| Show WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS rouse house group proposes new farm program CIO fights price rise U S to quit EDITORS NOTE when opinions are expressed in these columns they are those of western newspaper union news new s an analysts a cysts and not necessarily of this newspaper FARM PROGRAM new proposals A new farm program calling for a combination of sound open market practices and governmental assistance si was proposed by the special house committee on postwar economic policy and planning headed by representative colmer dem miss bliss in recommending changes in present farm legislation the committee urged greater flexibility be allowed in farm prices especially toward each other supply and demand be given greater opportunity to determine mine farm prices rather than artificial controls reexamination examination re of the outmoded parity price formula designed to give farmers an income on a par with industrial workers concentration on a long rather than a short range farm program for establishing a floor under farm prices to prevent a disastrous drop the committee proposed a support program guaranteeing producers 60 70 or 80 per cent of parity a supplemental payment during hard times to assure a certain percentage of pre depres sion income and limits on the rate of decline for a specified commodity in m a year PARIS parley gets going e settlement of the highly controversial rules procedures enabled the 21 nation paris peace conference to get underway for consideration of vital issues concerning treaty drafts for italy hungary romania and bulgaria agreement to place all conference recommendations passed by a majority vote before the big four foreign ministers for the their r study in drawing dra iving up the final treaties represented represent e d a major victory for the anglo american bloc russia had held out for a two thirds vote on the grounds that decisions should be as unanimous as possible and was supported b by y a slavic bloc including poland czechoslovakia yugoslavia the ukraine and byelorussia while the anglo american and russian blocs were at issue on the voting procedure they beadil readily y joined in a decision to open both committee and general assembly meetings to representatives of the defeated nations to place their views before the delegates there also was agreement on exclude excluding ing any of the big four from the chair chai r manship of any of the committees to preclude the imposition of their policies and to limit each countr country y to one chairmanship OPA more price boosts reflecting the termination of subsidy payments amounting to 39 yearly OPA boosted the price of no 2 sized cans of pea peak s and tomatoes two cents and corn and tomato paste one cent the price of a 14 ounce bottle of catsup was upped one cent along with six ounce cans of tomato paste at the same time OPA followed its removal of price control from snap beans packed after march 1 by freeing frozen and canned snap beans processed before that date while congress had slashed the administration request for two billion dollars for subsidies by half in renewing OPA the agency had decided to discontinue vegetable payments in july it was reported with the lapse of the old price A among big biff wigs attending pence peace parley in paris are herbert evatt of australia at left georges bidault of france top center ethiopian representative bottom center paul henri of belgium top right and trygve lie of norway control act in june subsidies ended on the 1946 pack and later were stopped on the 1945 supply study meat control As the new super price control board undertook to determine whether meat should continue free of price control packer bids on cattle and hogs dipped in the leading markets upon heavy receipts of low cost beef and consumer resistance to rising pork prices taking cognizance of department of agriculture charges that whole carloads of meat were spoiling on railroad sidings in the east because of a buyers strike in protest against high prices packers stated that present prices including former subsidies actually are lower than under OPA regulation because of the large volume of tonnage available some shipments may be arriving faster than distributors can handle them it was said ARMY aids A ids building in a move to assist in alleviating acute housing shortages in congested communities and at the same time provide greatly needed family living quarters for men now in military militar V service the war department is carrying on a program of converting existing barracks and other buildings into family units contracts already have been let for converting army buildings into family units located at 62 military installations throughout the country As these units are completed occupancy by service mens families will release to veterans and other civilians the space now occupied by these families in towns and cities according to army engineers in charge of the program the contracts are planned to make the least possible demand on the nations stockpile of critical housing materials careful study is made of each location before contracts are let and each contract is designed to use all material in the buildings to be converted and to supply any additional material needed from the types most plentiful in that section the engineers also have a program in operation cooperation co with war assets administration for the disposal of buildings and the salvaging ot of materials on military installations which have been declared surplus to army needs the materials are tunneled funneled to the veterans administration through war assets CIO to fight prices remaining militant in its postwar program to aid the interests of more than five million members the CIO announced an all out drive on rising prices to prevent further depreciation of the workers dollar revealing that it had given up plans for another big wage drive to win further increases to offset rising living costs the union stated that demands for more money probably would result in still high er in forecasting additional price rises of 15 to 20 per cent during the next few months the CIO said that the corresponding reduction in purchasing power of the consumers dollar would represent a wage cut of 17 per cent A successful consumer strike against higher prices would terminate current inflation within the next 18 months at the worst and three to six months at the best it said U 7 S to quit following close upon the bla blast st of senators butler rep neb and ellender dem f I 1 la against use 5 of united