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<br />00~C'O <br />'-"'V <br /> <br />]0&12 <br /> <br />CONGRESSION AL RECORD-HOUSE <br /> <br />N O\'EMBER 7 <br /> <br />back to fundamental economic prin- <br />dples. the better off this country will <br />be, because It Is bound to come, or this <br />country wlll coJlapsejnto communism or <br />totalitarianism of some kind. <br />Mr. VURSELL. Mr. Spl'akeT, will tht' <br />gentleman yield? <br />Mr. RANKIN. I ~'ield. <br />Mr. VURSELL. I would like to sug- <br />gest to the gentleman that there arc <br />560,000.000 pounds of wool hanging owr <br />the wool growers of thls country and <br />the OPA is prohlbltlng the manufacture <br />cf better woolen fabrics b)" the textile <br />mills of this country, and at the same <br />time Is Pf'rmlttlng the finished product <br />to come in from England and sellJng at <br />$20 and $25 a sullo <br />Mr. RANKIN. Now. this policy Is <br />dri\'lng the farmer.'! of this Nation to- <br />ward peonage. I am opposed to It. I <br />want to get back on the "'beam" so to <br />speak. And, r('memb('r, the fal'mers of <br />this coUnlt). ate entltlPd to e\'er}' con- <br />~Iderntion we glve en'ry olher class of <br />our citizens. <br />Mr. RICH. Mr, Spt'aker, wlll the gen- <br />tleman yield? <br />Mr. RANKIN. Bril'Oy. <br />Mr. RICH, In t('ference to the state- <br />ment made by the gentleman from Mich- <br />Igan in regard to wool, practically aU <br />the woo] In this country of the clip for <br />this yrar is being held by the Go\'ern- <br />ment. The gyeatest part of the clip for <br />last :..ear is being held by the Govern- <br />ment, The people of this country can <br />buy forelltn "'001 Cor about 15 to 20 cents <br />l\ pound less than they can buy the do- <br />mestic wools, yet the Governmpnt is <br />holding this domestic wool, and we arl' <br />gOing to ha\'e to take a big loss unless <br />something Is done about these rull's and <br />regulations. <br />Mr. RANKL'l". AU right; now they are <br />trying to hold. as I said, the Incomes of <br />the poor farmer down to this eeonomlc <br />len'l of 22!r!: cents an hour. and that <br />affects the economy of the entire Nation. <br />The result Is that the man In the factory <br />Is getting two or three or four times as <br />much as the man on the farm. Yet these <br />men In the factories are paral}'Zlng the <br />country with unnecessary strikes, ket>p- <br />lng the boys re-tuming in unitorm from <br />f:oing to work. keepin" legislators from <br />going to their offices, k.eeping down the <br />Increased production of things that <br />everybody needs. <br />Mr. REES of Karlsa.$. Mr. Speaker, <br />will the gentleman yield? <br />Mr. RANKIN. I yield. <br />Mr. REES of' Kansas. I want to go <br />back for a minute to the Question asked <br />by the g('ntleman from Michigan as to <br />this cotton crop. We raised the greatest <br />cot.t.on cropsl8lit year and the year before <br />last that ha\'e ever been raised in tbls <br />country, yet we are unable to get cotton <br />goods. There must be a suppl)' of cotton <br />somewhere: whtll'e Is It? <br />Mr. RM"KIN. It is In the warehouses. <br />Mr. REES 01 Kansas. In the ware- <br />houses. but wht're? <br />Mr. RANKIN. All o\'er the countr)'. <br />Mr. REES of Kansas. But who has <br />contra] 01 It? <br />Mr. RANKIN. Much of it is owned by <br />private individuaL<;, l\ good deal of it ts <br />controlled by the Oo\"emment. The <br />private owners wHI not sell1t, or do not <br /> <br />want to sell It, because If they did they <br />would have to take a loss. If the farmers <br />were cetting as much for their labor as <br />the Industrial workers-and I am refer_ <br />ring now to these men In Detroit, Mich., <br />who are striking, I am referr1ng now to <br />these men In Pittsburgh, Pa.. I am refer- <br />ring to men in St. Louis, Mo., and New <br />Orleans, La.-if, as I say, the farmer <br />were getting as much for his work as <br />these men are tlle}' would be getting from <br />60 to 75 c('nts a pound for their cotton: <br />and wheat. corn. hogs, land, and lumbt:r <br />would rise In proportion and you would <br />ha~'e the greatest era of pr~perity in the <br />agricultural areas of thIs country that <br />has e\'er been known. <br />Prices In II; Crpe economy are based <br />upon two things: the volume of a na- <br />tion's currenc)' multiplied by the velodty <br />of Its circulation. Wherever the circu- <br />lating medium Is small In amount or the <br />\'e1odty Is slow you are going to ha\'e a <br />depres..