Newspapers / The Franklin Times (Louisburg, … / Sept. 13, 1935, edition 1 / Page 14
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Present Meat Price Situation Explained By Department Head Wallace Rap* Malicious Propa ganda By Packers To De stroy Farm Program By HENRY A. WALLACE Secretary of Agriculture American consumers deserve more accurate information about causes of present pork prices than that contained In a recent Associat ed Press dispatch from Chicago. That dispatch, while ?ortectly attributing first responsibility for present pork prices to the 1934 drought, defined the second cause as follows: "The Agricultural Adjustment Act, which provided for the destruction of 6,000.000 piggy sows or grown sows which would have been on the market this year. In addition un counted prospective litters were destroyed." This analysis is attributed by the Associat ed Press to Chicago "meat authorities." I am curious to know if these unnamed sources are packers who are suing In court for recovery of processing taxes already paid or seques tered in court on the theory that the packers pay these taxes, while at the same time spread ing anonymous propaganda through the press to persuade consumers that the tax Is borne by the consumers. The interpretation of the effects of the 1993 sow slaughter on present pork prices, as con tained in the Chicago dkpatch, Is a complete misstatement of the facts. 3,000 Per Cent Wrong To start with, the statement that "6,000, tOO piggy sows or grown sows." were killed is Just about 3,000 per cent wrong. The total number of bows purchased by the government was not 6,000,000, but was, by actual count, 223,149, or about one-thlrtleth of the number cited in the dispatch. In the second place, the statement that tbese sows were "destroyed" Is an error. In slaughtering of these sows the edible meat was saved, and 100 million pounds of cured pork was distributed to families on relief rolls, ss a result of the emergency buying operation. Third, the part of the dispatch stating these sows "would have been on the market this year" is an absurdity. Farmers would not have held these sows until this year under any imaginable set of circumstances. The only kind of sows held for such lengths of time are blooded animals with records of high produc tivity, while farmers were in fact Improving the blood lines of their herds by selling off their culls in 1933. _ Malicious Propaganda The rest of the statement that "In addition uncounted prospective littlers were destroyed" makes the distortion just about con^plet*. So with more misinformation than I believe I have ever seen packed into two sentences, the public la given the inference ? which the meat packers fighting the farmers' programs seem agreeable to have spread? that the gov ernment's IMS pig purchase operation in some way contributed to increasing the present re tail prices of pork. Consumers should be warned that * nation-wide effort la being made by packers and other processors to undermine the farmers* programs by spreading malicious and untrue propaganda of all kinds about the effects and purposes of the adjustment pro grams upon the consumers of the country. The facts are that consumers now would be paying somewhat more for pork. If there had been no pig purchase program la IMS. A tow simple little facta. If wklely understood by consumers, win show them why this la torus. Three facts art: Pint, that the government buying of both 222,141 sows, and 41M.717 lit tle pigs, was completed before October 1. 198S ? nearly two years ago. <* Second, that tike sows purchased were due to farrow, or produoe litters, In the fall ef IMS. Third, that the average age at which P*g? are marketed Is nine months. This means that tf there had been no government buying, all of the 8,000.000 little pigs bought by the government would have been marketed in the winter of IMS -34 and the spring of 1M4; the 222.140 sows would have been sold off about the same time, most of them In February and March of 1M4. and the pigs from their litters, bom In the fall of IMS, would have gone to market not later than the fall of 1M4. Limited By Feed Supply Fourth, (and this la a vital fact for every body to remember) that the supply of pork la limited by the supply of feed. With a given supply of feed, farmers can market just so many pounds of pork, and no mors. They may vary the number of pigs, but the total weight, whatever the number. Is absolutely limited by the feed supply. Fifth, that in 1M4, when the little pigs hnd the sows and their litters would have been marketed If there had been no government buying program, the markets were already glutted by supplies forced on the market by lack of feed caused by drought. That unpre cedented drought reduced the 1934 corn crop by nearly a billion bushels and confronted farmers with the alternative