The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1950-03-23
Speakers Discuss
Brannan Farm Plan
Sc1neck, Hutchinson
Disagree On Method

Agreement that human values were
higher than dollar values and that
farm economy will affect the entire
public for good or bad was reached
By the principal speakers in the
panel discussion of the Brannan
Plan in the high school auditorium
Friday night. Speakers disagreed
over the method of attaining de-
sired economy, not on the desired
goal. The discussion was the OPEN
ing meeting of the eighth annual
Rural Life Conference at Bluffton
College.
Substitutes
Substitutes represented both u. S.
Secretary of Agriculture Charles
Brannan and U. S. Farm Bureau
President Allan Kline in the panel
discussion of the Brannan Farm
Plan.
Representing Secretary of Agri-
culture Brannan in the panel was
Knox Hutchinson of Washington, d.
c., assistant secretary of agriculture.
Hassil Schneck, president of the
Indiana Farm Bureau, spoke in op-
position, substituting for National
Farm Bureau President Kline.
Mr.. Hutchinson stressed the inn
portance of rural communities and
the necessity of greater security. He
stated that prices received by farm
ers have dropped nearly $3.50 from
postwar peaks in 1947.
Brannan Plan
The Brannan Plan is a price sup
port program adapted to needs of
both farmers and consumers under
postwar conditions stated Hutchin-
son.
-Four main points are advocated by
this support program: l. Provide a
new basis for setting a farm income
goal, and use that objective to
determine price support levels. 2.
Assure support on products which
contribute most to farm income, even
though some of those products are
non-storable. 3. Authorize produc-
tion payments as an added method
of support more adaptable to such
perishables. a. Limit eligibility for
price support to defined volume of
production on each farm.
Sliding Scale
Sliding scale" price supports
would not bring about adjustments
in production but rather tend to force
the middle segment of agriculture"
out of production, Hutchinson stated.
High support prices must come
from the taxes of the people and
therefore the people would actually
gain very little from a program
such as the Brannan Plan said Mr..
Schneck.
Schneck stated that 1879 of farm
products are produced by 500 of all
farmers. Inefficient farmers such as
these could never be made efficient
by the Brannan Plan or any other
support program. Yet the peoples
tax money would go to this ineffi-
cient type of farmer, he said.
Henley
Also appearing in the discussion
was DR.. David Henley of Earlham
College. Henley stressed that a
farm support program should not
freeze economy, should bring social
benefits to farm economy, and should
tend to make the farmer become a
world citizen. A program should be
based on the idea that economic
decisions are moral decisions, he said.
Different Sides
In Friday nights meeting, differ
ent sides of the panel directed ques-
tions to one another, while Clyde
Rogers, head of Ohio Church Council
acted as moderator. After the open
ing statements and discussions with
in the panel, questions concerning
the plan were accepted from the
audience. The entire meeting. was
broadcast over radio station WILMA,