<;lon. <br />'Vhen Aml'rlca was discovered all the <br />government heads of Europe were on a <br />t"old standard. The amount of cold <br />known to be In existence was small, and <br />the supply was rapidly diminishing. <br />Prices were going down gradually all the <br />time and there wa., stagnation all over <br />Europe. That was one reason for the <br />search for a route to a new world, or <br />for a new route to India. <br />Wh('n America was discovered a new <br />and almost unIlmltert amount of gold <br />was poured Into the gold reserves of <br />Europe caw;lng an expansion of the cur_ <br />rency. Prices began to rise. Industry <br />took on new life. Art, literature, and <br />everything bell"sn to thrive, and Europe <br />leaped forward into an era of prosperity <br />Ihe like of which the world had ne\'er <br />seen. <br />During the late 1920's \\'e lound our_ <br />selves in the same condition. We were <br />In a money panic. Unfortunately, we <br />had some money-changers In control of <br />the Federal Rl'Serve System at that U1'ne. <br />Let me show yoU what they did. and let <br />me show YOU the situation now. <br />In 1920 we had in circulation $5.698,- <br />214.612. At that time wheat was $2.50 <br />a bushel b(:ocause you had no OPA; at <br />Ihat time cotton was from 35 to 40 cents <br />a pound because we had no OPA: at that <br />time corn was $1.75 per bushel. let me say <br />to the gentleman from Iowa. because we <br />had no OPA to hold down the pr1ce. At <br />that time the farmer was paying good <br />prices for the things he bougbt, but be <br />had the money to pay It with. We had <br />not started on this road to serfdom that <br />totalitarianism and comnmntsm led to. <br />Mr. JE:-JSEN. Mr. Speaker, \\iU the <br />gentleman )ield? <br />Mr. R.ANKL...... I )ield to the gentle- <br />man from Iowa. <br />Mr. JENSEN. We know now sinee reo <br />search has been made that every time <br />the cotton farmer or any other farmer <br />loses a dollar In the price of the prOducts <br />that he sells the national ineome su!Iers <br />to the extent of $7. <br />~tr. RA....'KIN. \Vb)", of course. <br />Mr. JENSE.1>i. So e\'ery time your <br />cotton farmers and my farmers sell be- <br />low" reasonable price. the laboring men <br />suffer and ever}'oody su!Iers to the ex_ <br />tent of $7 for 1. <br /> <br />Mr. RANKIN. I noUce ever)' once in <br />awhile I am attacked by the Washington <br />Post. which Is " compliment to me, But <br />the owner or the Washington Post, Eu- <br />gene Meyer, If you will remember, got <br />to be head of the Federa] Reserve System <br />and squeezed the currency, drove it down <br />to where farm prices went bE>low the cost <br />of productlon and we plunged into a <br />panic. I am told that he speculated on <br />tile exchange and made 54.000.000 with <br />which he bought thl' Washmgton Post, <br />and now attempts to browbeat the Con- <br />gress with It. If any of }'ou doubt that. <br />I Invite the ,"Vays and Means Committee <br />to search his Income-tax record for the <br />last 15 years and see If that r~port Is <br />true. <br />r see th~re Is a book out by Barney <br />Baruch on how to make money on the <br />stock. exchange. Anybody who can hang <br />around the White House as he has done <br />for Ihe last 25 ).ears and do a little specu- <br />lating can get rich. If he can find out <br />what Is going on Inside the White House, <br />1 do not care whether Wlison. Harding, <br />Coolidge, Hoo\'er, Rooseve]t, or Truman <br />15 Presldcnt. he can amass a fortUne. <br />What we want to do Is to get down to <br />some sound. fundamental economics and <br />that Is what I am trying to preach to <br />",'ou tOday. <br />By 1930 thl'}' had sQu~ed this cur- <br />rency down from $5.698.000.000 or $53.iil <br />per cnplta in 1920 to H.4:!6.000,OC'l, or <br />$35.90 pt'r capita In 1930. That Is when <br />the craID came. <br />We passed a law giving the President <br />the right to issue $3.500.000,000 In cur- <br />rency. with a gold rl'serve behind It. I <br />was Ihe author of that bill. Senator <br />'rHOM,o,S of Oklahoma was the author of <br />It at the other end of the CapitoL We <br />finally put It on as an amendment to <br />another measure, but Instead of carrYing <br />its purpose.!;. a policy was begun of bor- <br />ro'\\'ing from the rich and give to the <br />poor through the WPA and otber agen- <br />cies. just what I am alrald thLs bill to <br />which the gentleman from Texas was <br />referring ,,111 lead 111t Is passed and be. <br />comes law. <br />This 1.s encouraging the people, if you <br />p]ea.'It'. to be out of work. All of th!,"!;e <br />strikes are absOlutely unnecessary. <br />E\'ery man in America who wants a job <br />can get a Job It you do not have some <br />labor racketeer standing between him <br />and that job. <br />Mr. JENSEN. Mr. Speaker, II the <br />genUeman will ,..1eld further, Russia, <br />Germany, Japan, and Italy had full em- <br />plo)'Dlent after they had II; dictatorship. <br />M:r. RANKIN. Oh. yes. <br />Mr. JENSEN. And everybody had a <br />Job, but what kind of a job did they <br />have. and at what pay? <br />Mr. RANKIN. Certalnly. They had <br />full employment, but they did not have <br />full pay and they did not have a fuUllte. <br />They did not hal'e any liberty at all, and <br />ha'l'"e not yet. It we WlUtt to have a. <br />totalitarian s}'stem whl're free men will <br />be regimented then I am wrong: but jf <br />we want to maintain free Amerlcan <br />enterprl~e and carryon the glorious <br />progress that we ha\'e made for the lMt <br />150 }'ears. then I am right In my con- <br />tention that we should not adopt any- <br />thing that even looks like a totalitarian <br />pollc)', but earry on our s)'stem of free <br />