Show U 5 fernmer rth will beat on communism 0 american food can halt chaos threatening europe by BAUKHAGE news neui analyst and commentator washington the american farmer is going to lick communism what your worried capital is saying today american representatives abroad and at home are sub submitting mitti tin g one report after another which register gains in the soviet battle to build a communistic world out of chaos the reports come in from prague from rom belgrade from sofia from budapest showing how each day the tron iron grip of the russian dominated secret police is gradually choking off democracy in the little countries reports from rom rome tell us ot of a planned coup of 0 the moscow directed communistic muni party in italy to overflow the government there the open record of ane meetings of 0 the united nations reveals the consistent attempt of the russian delegation to block the efforts ot of the struggling still free governments in greece and france some american political leaders still look askance at the huge program ol of aid to western europe in the marshall plan 1 part of 0 the country seems pathetic or at least indifferent toward the effort to win the cold war wa r against russia with purely economic wei weapons pons because it means sacrifices on the part of the american baukhage citizen some of in the administration supporters of the marshall plan in congress and a few diplomats at home and nd abroad are frightened by this attitude until recently this correspondent has been pretty much distressed too but I 1 feel better after talking with certain officials whose names seldom appear in the news these thes e nen men are not cabinet officers the they y are not diplomats they are not the leaders in congress whose faces appear in the news pictures and whose adumbrations are quoted in the daily dispatches they are just the men who do the work tor for which uncle sam pays the wage they are paid for knowing about american farms and american farmers their consensus Is embodied in the first line of this dispatch the american farmer Is going to lick communism muni I 1 believe the farmer will do it ft not because he knows it ft will pay himin him in dollars now but because he is going to be convinced before very long that it will pay america the amerlean american farmer will do it by providing the food necessary to halt chaos in europe just as he proved the verity of the slogan food will win the war the history of europe since the war is that every government falls when the bread ration is reduced the men who know tell me that whatever the total amount in goods or dollars demanded by the marshall plan it is safe to say that two thirds of it will be tor for food either the food commodities themselves or the dollars with which to buy them american dollars are growing very scarce in europe but there are three things which the european purchaser hesitates to quit buying grain coal and fats you will notice that france when it reduced its imports as all european countries are doing as their dollars decline tried to hold bold on to her grain coal and edible fats as long as possible even it if the marshall plan were not put into effect in time to provide extra dollars for their grain purchases there will be a lag of some months before the farmer Is touched in his bis pocketbook by that time if nothing is done the european countries starve free world Is at stake exports to europe already have been cut down that will affect first employment of people in this country in such export industries as ralio radio electrical appliances and like gadgets which can be spared it is quite guite possible that there may be a sufficient increase meanwhile in employment in construction or other domestic industries which will absorb this unemployment and keep up the purchasing power of the consumer sufficiently to maintain present farm prices in any case there probably will be a six months lag before prices are greatly affected eventually the marginal surplus would be touched if europe is not stimulated as it was in 1920 then you recall grain prices dropped although exports were still heavy however the demand at that time was not great enough to absorb the entire american output it is this marginal surplus which decides the prices at home when the demand tor for the first arst bushel over and above the domestic surplus ends it effects affects the whole price structure before such a situation arises it Is firmly believed that the realistic side of the picture will be brought home forcibly to america the average citizen as well as the farmer and the exporter and others directly dependent on international trade as a whole will realize that what Is at stake is something far greater than the dollar americas stake la in the preservation of a free world a world which will perish it if europe Is underfed russia has only about one sixth of the amount ot of wheat which the united states is able to spare according to current estimates the united nations food and agriculture organization estimated it as 70 million bushels against our million bushels as stated above our own situation we admit is not too good nevertheless we are in a much better position on a competitive peti tive basis than russia there appears little doubt in the minds of the men most familiar with the facts that when the full force of this situation and what it means is realized in this country europe may be saved for democracy and the american farmer will have at least two thirds of the credit due him Is please kid dont EVER go collective on me what dothe do ahe russians think of collective farming communized agriculture under the soviets well I 1 asked a friend of mine paul ward of the baltimore sun who got et this story from a russian a good communist whom he met in moscow Alo scow alter after a few vodkas the used to tell stories this was one stalin and roosevelt were driving through the countryside A cow got into the road in front of them and move the driver tried to shoo it away but it would lit budge finally stalin got out went up to the cow and whispered into its ear the cow gave one frightened look jumped over the fence and disappeared in the distance whit what did you say to the cow to make it do that roosevelt asked stalin smiled dont tell anybody but I 1 said to her if you dont get out of here but quick ill put you on a collective farm I 1 |