is reorganization, excep
= in an extreme emergency.
0 Rain Helps Wheat Crop.
3 Mr.. Anderson Informed the com
mittee that rains in the Aouthwes
r have given wheat prospects a boost
i and that with reasonably goot
r weather 1e48 might produce 1900,
E 900 900 bushels. This years outpu
!. was 100000.
! Other hearings yesterday on MI
: Truman's requests for power 70 ai
: locate grains, control speculation il
them and reimpese consumer credi
restrictions brought out:
. l.. Testimony by a wartime OPP
official, Colin S. Gordon, vice presi
dent of the Quaker Oats Co., tina
Congress should reject the Who'll
10-point Truman program. He salt
his OPA experience convinced hin
that it is impossible to ration ant
allocate few selected commodi
! ties" in short supply.
s 2. A recommendation of Raymond
;, j. Barnes, president of the Nortl
r American Export Grain Association
| that export controls be extended t
, June 80, 1948. Mr.. Barnes said hi
group believes such controls "ar
q the key to the entire situation an
o should be sufficient control TO
e market and prices" Mr.. Trumal
! asked for strengthening and ex
tended life for these controls whicl
e are due to expire February %.
e 3lA proposal by Robert r. Nathan
+ onetime deputy director Of recon
} version and now private economist
e that Congress adopt the whole Tru
man cost-of-living program an
that 1t push back farm and foo
prices 20 to Is per cent. He rec
e commended using combined pric
O control and subsidies for thi!
e Manufactured goods prices shoul
5, be rolled back 10 to IS per cent, MI
r. Nathan said, but without subsidies
IS He said wage increases could b
h granted in many instances w1thou
price rises.