nations relief and rehabilitation aw t a t I 1 0 n funds f u n d s abroad assistant secretary of state william L clayton told the fifth council meeting in geneva switzerland W S clayton that the U S would not contribute additional funds to the agency while the senators had charged that supplies were being beine used to bolster foreign governments clayton stated that the U S was withdrawing future assistance to the agency because the period of immediate postwar impoverishment erish ment was passing and the U S and other countries had supplied sufficient credit mediums for financing recovery no less than 30 billion dollars have been made available for loaning through such agencies as the international bank and monetary funds set up at bretton woods clayton said furthermore prospective borrowers now can approach wealthier nations for advances if if necessary he added in all the U S provided no less than aj 2 billion dollars of aid to sufficient for supplies to fill 2000 cargo ships i DROUTH strikes in midwest mid west because of an atmospheric quirk parts of wisconsin illinois indiana and almost all of michigan have suffered from a severe drouth with heavy rainfall needed to prevent major corn pasture and truck crop failures As explained by the weather bureau a low pressure trough exists in a north south direction in the great plains states normally moist air from the gulf of mexico would pass into this channel to be distributed to the eastward during the last six weeks however a strong northerly wind has been blowing in to block the moist air outside of this area there has been heavy rainfall especially in the east the great plains states and parts of iowa and illinois T to 0 the east and west of the affected air trough southerly winds are bearing moisture from the gulf HIGH SEA seek prize A british steamship company stood to gain three million dollars and the latvian captain and crew of one of its tugs another million if their claim to the abandoned ton american farmer cargo vessel is upheld boarding the deserted ship miles off of england the british crew later was forced to give it up to U S seamen considered as a prize to anyone picking her up under maritime law the american farmer was spotted by RAP planes as she drifted aimlessly after being abandoned by her U S crew following a collision with the U S william riddle val aed at almost two million dollars herself the american farmer bore cargo estimated at an additional two and one half million dollars the british tug located the american farmer after several U S vessels had passed the ship up shortly after the tug captain had put a crew aboard and started to tow the huge prize in the U S ranger drew alongside and sent seamen to take possession of the craft HIDES hit hoarding led by director steelman the government moved to spur the lagging sale of hides and leather which was said to threaten an imminent shutdown in shoe production declaring that the government would use every means for striking at hoar boarders ders who held back shipments in the hope of raising prices steelman revealed that the justice department would investigate rumors that distributors were withholding supplies to gain greater profits and OPA would check inventories so that it could order release of excess stocks reaffirming OPAs determination not to grant further increases increaser in prices of domestic hides and leather steelman declared that under OPA ceilings production of these items between VJ V J day and june 30 1946 reached the highest level in history with the temporary lapse in OPA prices s of hides sky rocketed an average of 50 per cent and approximately were sold he added HOGS can they rig pig no having started it all by posing the question qa estion whether it swam in the radioactive bikini lagoon during the recent atom bomb test residents of kirkland wash determined ter mined to find out for themselves am an fn MAJ 11 al I 1 whether porkers corkers swim by staging a pi pig race while some of the porkers corkers stubbornly shied from the water others plopped in without fuss and followed a girl pacer RURAL AREAS seek to hold own efforts to cure the ghost town blight caused by migration to the city of rural talent and enterprise are being intensified in montana by recently increased eapen ic es for rural redevelop redevelopment mer ricye A ai h according to the council of state governments world war II 11 accelerated this rural depopulation trend in montana where almost 20 per cent of the population has moved elsewhere since pearl harbor me montana study was set up in 1944 as a three year project aimed at reducing the rural ghost town trend by helping to rejuvenate rural community life recent increases by the state in montana study funds enabled new additions to the projects staff and expansion of activities key objective of the montana study are 1 to help bring adult education facilities to rural areas 2 to help small towns stabilize their economic life through local volunteer effort and 3 to keep more able young people in their home towns by raising cultural as well as economic standards of living importance of the third objective is indicated by one educators estimate that only I 1 in 10 college students returns to live in the small community whence he came the usual college education methodically trains young people for highly specialized arban r ban 1 lives A maritana survey ased tj ed that more than half the w 0 rn jt hersity students have no intention of living in the state after affer they finish school school christianity propose union historically at odds with the catholic church over doctrine pres ent day protestantism favors a close association with the vatican for the purpose of establishing a united christian front for peace approval for the cementing of the two great christian movements for mutual action on international problems was expressed by protestant leaders of eight nations and revealed during the four day conference of leading lights of council of churches in lou doiy in replying to a questionnaire protestant leaders from the U S england scotland canada australia new zealand denmark and the netherlands favored agreement among the highest bials of both churches to provide a stable basis for common action addressing newsmen at the conference dr frederick nolde of philadelphia pa declared it is imperative that the churches of the world bring moral pressure to bear on the leaders leaders of the world unless we get down to brass tacks and face realities we can only continue to offer vague platitudes which mean nothing |
