PRESIDENT TRUMAN on May 23 accepted the resig- 

 nation of Secretary of Agriculture Claude R. Wickard 

 and nominated Rep. Clinton P. Anderson, Democrat, of 

 New Mexico, to succeed Wickard. Wickard was nomi- 

 nated as director of the FIEA. At the same time Presi- 

 dent Truman announced that Marvin Jones would re- 

 sign his post as head of the War Food Administration 

 and would return to the Federal Court of Claims from 

 which he has had a leave of absence. The President 

 said that the work of the WFA would be merged with 

 the Department of Agriculture. Wickord's resignation 

 will become effective when he is confirmed as REA ad- 

 ministrator. Judge Jones' resignation will become effec- 

 tive June 30. Representative Anderson, 49, is chairman 

 of a special House committee that has been investigat- 

 ing the food situation. He is a native of South Dakota 

 and went to New Mexico more than 25 years ago. He 

 entered Congress in 1940. He built up a successful in- 

 surance business in New Mexico and owns a 1000 acre 

 farm in the Rio Grande valley just outside Albuquerque 

 where he has a large dairy operation and raises Here- 

 ford cattle. Two other cabinet resignations accepted by 

 President Truman on May 23 were those of Attorney 

 General Francis Biddle and Secretary of Labor Frances 

 Perkins. The President nominated Thomas C. Clark, 

 Dallas, Tex., now assistant attorney general, as Riddle's 

 successor, and Judge Lewis B. Schwellenbach, Spokane, 

 Wash., as secretary of labor. The three cabinet nomina- 

 tions are subject to confirmation by the Senate. 



REMOVAL OF the 300-pound top limit on the weight 

 of hogs for which support prices are effective was an- 

 nounced May 21 by War Food Administrator Marvin 

 Jones. Under the broadened program, prices will be 

 supported until Sept. 1, 1946 at $13 a hundredweight, 

 Chicago basis, for all good and choice barrow and 

 gilt butcher hogs regardless of weight. Increase in the 

 hog support price from the previous $12.50 to $13 a 

 hundredweight, for good and choice butchers up to 270 

 pounds was announced on April 11, 1945. The top 

 limit o.n support weights was raised to 300 pounds on 

 April 25. This top limit is now removed. 



FEWER PERSONS were working on farms on May 1 

 than the previous record low for that date a year ago, 

 the USDA reports. 



FEEDERS OF beef cattle will receive a payment of 

 50 cents per hundred pounds on AA and A grade 

 cattle sold for slaughter weighing 800 pounds or more 

 which have been owned by the seller for 30 days or 

 more. This program became effective May 19, and 

 CCC will moke the payments. Director Vinson of the 

 Office of War Mobilization and Conversion also an- 

 nounced at the same time that there would be no down- 

 ward revision in the over-riding ceiling prices for beef 

 cattle without six months advance notice. 



FARMERS WILL receive special acreage payments 

 as an inducement to harvest legume seed in a pro- 

 gram announced by the WFA. In addition, payments 

 of 21/2 cents per pound will be made for alfalfa and 

 alsike clover seed, and 3V2 cents per pound for red 

 clover seed, harvested and sold into commercial chan- 

 nels before Dec. 31, 1945. 



REA BORROWERS in Illinois have plans for a $19,- 

 500,000 postwar program, according to REA officials. 

 It is designed to bring electricity to 42,700 unserved 

 rural consumers within three years after materials and 

 manpower become available for large-scale power-line 

 construction. Fifteen million dollars would be used to 

 build distribution lines and $4,500,000 to finance gener- 

 ation, transmission and other facilities. 



PRICES FARMERS get for eggs will be moderately 

 higher in 1945 than in 1944 when the average price was 

 33.8 cents per dozen, or 93 per cent of parity, USDA 

 reports. This ought to be good news, if it comes true. 

 Farmers have been considerably puzzled over the 

 prices they hear quoted that consumers are paying in 

 the cities, and what the farmer is actually getting for 

 eggs. -, , 



USDA REPORTS that its research laboratory at Pe- 

 oria has succeeded in producing 90 to 95 gallons of 

 liquid motor fuel from a ton of corncobs. A semi-com- 

 mercial plant is to be built in Peoria in about two months 

 to develop fully this project. Dr. E. O. May, chief of the 

 bureau of agricultural and industrial chemistry, says 

 "The Department has only a part of the opiercrting and 

 economic answers on the conversion of these farm 

 wastes into useful industrial products. Cost figures to 

 establish final economic feasibility on a commercial 

 scale will not be available until the process has been 

 tested in the semi-works plant that is being con- 

 structed . . . ." •,-,:• I 



ORDERS WHICH require farmers to obtain certifi- 

 cates of eligibility from county AAA committees in order 

 to apply for electrical extensions and connections have 

 been revoked as of May 12. i 



PRODUCTION QUOTAS limitation on manufac- 

 turers of farm machinery and equipment and repair 

 parts will be removed effective July 1, WPB armounced 

 May 17. Large producers, however, must obtain an 

 approved schedule for each item they plan to make 

 after July 1. 



MORE THAN 21 million bushels of com were sold 

 by farmers to the government under the WFA's com 

 purchasing program which ended May 1. Com pur- 

 chases in Illinois under the program amounted to 5,- 

 392,783 bushels. .■ -:- i ..■•;,' ..:■ 



L A. A. BECOBD 



p-\. 