of cutting down their hog herds or letting large numbers starve to death. Sixth. that hog products are not usually held hi storage for more than six months after slaughter. When these facts are pieced together they apell out a story completely different from that which consumers are being asked almost every day to believe. The true story Is that the government, with Its 1M3 pig purchases, reduced by leas than 8,000 000 pigs (including the poealble minion pigs not littered by the 222,148 purchased sows) the number of marketings in 1934. when near ly 68,000,000 were slaughtered. The need for the 19S3 reduction la shown by the fact that even after the reduction was made, the 18S4 slaughter was comparable to the IMS total alaughter of 73,000,000 for farm and commer cial use, and the 1932 slaughter of slightly less than 71,000,000. All of these totals compare with the hog alaughter in yean before we loat TV A Farm Development Program Immense Benefit To Agriculture (EDITORIAL NOTE ? This is the second of a series of articles by Mr. Gough on the TV A program as it relates to North Carolina agri cultural development.) By HKRBKHT GOUGH Information Division, TVA, Knoxvllle The agricultural program of the Tennessee Valley Authority is the most advanced of any Authority project in North Carolina-, One \undred and fifty-si* demonstration farms nave been designated, and all of these but one have at this writing, been mapped. These 166 farms represent a total acreage of 23,100. The farmers of a county working with state extension services and county agents, them selves designate which are to become demon stration farms. When a farm Is so designated, it is mapped and accurate records of the prog ress of the farm is kept and is available to farmers of the county The demonstrating farmer receives the TVA super-phosphate in varying proportions depending on the uses to which the land thus fertilised is to be put. Lands used for cultivated, plow crops like corn, receive one of the TVA fertiliser. Thus farm 1 cent per kilowatt-hour for the next 200 KWH per month. 2 cents per kilowatt-hour for the tact 160 KWH per month. 3 cents per kilowatt-hour for the first 60 KWH per month. 4 mills per kilowatt-hour for the next 1.0Q0 KWH per month. 7ft mills per kilowatt-hour far all over 1.400 KWH per month. It will be noticed that after 1,400 kilowatt hours, the rate is increased slightly from 4 mills to 1% mills per kilowatt hour. This Is because the average rate up to 1.400 kilowatt hours, starting at 8 cents and descending to A mills, equals exactly 7V4 mills. At that point It becomes constant. One of the most significant moves toward ru ral electrification is being seen now in the two counties In Mississippi mentioned above. In Alcorn County, of which Oorlnth is the ooun ty seat, the farthest advanced of the two power associations, the urban and rural consumers Joined hands to form the Alcorn County Elec tric Power Association. It was recognised by A once- badly -eroded field hu ten sown f hype rlcu m. which hu proved to he mm of ; the moot effective plant* la controlling I erosion. era are being encouraged to diversify their land*, utilising some of the land for nitrogen extracting cover crops- And tiros the farmer is able to get a better balanced economy, for the cover crops in turn permit him to raise livestock. Five hundred and fourteen tons of superphosphate have already been shipped Into North Carolina by the Authority for use on these demonstration far ma. Work Through Extension Service In Its agricultural program, the Authority Is working closely with, and through, state ex tension services and county agsnts. rgie TV A contribution is the fertiliser, and an assistant county agent. Fourteen assistant county agents have already been placed in the field m North Carolina. In addition to this work already under way Ln the state, there are three terracing units at srork, saving hundreds of acres of land for all time from destructive erosion. The Authority acts only in a supervisory ca pacity in connection with the wort: of the As sociated Co-operaUvea. One co-operative creamery has bean established at Braastown, and canneries have been located at Murphy, Haselwood, Cranberry and Green Mountain. Ap proximately 400 persons, neailf all of whom were on relief rolls, are being given employment ln these canneries during the panning seasons. North Carolina has not ss yet feK the bless ings of cheap electricity. That stm rem sins in the future and follows the successful comple tion of the Authority's engineering program at dam building. Other sections of the valley, and territories Immediately outside tike srea, have been more fortunate. In northern Mississippi, two entire oounties are being supplied with TV A cheap power, in addition to several cities like Tupe lo, located outside of these oounties. The