"OBSERVATIONS" 



(Continued from page 21) 



ernment and whereby, he could not legal- 

 ly compete with the 30 cents margin 

 being offered by the government? 



The indictment of officials of govern- 

 ment was so clear that this bonus or 

 premium was removed in a few weeks 

 and the official ceiling price of corn was 

 raised 25 cents early in May with wheat 

 boosted 15 cents and comparable in- 

 creases made in other grain ceilings. 



During this period it became illegal 

 to purchase corn for feeding hogs in ex- 

 cess of 225 pounds; for feeding more 

 than 80 per cent of the previous year's 

 production of poultry, or for feeding 

 better than Grade A cattle. 



These conflicting and unfair rules and 

 regulations forced a large volume of im- 

 mature stock into market channels. 



After living so long under such ever 

 changing and unjust rules and regulations 

 and indefensible ceilings, can anyone 

 rightfully blame any producer or feeder 

 of meat animals during the 51 -day res- 

 pite from government ceilings for mar- 

 keting their livestock? Even this tem- 

 porary increase in marketing was not 

 what some would have the American 

 people believe. 



The official figures disclose that from 

 June 1 to October 1, there was a decrease 

 of 8 per cent in the number of hogs 

 marketed in 1946 from that of the pre- 

 vious year. This comparatively small de- 

 crease was caused by official rules and 

 regulations which forced premature mar- 

 keting during the period from March 1 

 to June 1 . Notwithstanding the approach- 

 ing shortage of pork, it should be noted 

 that the Secretary of Agriculture in May 

 of this year asked farmers to further re- 

 duce fall farrowings by 10 per cent. 



I cite these statements and figures not 

 in a spirit of reprisal, but merely so that 

 the truth may be recorded relative to the 

 manner in which the farmers have, each 

 year since 1941, so magnificently re- 

 sponded to, so nearly followed the offi- 

 cially requested goals for production, and 

 to disclose that such temporary gluts and 

 shortages as have existed were largely, if 

 not wholly, caused by the ever changing 

 and indefensible rules and regulations af- 

 fecting the production and feeding of 

 meat animals. 



Can anyone expect farmers to express 

 other than deep concern, when in Janu- 

 ary of this year the Department of Agri- 

 culture officially warned farmers as to 

 the dangers of overproduction, surplus 

 of farm commodities and a break in 

 prices, while in the recent campaign the 

 Secretary of Agriculture is reported by 

 the press to have said that all signs 

 point toward adequate outlets and good 

 prices for farm commodities, at least 

 until well into 1948. 



. . . The many causes for and degrees of 

 confusion of the American people during 

 the past and preceding years were brought 

 to a temporary, and I hope, permanent 

 close by the recent election. 



The various foreign ideologies that 

 have infiltrated in some degree into the 

 affairs of government and into the minds 

 and lives of citizens, taken together, was 

 the outstanding issue in the recent politi- 

 cal campaign. 



I have always believed in America, 

 and the result of the recent election clear- 

 ly discloses that a strong majority of the 

 American people can be depended upon 

 when issues are clear and the truly 

 American ideals of government are at 

 stake. 



When asked what I thought of the 

 result of the election, I said that I did 

 not regard it as a Republican victory or a 

 Democratic defeat; that the CIO-PAC 

 and all other extreme leftists were con- 

 clusively defeated, and that the Ameri- 

 can people won. It certainly was the 

 American people speaking on the great 

 and broad issues and ideals of govern- 

 ment. The election reminded me of the 

 election of 1932 when the American 

 people, sorely tried and disgusted with 

 the inaction of the government in meet- 

 ing the needs of the times, through a pro- 

 test vote, unseated those in power and 

 placed government in new hands. I re- 

 member stating at that time that it was 

 not a Democratic victory or a Republican 

 defeat, but that the election of 1932 was 

 an expression of the American people in 

 answer to the do-nothing attitude and 

 program of the administration then in 

 power. 



Need For Statesmanship 



It is my hope, as we look forward, 

 and the new Congress comes into session 

 that the statesmen in the Republican and 

 Democratic parties will rise above all 

 narrow partisanship and work together 

 in speedily restoring to America and 

 Americans the ideals, and functions of 

 government that made this the greatest 

 nation of all time. 



Is it unreasonable to ask for the same 

 degree of cooperation among political 

 leaders in meeting our serious aomestic 

 problems that existed in winning the war 

 and that now operates on a high plane 

 in representing America at the peace con- 

 ferences? Do we as a nation fail to 

 recognize that many of our problems at 

 home equal if not exceed in importance 

 our responsibility in solving the prob- 

 lems of others? Is it not necessary that 

 we make democracy really work at home 

 before we can expect to successfully in- 

 troduce such ideals of government 

 abroad ? 



That the problems confronting us as 

 a nation are extremely difficult, serious 



and some acute, there can be no doubt; 

 that the early and effective solution of 

 these problems is imperative, no reason- 

 able person will deny. All impartial 

 observers recognize that many policies of 

 government need a complete overhauling, 

 and they further recognize that neither 

 the leaders of the Democratic nor the 

 Republican parties have as yet presented 

 a constructive program. As farmers would 

 put it, — as a nation we must start from 

 taw. Because of the great need of Amer- 

 ica for early and constructive action, let 

 us forget the mistakes of the past, except 

 as they may contribute to sound decisions 

 of the future. May we increasingly recog- 

 nize our obligations to future generations, 

 and may we, with courage, fortitude and 

 conviction, both as individuals and 

 groups of individuals, be as helpful as 

 we know how to be. That those charged 

 with the responsibility of leadership of 

 our government cannot do the job alone 

 is recognized by all thoughtful people. 

 Speaking and working as individuals 1 30 

 million people can be of little help. It 

 is for this reason that there has de- 

 veloped during the present century the 

 organizations of business, labor and of 

 agriculture. Which one of these groups 

 can be most helpful? Which one of 

 these groups, on the basis of its record, 

 is entitled to the respect and confidence 

 of fair-thinking people? Will the 

 American people or the leaders of gov- 

 ernment looK primarily to big business 

 for advice and counsel when it has only 

 partially recovered from the stigma of its 

 abuse of power in former years? Will 

 they look to organized labor, which has 

 increasingly demanded more and more 

 for doing less and less; a group that 

 while demanding and receiving the high- 

 est wages of all time has insisted upon 

 the taxpayers contributing to its daily 

 and yearly grocery bill, while at the same 

 time, insisting upon a revision of tax 

 policies that would relieve through ex- 

 emptions a large percentage of their 

 membership from remaining contributors 

 to the revenue of government. 



I would not deny any group the oppor- 

 tunity of presenting solutions to any of 

 the nation's problems, but I am one 

 who believes that the great group of 

 American citizens, who, because of his- 

 toric ideals, love of land, belief in home 

 ownership, and property rights; a group 

 that has never requested, let alone in- 

 sisted upon, receiving more than an 

 equitable share of national returns; a 

 group that has never sought advantage 

 at the expense of others; a group that 

 seeks only policies necessary to assure 

 fair economic balance for all; a group 

 that has come into the spotlight as the 

 one great group which on the basis of its 

 record, of its interests and its funda- 

 mental beliefs can make the greatest con- 

 tribution toward solving the momentous 



40 



L A. A. RECORD 



