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Farmers' Convention....... 1833.

plan, now pending in Congress. He outlined the various attempts to secure
substantial farm relief, beginning in 1920 with the object to extend
foreign markets, and find outlets for the surpluses resulting from the
greatly expanded production brought about by the war. Cooperative
marketing agencies were set up and price agreements were sought. There was a
great disparity between agricultural and other prices as is now the case,
when the former stand at 51% and the latter at 105% of the pre-war level.
President Coolidge vetoed the first relief measure to pass Congress, The McNary-Haugen bill
in 1927, which would have transferred more income to farmers, The
principle involved is practically the same as that in the current Allotment
Plan. The allotments of the crops included in the plan will be based on
a comparison of the actual national needs to the total production. If/say
only 600,000,000 bus. are needed out of a total of 800,00,00 bus, then
the allotment for wheat would be 3/4 of the previous years total. Gertificates
would be issued on this basis, and farmers participating would be
compelled to reduce their acreages to that figure. A bushel of wheat
will be supposed to buy at the pre-war figure, and buyers will pay to
the government the difference between that price and the world price. The
fund established thus will be returned to the farmers, resulting in a
boost to the final price they receive. Peanuts, butter and hogs may be
eventually included, the latter because the corn crop is largely marketed
thereby. Wheat and cotton, only, are now included. Land removed from a
given crop cannot be put in a competing crop. Mr. Kile was of the opinion
that no such legislation may necessarily be passed at this session of
Congress. However, President-elect Roosevelt is pleged to relief along
these lines. If past policies are not reveresed and some real help given
farmers, trouble may be expected next year.

Following this talk, John E. Muncaster, in a very concise and
pungent paper outlined the salient points of the program. He cited the
well-known scriptural example, whereby Joseph carried over the surplus
of the years of plenty to those of want. He characterized the holdings