The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1949-04-29

full to those farmers in the lower
brackets who need a guaranteed in
come the most.
AS the battle continues they will
continue to pour more emery dust
into the bearings. If the farm
leaders who have been taking a
let Brannan do it for us" atti-
tude don't get together and plan
their strategy for mass mobiliza-
ton in support of the interests of
the family farmers they are in for
a rude awakening.
The lead editorial headed "Bran-
mans Brainstorm," in the big bust
ness Chicago Journal of Commerce,
after the secretary announced his
program, smearingly concluded that,
''if it is ever written into law, we can
stop talking about soft socialism for
the hard variety known in Russia will
be with us in fact" Some farm lead
ers who wine and dine with big bust
ness men and who have long since
discarded their shoes with the tattle-
tale barn yard smell, have joined the
chorus against Brannan and his pro-
gram.
One of the good features in the
Brannan program is the proposal
to give consumers the benefit of
low prices when certain of the nom
storable commo ODDITIES are down in
price either from long supplies or
other reasons. Lower prices to
j Lot
for farmers. Prices to farmers
will be supported with federal pro-
duction payments.
Thus if it is determined that a
given grade of range cattle, for eX-
ample, should fetch the farmer SIS
per hundred pounds under the pro-
gram and the market price at which
cattle sold had dropped to S11, the
government would make up the diff
ference to the farmer of $4 per
hundred. At what price top quality
range yearlings should be supported |
is something about which there will
be much dispute. Without doubt
the figures set by Brannan's brain
trust will be too low to prevent thous-
ands of the narrow margin ranchers
from going under. And the same for
the other commodities. The break
even price for all farming opera
tions is now much higher then ever.
Big Business doesn't want the little
farmers to have any price supports
at all. If they go busted they are
labelled as inefficient and should
quit to make room for the "Get-Rich
Land and Cattle Company"
Another feature of the Brannan
program that certainly is correct
is the principle of price guarantees
for only a certain amount or GER
tain number of production units
for each farm. 1t is set at 1900
units. Production over and above
1900 units will not be supported
and the farmer will receive for it
only the actual market price. This
is aimed at the large operators
who have been in favor of no-par-
ity or low-parity price supports.
But it let's all but two per cent of
the farmers into the program and
rs per cent of the total farm pro- =
duction. l
The principle of acreage reduction Z
or marketing reduction as require p
ment for getting benefits from the $
will certainly work hard 0
ship on the little farmers. Most of n
them do not have enough land or pro- 0
1uce enough now to make decent
living. Another quite evident fea
lure of the program is that King a
Cotton will retain all the stars in h
lis crown while the sharecropper who o
loes all the work will still be doing h
Ill the work and his standard Of liv- ii
ng will not be raised one whit. The
administration depends on the South tt
,rn Democrats in congress for much p
If its support and over these Clag p