A. F. B. F. Convention 



(Continued from page 5) 

 ture; (6) develop commodity storage on 

 the farm as a sound public policy; (6) 

 develop credit facilities for agriculture 

 with lower interest rates; (7) correct 

 inequitable tax burden; (8) formulate 

 and apply a national land use policy to 

 correct unsound practices of the past; 

 (9) correct inequality in educational and 

 social opportunities in rural life as com- 

 pared with urban life; (10) more com- 

 plete organization of agriculture. 



Recovery in agriculture from 1932 to 

 1934, he pointed out, is seen in the ad- 

 vance of farm prices from 55 to 102% 

 of pre-war. Farm income gained 40% 

 during this period and farmers purchas- 

 ing power went from an index of 54 to 

 81%, based on 100 for the period 1909- 

 14. Ck^tton prices increased from Febru- 

 ary 1933 to October 1934 from 5.5c to 

 12.5; butter from 18.4c to 24.6; hogs 

 from 2.94 to 5.20; wheat from 32.3 to 

 88.5; corn from 19.4 to 76.7; and tobacco 

 from 12.1 to 32.4c per pound. 



"We rejoice over this progress," con- 

 tinued Mr. O'Neal, "but we have only 

 made a good beginning. Now that the 

 acute emergency has passed, we must 

 not only complete the task of recovery, 

 but also plan a long time program for 

 the future." 



Chester Davis Speaks 



Chester C. Davis, AAA administrator, 

 delivered one of the best speeches of the 

 convention in which he completely an- 

 swered opponents of crop adjustment and 

 painted a clear picture of what has been 

 taking place in industry and agriculture 

 during recent years. "We are not com- 

 mitted to a definite policy of crop restric- 

 tion," he said. "We have considered all 

 the arguments about the threatened 

 permanent loss of our export markets. 

 Price is not thie deciding- factor in for- 

 eign exports. Increase in exchange and 

 trade restrictions are largely responsible 

 for the falling off in farm exports. T^ose 

 who want cheap farm commodities and 

 large volume production have a selfish 

 interest. Industrial production from 1930 

 to 1934 was cut in half compared with 

 '29 whereas farm production was re- 

 duced only 13% below '29. Farm prices 

 took it on the chin and dropped to 60% 

 of 1929 while industrial prices wire cut 

 to only 85%." 



President Earl Smith who led the dis- 

 cussion by Farm Bureau leaders follow- 

 ing Mr. Davis, delivered a cleancut analy- 

 sis of the effect of the corn-hog and 

 corn loan programs in raising farmers 

 income from these commodities, and 

 drove home a vigorous defense of con- 

 tinued crop adjustment "to more nearly 

 meet the requirements of markets." 



He showed that for 12% less tonnage 

 of pork in the first 8 months of 1934 

 compared with a similar period in 1933, 



farmers received an increased return of 

 35.3%. The value of the corn Joan pro- 

 gram to farmers who placed corn in 

 storage he asserted, was $99,534,000 not 

 counting the effect of the storage pro- 

 gram in stimulating prices of corn mar- 

 keted during the period. Thus "these 

 figures disclose that 40% less bushels of 

 corn produced in 1934 had an increased 

 value of 38% over 1933 results." 



"It is my belief that to a very large 

 degree the corn belt problem and to a 

 degree the national farm problem insofar 

 as grain and livestock are concerned, and 

 to a degree the dairy problem, will be 

 met and solved by a permanent grain 

 adjustment program. . . . The cost of 

 maintaining such a program could and 

 should be borne by processing taxes upon 

 the respective commodities benefited in 

 proportion as their interests appear." 



Refinancing Program 



Bill Myers, governor of the Credit Ad- 

 ministration, delivered the best summary 

 of government refinancing operations 

 giving facts and figures and discussing 

 future aims, I have yet heard. Space 

 will not permit a review of his address 

 at this time,, nor that of Dr. Tolley who 

 followed Administrator Davis. 



