Show I OR W ON c wu Egg Market Rotten SOMETHING is rotten in the egg market And Elmer Thomas the speculating senator from Oklahoma Oklahoma Oklahoma Okla Okla- homa could tell a lot about it if it he wished though he probably wont Elmer Thomas not to be confused confused confused con con- fused with Sen Elbert Thomas of ot Utah Mormon mission ex a pious ary Is the man who was exposed in this column three years ago for tor simultaneously speculating In cotton cotton cotton cot cot- ton and using his Ws influence in the senate to affect the price of cotton At that time Thomas vigorously denied he was speculating called this columnist a liar said all the cotton he owned was on his back But two years later when a Republican Republican Republican lican congress required the sec sec- secretary secretary secretary of at agriculture to make public public public pub pub- lic the names of ot those speculating in cotton Senator Thomass Thomas's name was on the list So also was the name of at his wile wife his secretary Miss Beth Gage and his bosom friend Dyke Cullum Furthermore Thomas admitted in a public statement statement statement state state- ment that Cullum had handled his bis commodity trading for him There is noU nothing ng illegal about a senator speculating on the commodity commodity commodity com com- market though market though his ethics are something else again However However However How How- ever it is almost unbelievable that thata I I a senator senator especially especially the chairman of ot the senate agriculture committee I should use his prestige and high office to influence prices on the commodity market at the same I time he is speculating Ferguson Therefore Sen Homer Ferguson of Michigan then chairman of a senate investigating sub committee was authorized to probe the operations operations operations opera opera- of his colleague from Okla Okla- homa But Senator Thomas did some Quick Investigating of his own of of Senator Ferguson Following which he wrote Ferguson a letter in longhand later published in this column threatening to expose certain certain tain lam connections between the Ferguson Ferguson Ferguson Fer Fer- guson family and the Chrysler motor company Eighteen months have passed and Senator Thomas is now up to hl his old tricks Since the Democratic victory last November November November No No- vember he has been restored as chairman of the powerful agriculture committee But not even waiting for the election the senator got back into the cotton market last September Then about two weeks ago Senator Senator Senator Sen Sen- ator Thomas let loose a significant public statement He took a sudden sudden sudden sud sud- den surprising interest in eggs publicly complained about the price of ot eggs and blasted the agriculture departments department's support price pro pro- gram 10 Carloads of Eggs N Now ow every housewife housew e would like to see the price of eggs come down But what every housewife housew e does not have is 10 railroad carloads of eggs And what very few people in the United States knew was that Thomass Thomas's intimate friend Dyke Cullum had just purchased 10 freight carloads of ot egg futures Therefore he was vas vitally interested in the future price of eggs And Dyke Cullum is the man who Thomas admits has handled a trading account for him Wm Thomas Swings Weight The iThe senator from Oklahoma has been quite brazen in lending his name to Cullums Cullum's attempt to Influence Influence influence In In- fluence the egg market Not only was one letter written to the agriculture agriculture agriculture agri agri- culture department with Thomass Thomas's name signed to it regarding the departments department's support price program program program pro pro- gram but Thomas started an official official official cial senate investigation of eggs In doing so Thomas wrote a letter letter letter let let- ter to Sen Clinton Anderson of New Mexico whom he placed in charge of the investigation asking that he call certain people as wit wit- nesses And in listing them he scrupulously avoided the name of W. W D D. D agriculture department department department de de- poultry chief chic because Dyke t Cullum had told him that was not cooperative Cullum had so heckled the poultry division with letters phone calls and personal visits in which he claimed to represent represent represent sent the senate agriculture committee that fi finally finally finally fi- fi nally challenged l him bluntly him bluntly asked whether he was paid bythe by bythe bythe the senate committee Im one of those who dont don't get paid Cullum retorted Do you work for the agriculture committee I represent Senator Thomas personally personally personally per per- Cullum declared Cullum also wrote both under his own name and that of Senator Thomas asking about and critIcizing criticizing criticizing the egg program He did not at any time reveal of course that he had purchased 10 carloads of egg futures Finally Ralph Trigg agriculture production and marketing chief chie wrote back opposing Cullums Cullum's ideas He then received an insulting insultIng insulting insult- insult Ing letter suggesting that Trigg didn't understand eggs and that perhaps a special assistant secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary should be appointed to relieve Trigg of his responsibilities |