Show The first great problem that coni confronted the Farm Board when wIen it was organized under the agricultural Marketing Act the called so-called Farm Relief bill was the fall in the price 01 of oi wheat Under the law the Farm Board was not only authorized authorized auth auth- ori ed but directed to take such steps as in its judgment were vera deemed necessary to the price of any nl product when it appeared that that such price was in danger of being unduly depressed by byI lu I influences l apart from the operation operation opera oper- oper a hon of the ordinary law of supply and demand In obedi obedience obed obed- i to tIllS this mandate of oJ the taw law w and in response e to demands demands de de- de- de mands mands made by great farm organizations organizations organizations or or- and by members of both Houses of Congress the Farm endea endeavored to the price of wheat bythe by bythe bythe the ciga organization of the National Nation- Nation tal 81 al Gram Grain Cooperative through WIllen it large large- qu anti anti- 1 ties of w wheat hea t from time to ures ores the price of wheat t continA contin- contin A 1 1 v u t 4 h e M 4 fohn i t r f vt n f nn rt LL u VJ Va LL ud to go down until it has reached lower levels than for many years Observing this result and failing to take note that the price of wheat has fallen in every market in the world and failing also to take note that non non- non agricultural t products old and the securities dealt wi with h on the seek j exchanges also hay ha e e reclined Declined although th the Farm Board had nothing whatever cr to do with them there are areU areil areU U il use ose se who declare that the ann Board has failed and that the law should be repeal repeal- ed Before falling in with this conclusion the farmers of the theco co country would do well to take certain facts into account L Lt t us take the price of farm commodities from the high point of September 1929 and compare compare them with nonagricultural nonagricultural nonagricultural non- non agricultural and common stock indexes of the same period with that as of May 9 1931 and see whether or not cooperative cooperative cooperative cooper cooper- marketing has resulted so disastrously to the farmers of America The per percentage of decreases in the prices of agricultural agricultural agri agri- agricultural cultural products common stock price and industrial indus indus- triai trial groups from the fine da dates tes o mentioned are as follows follows follows fol fol- 0 lows I 7 c decrease d re Wheat No 2 H. H W. W iC K 3 Q 4 72 Cotton N. N 0 O. Spot 47 i ut Ler score N. N Y neese e jingle bingie Daises liaises nica ru 42 20 Common stock block Price indexes 4 0 4 Mock on 5 V uv DOI oo O i V U Up p X t j AS o J-i J U S D t 04 industrial to Groups coups Gen ben U n Motors e n lal hO 5 90 t i 4 Copper per ana na ora s l eY equipment ll t tJ J l u ALd Clio J Steel U. U S. S Steel U U. a. a b. b Steel eel h El Kiec 1 ec c. c Gas Water Vater etc holding companies K N. Y City Banks Banks These figures are hig highly significant z and they should have the thoughtful study of every economist They should be specially enlightening and encouraging to the wheat i farmer larmer for lor they make it clear t that at the decline in the price of I his product gas as it has been is far less than the decline in the prices of the stocks of corporations which have b been en regarded as the most stable enterprises in our whole industrial structure structure- The question may well be I asked If the men who have had years of experience in the management of great industrial industrial industrial indus indus- trial enterprises have been unable unable unable un un- un- un able to maintain the prices of the stocks which represent the value and the earning power of these concerns then is the Farm Board venturing for forthe J the first time into a new field t Ip W be condemned because the staple with which it dealt failed failed failed fail fail- ed t to maintain this year the price of two years ago Would it be benot not at least as logical for owners of General Motors stock to say Look at what our present Board of Directors I 1 C has done Two years ago now 40 Out with the directors These comparative figures show clearly that the Agricultural Agricultural tural Marketing l Act and the Federal F Farm Board Hoard have been no detriment to agriculture to toI I say day the least J |