244 GENERAL FARM PROGRAM 



all we have said is that in place of tiying to get the market price back 

 up to the support levels, we let it go down and pay the farn].er the 

 difference. 



Mr. PoAGE. But you will not do that on cotton or wheat? 



Secretary Brannan. No ; we will not do that on cotton or wheat. 



Mr. PoAGE. You are not going to let it go down that m.uch. I do 

 not know how m.uch m.ore you could sell, but you certainly could sell 

 substantially m.ore cotton at a lower price. Obviously, the market 

 for cotton at 28 cents is not as broad as it would be at 18 cents, and 

 there immediately comes to m.y mind the use of cotton as an insulator. 

 It was developed rather rapidly when the price of cotton was below 20 

 cents. With cotton at the present price it cannot com.pete with rock 

 wool and inanim.ate substances as an insulator. You can sell more 

 cotton at 18 cents than you can sell at 28 cents, is what I am saying. 



Secretary Brannan. That is right. 



Mr. PoAGE. But you do not propose to let cotton drop to 18 cents, 

 and let the m.arket expand as broadly as it could, and then pay the 

 farm.er the difference? 



Secretary Brannan. No. 



Mr. PoAGE. And I am. not asking you to do it. I am. suggesting 

 that if you are going to keep the producer of cotton and of wheat and 

 of tobacco from, enjoying the widest possible m.arket, and you do and 

 we do when we apply restrictions on them., then it seems to me justice 

 would dictate that we apply som.ewhat the same rules to the people 

 who are in other agricultural pursuits, or at least that we in som.e way 

 reward the m.an who has taken a cut in his production because he is 

 losing income just the sam.e as the m.an who is losing price. 



Secretary Brannan. "Well, Mr. Poage, I think I agree with what 

 you are saying, all right. It is just a matter of application. 



First of all, what we are striving for in reference to the commodities 

 with which we would apply the production paym.ent is as free a 

 market in that com.m.odity as possible, with all the goods produced 

 of that type in the given year or in the m.arketing season. 



We are not striving to induce unlim.ited production, and drive all 

 prices of farm, goods down to an unreasonably or ridiculouly low level, 

 or bargain prices, or cheap food in the drastic sense of that term. 

 What we are really trying to do is to get food at reasonable prices to 

 all these people, and to m.ake it possible for the Governm.ent, whenever 

 it is obligated to operate in the market, to give it stability, to so 

 operate that it will bring about the least cost to the Goveram.ent, and 

 for whatever cost to the Government there is to bring about the 

 maxim.um benefit to the consuro.er. 



Mr. Poage. Well, I do not want to dwell on this further, except 

 that I take it you would not be averse then to trying to work out 

 some program, here that would give som.e kind of reward to the 

 growers of those crops which had already contributed to their own 

 support prices by reducing their production, of giving them some 

 advantage over the m.an who m.ade no contribution himself. 



Secretary Brannan. That, I think, is right if we do not quite term 

 it a reward. 



Mr. Poage. Then let us say a penalty on the man who will not do it. 



Secretary Brann.\n. Well, it would not be a penalty, either, al- 

 though under the marketing acreage limitation, marketing quotas, 

 penalties are possible, But in that case, of course, for the purpose 