You get the impression that the fed- 

 eral government today has a great staff 

 of "workers" who have learned much 

 ' and developed a great deal during the 

 past two years; who have a better grasp 

 of their jobs and where they are going 

 in contrast to the stuffed shirts and 

 dignified wearers of striped pants and 

 cutaway coats, defenders of the status 

 quo, who so frequently have been elected 

 to high public office. Here are earnest 

 men giving their best to the solution of 

 real problems, going ahead, making mis- 

 takes, perhaps, but striving to bring 

 about a better economic order. 



You would be interested in meeting 

 progressive Republican Governor John 

 Winant of New Hampshire, another 

 speaker, who works hand in hand with 

 the Farm Bureau Federation in that 

 state. Described by Henry Wallace as 

 a governor who is thinking of the next 

 generation rather than the next election. 

 Gov. Winant appointed his Democratic 

 opponent chairman of the state public 

 utilities commission, and then helped him 

 defeat Old Guard Republican ex-Senator 

 George Moses for the United States 

 Senate. Gov. Winant, big, raw-boned, 

 dark-complexioned, reminds you of Abra- 

 ham Lincoln. "I get much of my inspira- 

 tion from Springfield, 111.," he told me. 



Resolutions repeated to a large extent 

 those of former years with some notable 

 exceptions. On the subject of NRA, the 

 Federation came out definitely against 

 price-fixing which has g^reatly raised the 

 costs of non-agricultural commodities to 

 farmers, opposed further limitation of 

 working hours (30 hour week) but up- 



held elimination of child labor, sweat 

 shops, and right of labor to bargain col- 

 lectively for fair wages. Tightening up 

 of federal and state relief activities was 

 advocated, cutting out of waste in dis- 

 tributing funds, compelling able-bodied 

 people to work for their livelihood, and 

 keeping the wage scale on relief proj- 

 ects in line with going wages in the 

 community. A resolution on rural cred- 

 its asked that the Credit Administration 

 provide for financing co-operative elec- 

 tric light and power organizations at low 

 interest rates. The Federation advocated 

 organization of committees of farmers 

 and electrical distributors with the idea 

 of extending electricity service to farms 

 throughout the country. Judicious lower- 

 ing of industrial tariffs but no reduction 

 of agricultural duties "that would have 

 the effect of holding or reducing do- 

 mestic price levels below parity," was 

 advocated. Amendment of the AAA to 

 strengthen the marketing agreement sec- 

 tion, to distribute the cost of commod- 

 ity adjustment programs "more equitably 

 and fairly over commodities as their 

 respective interest may appear," and to 

 assure continuance and expansion of gov- 

 ernment loans on surplus g^rain stores 

 on farms under farm warehouse seal, 

 was favored. Federal licensing of real 

 estate agents operating interstate was 

 supported to stop land sharks from fool- 

 ing buyers on unsound land promotion 

 schemes. Delegates from the sugar beet 

 states tried to get in a resolution ad- 

 vocating higher sugar tariffs and un- 

 limited expansion of sugar acreage. A 

 warm debate was held on this question 

 which finally resulted after allowing full 

 discussion on motion of Earl Smith, in 

 its withdrawal. Another outstanding ad- 

 dress was that by Donald Kirkpatrick on 

 "Co-operative Services as Organization 

 Builders." . | 



To Muscle Shoals 



A party of approximately 200 made 

 the trip to Muscle Shoals near Florence, 

 Alabama, on Thursday after the meet- 

 ing where they saw the mile long Wilson 

 dam across the Tennessee River and the 

 fertilizer plants being developed by the 

 government's Tennessee Valley Author- 

 ity. Any mention of the Nashville meet- 

 ing would not be complete without a 

 word about the chorus of negro men and 

 women students from the local Agricul- 

 tural and Industrial College. Such sing- 

 ing of southern folks songs and negro 

 spirituals, was never heard before. "01' 

 Man River" and "Hand Me Down the Sil- 

 ver Trumpet Gabriel," the latter sung for 

 Pres. Roosevelt on his recent trip 

 through Tepnessee, were favorites. The 

 applause v^s -most generous and the 

 chorus came back again and again rising 

 each time to new heights. Most peo- 

 ple do their best when given praise and 

 appreciation. ■•■■■•:.■>;,..;. 4i' 



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I. A. A. RECORD 



