Milford chronicle., 1955-06-10


Labor Standards Act is supposed to help
would be inevitable.
COMMUNAL EXPERIMENT FAILED
WITH PILGRIMS
"The basis of American progress was dis
covered by the Pilgrims in 1923 at Ply
mouth" said spokesman for one of the
countrys leading farm equipment manufac-
turers. In the beginning the Pilgrims tried
kind of communist state, but it didn't work.
When the whole undertaking seemed about
ready to fold up, two fundamental decisions
were made which brought success to the little
colony. 1t was decided that everybody should
do what he thought he could do best-and,
secondly, that every man should be allowed
to have as much land as he thought he and
his family could work. Embodied in these
resolutions were the two principles of per-
sOnal liberty and freedom of enterprise which
have made possible the growth and pheno-
menal development of the United States.
Nowhere has change and improvement
in working conditions and productivity been
more pronounced than in the field of agri-
culture. An Egyptian of 5000 years ago
would have been quite at home using the
implements and following the common agri-
cultural practices in use in the 1850s. Since
that time every facet of our agriculture has
been changed almost beyond recognition.
Lie ueF0lOpInoHI OI D0LtoT SLTdl0S Oh
plants and animals, use of fertilizers and i'm
proved feeds, proper land management, and
widespread use of farm machinery of tre-
mendously increased efficiency now make it
possible for one agricultural worker to pro-
duce food and fiber for himself and six other
people. The ratio of IS people on the land
to support Is in other pursuits has been bet
ter than reversed.
Modern farm machinery to fit every agri-
or1If fhoi Co..
power and versatility to put to use the agri-
cultural knowledge which is available. The
increasing. productivity of the individual
farmer has helped greatly to transform the
luxur,es OF the recent past into the necessi-
ties of to-day.
FRAUDULENT POLITICAL DECEPTION
In its May issue, Farm Journal ran
powerful editorial against high rigid price
supports-on the grounds that they are
menace to agriculture itself
The magazine said: "The time has come
when the idea that agriculture will be help
ed by further rigid 80 per cent supports
should be denounced for what it is: cruel,
fraudulent political deception" 1t then de-
scribed the acreage allotment reductions that
have been ordered under the law, and con-
tinued: "The little fellows in cotton and to-
bacco have been hit hardest and first Keep
Oh WleH pOHIlCdl pI1ClIlS VI WuGdI anu COIu
and other farmers will be in the same kind
of fix.
Rigid supports have not only hurt the
little farmers. They have cost all farmers
large portions of their foreign markets, as
in the case of wheat. They have encouraged
synthetics and otherwise hurt the home mar
kets. They have prevented adjustments
which would have strengthened agricul-
ture."
Farm Journal also observed that the cur
rent situation developed while 80 per cent
rigid supports were in effect-the new law,
with its flexible support plan starts with the
1855 crop year. As it said, Whatever is bad
now became bad under high supports
There is another extremely important
factor here. The Wall Street Journal recent
ly pointed out that over period of time agri-
cultures best money returns have not come
from the supported crops. They have come,
instead, from livestock, which is not support
ed and which is sold in the free market. The
livestock people, of course, have had their
downs as well as their ups-but, regardless
of conditions, the majority. of them have
stood firm against asking for supports, and
have said, in effect, that they would take
their own chances without political largess
or bossing. The country needs more of that
kind of attitude, both in and out of agricul-
trro