Congress Is Gommitted To 



Surplus Control Legislation 



C\ /i -HEN the United States Sen- 

 ^^yi/ ate on August 13 passed 

 g Ij Senate joint resolution 207 

 pledging Congress to enact a produc- 

 tion control farm bill as soon as pos- 

 sible after convening for the next ses- 

 sion, it did something unheard of in 

 the legislative experience of many an 

 old timer at Washington. 



Reason was that President Roosevelt 

 refused to exercise his authority to 

 make commodity loans on cotton and 

 other basic commodities with the fund 

 of some $400,000,000 available for that 

 purpose, unless he had assurance of 

 definite crop acreage control. The 

 President reasoned, and rightly, that 

 commodity loans at or above the cur- 

 rent market price without the author- 

 ity to provide for a reasonable check 

 on production merely invited heavy 

 losses of government funds. 



The belated interest of southern sen- 

 ators in doing something about bol- 

 stering declining cotton prices was no 

 surprise to Farm Bureau leaders and 

 to President Roosevelt who had pressed 

 for action on a permanent surplus con- 

 trol act weeks and months before. 



The move for a new Triple A act 

 started last February 9 when Secretary 

 Wallace called a conference of agri- 

 cultural leaders in Washington. At 

 this meeting all agreed that it was the 

 first time farmers had had an oppor- 

 tunity to develop permanent surplus 

 control legislation without an emer- 

 gency staring them in the face. 



It was the general opinion that per- 

 maitent legislation should be enacted 

 to control excessive supplies of farm 

 products through a plan termed by 

 Secretary Wallace "the ever normal 

 granary;" a plan that would gear in 

 acreage reduction only when supplies 

 of staple crops exceeded the normal 

 carry-over. 



All agreed that there should be car- 

 ried substantial surpluses at all times 

 on the farm on which commodity loans 

 would be available so as to keep farm- 

 ers and not speculators in control. 

 Acreage adjustment would be provided 

 by contract between the government 



and individual farmers to prevent sup- 

 plies from running away with demand. 



The American Farm Bureau Federa- 

 tion board adopted a resolution in line 

 with this conference agreement and im- 

 mediately became active toward se- 

 curing the enactment of such legisla- 

 tion. Other farm groups that par- 

 ticipated in the conference showed 

 little or no active interest thereafter. 

 Congress too, seemed indifferent. Farm 

 prices were favorable. Congressmen 

 insisted that they were getting no de- 

 mands from their constituents for a 

 new farm program. They failed to 

 heed warnings of Farm Bureau and 

 government officials that a heavy crop 

 of corn and cotton in 1937 might change 

 the entire farm picture. 



The Farm Bureau Federation con- 

 tinued insisting on a permanent pro- 

 gram. At its own expense it had a 

 bill drawn up which was presented to 

 the Agricultural Committee in May. 

 After some delay several informal 

 hearings and one formal hearing were 

 held before the Agricultural Commit- 

 tees. In failing to act the Agricultural 

 Committees offered the age old alibi 

 that farmers were not united on a pro- 

 gram. 



President Roosevelt gave his support 

 and urged the need of adequate sur- 

 plus control legislation in letters to 

 the Senate and House Agricultural 

 Committees. Secretary Wallace spoke 

 for the new measure before the Agri- 

 cultural Committees. 



Then came July with its outlook 

 for bumper crops. Cotton dropped 

 two dollars a bale in one day. De- 

 cember corn slumped badly from the 

 high levels of six weeks ago. 



Congressmen began hearing from 

 home. They became alarmed. What 

 they were told would happen had 

 happened. Around the Senate went 

 a petition demanding loans on cotton 

 and guaranty of parity prices. 



Upon inquiry, the President in- 

 formed the interested Senators that un- 

 less definite assurance was given to 

 enact surplus control legislation before 

 adjournment, or immediately upon re- 



Built 80 Years Ago 



The Harding Methodist church in 

 Freedom township, LaSalle county is 

 unique in many ways. Built 80 years 

 ago the congregation found itself short 

 of money and unable to pay for the 

 building. The newly organized town- 

 ship of Freedom then came to the rescue 

 of the church committee. 



The town appropriated money to help 

 build the church, contingent on the 

 church allowing the township perpetual 

 use of the first floor or basement of the 

 church building. The arrangement was 

 satisfactory to the congregation. So Free- 

 dom township now owns the basement of 

 the church while the rest belongs to the 

 church congregation something that prob- 

 ably is not paralleled elsewhere in Illi- 

 nois. The Rev. Richard W. Miller is 

 pastor. 



Near the church is a community hall 

 on which the last indebtedness was paid 

 recently, with a big celebration. It took 

 15 years to pay off the mortgage. 



convening of Congress, he would be 

 forced to oppose any program calling 

 for loans as a price sustaining effort. 

 Then followed the action of the Senate 

 in the approval of the following res- 

 olution, which in effect, gives assurance 

 by Congress to enact legislation cover- 

 ing the fundamental principles in- 

 sisted upon by the American Farm 

 Bureau Federation: 



JOINT SENATE AND HOUSE 

 RESOLUTION 



WHEREAS, a permanent farm program 

 should (a) provide not only for soil con- 

 servation but also for replacing the crop 

 adjustment method, of the Agricultural Ad- 

 justment Act, (b) protect agriculture and 

 consumers against the consequence of drouth 

 and, (c) safeguard farmers and business of 

 the nation against the consequence of price 

 decline, and 



WHEREAS, it is the sense of Congress 

 that the permanent farm legislation should 

 be based on the following fundamental 

 principles: 



1. That farmers are entitled to their fair 

 (Continued on page 10) 



SEPTEMBER, 1937 



