Evening star., 1956-03-25

that Of the President and his ad-
ministration. The measure before
them would. for the most part, pro-
vide for everything the President
does not want. and little he does
want. Mr.. Eisenhower had asked
for a continuance Of flexible sup
ports: the bill is essentially q high
support bill. Mr.. Eisenhower
wanted a voluntary soil bank plan:
the measure provides for crop sup
port payments only to farmers
who participate in the soil bank
program. The President, in his
January 9 farm message, said he
wanted a rural development pro-
gram" and a Great Plains pro-
gram; there is no mention Of
either In the bill.
The Soil Bonk
Because the bill would increase
farm income by about 81 billion
this year - but primarily only
through high and rigid support pay
ments-a veto could prove politi-
cally dangerous to the Republicans.
Mr.. Eisenhower and his party had
hoped to offer q boost to farmers
in the form Of payments to those
who would agree to retire part Of
their surplus-producing land in re-
turn for Government checks. But
If this soi1 bank plan was to help
farmers this year. it would have had
to be on the books early in the
year, before the planting season.
Cotton farmers began planting their
crops March l. Bright leaf tobacco
was set out early this month.
Spring wheat In Colorado and Kan
sas has been in the ground for
three weeks. Rice will be planted
April 10, and corn. already out Of
the ground in Texas, will be sown
around April IS In Iowa, where
corn land is now being disked in
preparation for planting.
The soil bank idea, which Mr..
Eisenhower has regarded as key
part of his program, represents an
about-face in administration policy.
Democrats have been talking of
soil bank for some time, but on
July q, 1855, the Agriculture De-
partment told the House Agricu1-
ture Committee that 1t could not
indorse the plan. It was just too
costly. Secretary Ezra Taft Benson
said.
The Next Move
Despite Republican charges Of
Democratic stalling, Chairman Har-
old Cooley of the House Agriculture
Committee said he was anxious to
put the conferees to work. He
Cancelled trip to Europe to attend
a meeting of the Interparliamen-
tary Union Council in'order to spend
next week working on the bill.
Secretary Benson. meanwhile, said
the bill is so complicated that he
would need to study it at least un-
til Tuesday before he could really
decide what he was going to testify
against at conference hearings.
Mr.. Cooley has said he hopes
the conference committee will have
a report ready by the time Con-
gress returns on April 8 from an
Easter recess. Neither house will
have another chance to vote on the
measure itself. They will vote only
on accepting or rejecting the con-
ferees' report on the bill.
Mr.. Eisenhower has no reason
to be happy over the prospects Of
getting what he called on Wednes-
day "a good farm bill" from con-
ference. The expected lineup Of
the conference committee indicates
that 1t will be composed of eight
members who oppose the Presi-
dents overall farm program with
only two members from whom he
can expect support. In the end he
may not even get his soil bank. It
Is known that Mr.. Cooley, along
with several other members Of the
House committee, are far from be-