Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-04-24

committees held hearings to find
out what the farmers and farm
experts thought must be done
The farm bill which we passed
and which President Eisenhower
vetoed was the product of years
of hard work and hard thought.
Many of the members of the
Republican Party. those Sem
atorS and congressman who live
in the farm areas, supported the
bill. Fifteen Republican Senators
voted with the Democratic lead
ership, as did 48 Republican
Congressman. Three Republican
Governors from farm States flew
into Washington last Monday to
persuade President Eisenhower
that our bill was good for the
farmer and good for the country.
The Governor of my own State,
who voted for President EiSen-
hover in 1852, wired a strong
plea to the President to sign the
measure.
These officials knew something
had to be done. They knew that
per capita income of farm peo-
pie has fallen to $3.50 a year. The
average for city and town dwell
ers is almost two thousand dol
lars year. Last year the farmers
in Iowa earned only SO per cent
of the income that they got the
year before. How would you like
to support your family on half
of last years paycheck? Wouldn't
you worry about feeding them
and clothing them and paying
their medical billS-and wouldn't
you be feeling a little desperate?
To put it as simply as I can
the farm bill was designed to boil
Ster the farmers income. The
experts said that only 80 per
cent of parity will halt the slide
of farm prices,
Words like 'pority' !. scare me,
too. But let's look at this
word
Sometimes I think the city
man has troubles with the farm
problem because of words like
parity l confess that words
like that scare me, too.
But let's look at this word
parity" All it means is this:
IT a farmer twenty years ago
could buy shirt for a bushel
OF wheat, the farmer ought to
be able to buy a shirt today for
a bushel of wheat. All parity
really means is fair price.
Now, Congress does not say
the farmer must get a fair price
for his crops. All it says is that
the farmer should get 80 per
cent of that fair price. Is this
unreasonable? Would you settle
for only 80 per cent of a fair
wage? Do you think your tele-
phone company would be happy
with 90 per cent of fair rate?
OF course not-they feel they
arc entitled to one hundred per
cent.
All Congress is trying to do is
to put floor under the farmers
prices. This is not unusual. 1t
is just an insurance policy. The
Government has been issuing
similar insurance to us for dec
AIDES. Your Social Security pay
ments are something like this.
Your unemployment compensa-
ton is, too. The tariffs for BUSH
ness, the subsidies to airlines
and the shipping industry, the
land grants which made our
railroads great. the minimum
wage for the worker-all these
are floor to protect you and
Keep our economy healthy. And
20 per cent of parity does the
same thing.
Do you remember when Con-
sreSs last year-with the ap-
oroval of President Eisenhower
raised the minimum wage to
one dollar an hour? What would
happen if this year it should be
cut to 82l2 cents an hour?
! wont you to listen to (Presi-
dent Eisenhower'sl own voice"
Gen. Eisenhower himself cam
for 80 per cent of parity
RS the best thing for the farmer.
During the campaign of 1852.
The General favored this. When
he was running for the presi-
dency, he went up into the
farm country to Kasson, Mimi.
and made farm speech on Sep
TENDER 6. 1852. He said he was
80 per cent parity man with
no Ifs or butts" Now-I don't
want to tell you what Gen.
Eisenhower said at Kasson. /
want you to listen to his own
voice.
Mr.. Cameraman-will you turn
on your protector and carry US
back to that fall day in 1852 in