THE FARM LAND 87 



and tells you that the Department of Agriculture is going to 

 pay you if you will cut down your crop acreage. This may 

 sound strange from the county agent, who up until now has 

 been explaining how to increase crop yields. You decide you'll 

 go along on this program. You sign a contract guaranteeing 

 not to plant that 25 acres in wheat which you have prepared 

 to drill. 



That summer prices go up a bit. You get more for your 

 milk and grain, but you have to pay a lot more for the paint 

 and machinery you need. You decide that in order to get your 

 equipment in shape you will apply to the federal government 

 for a rehabilitation loan. The government gives you the money, 

 which you agree to pay back in five years, and you go out and 

 buy more paint and machinery. 



Things are beginning to look better. You get more for your 

 crops. The Agricultural Adjustment Administration payments 

 come in pretty handy and the easy term loans from the govern 

 ment have put you back on your feet. 



Then the Supreme Court announces that the Triple A is 

 unconstitutional. A few weeks later the county agent comes 

 around again. This time he has a new idea. The federal gov 

 ernment is going to pay the farmers for saving their soil. You 

 can see that this is an indirect way of reducing surpluses on 

 the agricultural market, for saving the soil often requires plant' 

 ing crops you can't sell instead of crops you can sell. Of course, 

 you know that it's quite true that if you plant alfalfa on your 

 corn land the alfalfa will return a lot of valuable nitrogen to the 

 soil which the corn would have taken away. At the same time, 

 the alfalfa will keep the soil from washing away while the open 

 corn rows would wash out in every heavy summer rain. You 

 decide to sign up again. 



About a month later you are called to a meeting of the 

 farmers of the area to vote on the problem of crop allotments. 

 The new law says that you will not get soil conservation 