Authority's power policy gslns its In spiration from the almost complete lack ef rural electrification In the Valley. Scarcely more than two or three ln a hundred farms in the Valley now ars supplied with power, ac cording to a Power Commission survey. "The Authority feels this power has been withheld from rural areas for invalid reasons, and plans of the TV A provide for the extension of rural lines where feasible. Basic Rates Established One of the first things the Authority did in the early days of lt^ operation, was to estab lish basic ratea. Par hotnee and farms these rates were, and are today: our export markets for pork, ss for example ln 1026 when slaughter was 08,000,000 head and when we expcrjgd 0.7 per cent of our pork, and 82 per cent of our lard. The average farm price of hogs for the year ending September, 1084, was 88.78 per hundred. Although very low, this prloe was somewhat higher than that of the previous year and higher than it would have been without the government program. The slight increase ln price plus benefit payments enabled the farm ers to secape the disaster they would have faced. AU through 1984, when retail pork prloee were moderate, consumers paid somewhat consumers begrudge the farmers that help in the government had not stepped in with its' emergency program ln 1988 to save the farm ers from bankruptcy prices. I do not believe oohsumers begrunds the farmers that help in 1984, especially since the gains In farm buying power helped stimulate city business and aid ed in reviving city payrolls. both types oi consumers, that the prosperity of each was largely dependent upon the other; if the rural areas in the county was largely de pendent upon the other; If the rural areas in the county flourished, the cltisens of Corinth would correspondingly benefit, and Yloe versa. And so a co-operative association was formed to operate the county-wide system with TV A power. All domestic and farm consumers have the same .rate, something new In marketing electricity. At the time the Authority purchased the dis tribution system in the oounty from the Mis sissippi Power Company and resold It to the association, the Utter believed it would take from 12 to 14 years to repay the Authority. Mow it Is evident that the entire debt will be repaid in approximately four years. For, despite the lower resale rates of power, the association Is paying all ifecessary city, county, state taxes, amortisation charege, Interest, depreciation, op i eratlng and all other charges and returning a profit as well Consamptlon Is Doubled In the urban operation In Tupelo (Lee Coun ty) Mississippi, the municipal system paid all operation charges the first year, all taxes and all other oharges Including interest, deprecia tion. etc., and still returned a net profit of $31,700. Several rural lines have been extended by the Authority in Alabama. In Mississippi and Tennessee dtUa buying TV A power the consumption has approximate ly doubled while rates have been cut in two. These are the highlights o t the program of Valley betterment at the Tennessee Valley Au thority. There are oher ramifications too num erous to include in an article of this space. The program in the Valley has national implication in that methods successfully work ed out In the confined area at 40,000 square miles, will be applied to the rest of the coun ry. The Impact of these methods already is making Itself felt throughout the land. Senator Byrnes Says Farmers Have Lot To Gain From Loan Plan Southern cotton glowers ham "everything to gain and nothing to k *?" If they will co operate with the government "to avail them selves of the 10-eent loan Instead of dumping their cotton." according to a statement by James V. Byrnes. South Carolina's Junior sen ator. "If they borrow the 10 cents a pound and the crop Is marketed In a 1 orderly manner, oot ton Is bound to Increase In valve," satal Sen ator Byrnes, who In the dying days of the recent Congressional session was largely Instru ments! In securing a compromise In the gov ernment's ootton marketing policy whereby the amount of the governxtent loan was Increased from nine to ten cents a pound and a guar antee at 13 cents per pound was assured the The oounty Is growing Its largest acresge of leepedesa, and after the recent rains many farmers report the best growth they have had at this date. Plans are being made to Dulld additional sesd pans In the farm shops so that |t win not be necessary to buy the seed for next spring's proposed acreage expansion. ? Claud Bothell, Saluda, S. O. Grange Convention To Be Held Sept. 25-27 At North Wilkesboro Farm Policies As Related To U. 1 Will Be Main Topic Of Discussion Farm policies a s related to the United State* government will be among the feature discus sions of the North Carolina State Grange Con vention to be held at North Wllkeeboro from September 28 to 27, R. W. Pou, chairman of the executive committee, has announced Some of the questions of "prime Importance" that will be pmsented to the Grangers are: 1 ? Should the AAA be made s permanent farm policy? What would be the effect on American life? If It Is to be made a permanent policy, what adjustment should we advocate? How can It be made to meet the needs of a a types of farmers? 2 ? Are reciprocal trade agreements favorable or unfavorable to agriculture? 5 ? What type of marketing program do farm ers want? What can the Grange do to Improve the marketing program and bring a large per cent of the consumer's dollar back to the farmer? 4? What Is a fair tax? Can the tax program at local, county. State and Federal unite at government be Improved? What kind of tax de the farmers of your community advocate? 6 ? What steps are necessary to bring agri cultural equality? How can the Grange assist In the program? 6? In what way can the school program of the State be Improved? 7 ? What effects will the present economic and social conditions have on the life of the future? What can the Grange do In this present crisis? "Come prepared to discuss these and other matters frankly," Harry B. Caldwell, State lec turer, has requested In abetter to all Grangers. Vast Insect Hordes Form Major Portion Of A Complex Nature Man Has Never Exterminated A Single Species In The Eternal Struggle By A. B. BUY AN Stand up with both your arms stretched side wis straight from your shoulders. Let m say that you can reach about six feet. We will | let this represent the total number of kinds or species of living animals; that Is, the whole almal kingdom. From the tip of your mid dle finger on your right hand to the first kinds of mammalian animals, that Is: those Joint of that finger would represent alll the which suckle their young. The rest of the distance to the wrist and on to the elbow would represent all the other known kinds of animals except Insects. Then the number of kinds of Insects would be represented by the distance from your right elbow to the shoulder across your chest, and clear to the tips of the fingers of your other outstretched hand. This striking representation, says Prof. Davkl Dunavan, assistant professor of entomology and ?oology at Clemson College, Is the way In which a noted entomologist Impresses upon us the kind and number of insects known to sclenoe. WHAT IS AN INSECT? But what, yon uk, Is an insect? There are so many pests and varmints and outlandish critters. What do you mean. Insect* TO an swer this query and thus define the term and confine the discussion Prof. Dunavan says: "For our purpose we shall say that Insects are those creatures which In some form or oth er usually hare six legs. We ahall exclude the spiders for they have eight kegs Instead of sis. We shall not include the myriapods or "thou sand legs- for o t course they hare more than six legs. We cannot tlndude such things ss earth worms or fish worms for they never hare any legs In any state of their growth. In short, we shall speak of only such things ss the flies, beetles, caterpillars, butterflies, and the many other true insects." I Altogether there are about 635.000 kinds at species of Insects known and recognised st present. This is about 106 times ss many kinds of mammal animals It Is about 46 1-3 times as many kinds as there are kinds of birds known to science. In brief, at least three-fourths of all living kinds or species of animals are insects. In South Carolina at the present time we have on record nearly 6.000 species of insects and every year we find s hundred or more additional ones that we hare not previously recognized. . INSECT MAN'S COMPETITOR Asking himself and us the question, what Is the importance of knowing such facts as these about these vast hordes of creatures which have been termed man's chief competi tor on this earth, our entomologist-soologist reminds us first of all that of course not all insects are injurious to man. Then be says: ?We are forced to recognise the great army of injurious Insects ss one of the most dan gerous foes man has ever had to face. How are they dangerous? Probably their greatest damage is to growing cropC but we must not forget that many of our worst human dis eases are carried by insects alone, that our clothing is destroyed by them, that our do mestic animals and our own bodies are tor mented by them, and that possession of our very houses Is often disputed by them. One of our early entomologists predicted that the struggle between man and the insects would always be severe because man and certain In sects constantly want the same things at the same time."
The Franklin Times (Louisburg, N.C.)
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Sept. 13, 1935, edition 1
14
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