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<br />O"'~"'1
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<br />
<br />1945
<br />
<br />CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-HOUSE
<br />
<br />106-11
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<br />over the dairy Industry If ~ie want to,
<br />and U this discrimination against us con-
<br />tinues, that Js probably what .....Ill happen.
<br />Mr. JENSE.N'. Mr. Speaker, wlll the
<br />gentleman ~ield?
<br />Mr. RA!I.'KIN. I yield to the gentle-
<br />man from Iowa.
<br />Mr. JE..."l'SEN. I want to say that the
<br />people of Iowa are not jealous of the
<br />people of MLssJsslppl.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I know that.
<br />Mr. JENSEN. We want ~'ou to get
<br />along in the finest way that )'OU pOSSibly
<br />(:ao under the Amerlc:an system, as we
<br />know It.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. That Is right. I hope
<br />the gentleman did not think I was crltl-
<br />('!zlngIowll.
<br />Mr. JENSEN. 011. absolutel)' not. I
<br />just want YOU to know the people of Iowa
<br />are certainly not Jealous ot the people
<br />of Mississippi. As long as the people of
<br />Mississippi will fight for the same prio-
<br />c1ple..~ a~ the people of Iowa will fight
<br />for-that 15, repre1ientatlve, ChristIan,
<br />constltutlonEl.l Amerlcani~m-we will get
<br />along.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. Yes, that ts what we
<br />arl' fighting for now.
<br />Mr. JENSEN. I wish there \i'ere more
<br />like the gentleman from Ml5~is.~Jppl who
<br />Is now addressing the House. I wish
<br />there were more of your kind In America.
<br />Mr. RANKIN". I thank the gentleman
<br />from Iowa. We peopJe In the agrlCulw
<br />tura] Statt's ha\'e a common intt'test.
<br />Mr. l.fiCHENER. I only wish to make
<br />one ob.<ervatlon. I was out of the hall for
<br />a few minutes.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I was afraid of that.
<br />Mr. MICHENER. Then I camt' In. If
<br />I had not known the gentleman. I would
<br />have v:ondered for a time whether he
<br />was from F'lor1da or Caltfomla. He has
<br />Qualifl('d for citizenship In either place
<br />and a member ot"the chamber of corow
<br />merce, also.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. Oh. yes; and Michigan,
<br />also. I will come around to Michigan In
<br />a moment.
<br />Mr. JENSEN. And )'0\1 are welcome In
<br />Iowa any time you want to come there.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I thank the gentleman.
<br />Mr. RICH. And we wUl take JOU UP
<br />In PennJ<ylvania as long as they ket"p the
<br />Un_American Acth1t1cs Commltte-e alive
<br />to keep this country free.
<br />Mr. RA."fKIN. Ke<'p thoS(' storm celw
<br />lnrs open. I may ha"e to hunt one.
<br />Let ffit' say lo the Rentleman from
<br />M;cbJgan [Mr. MlcHE~ERl that Ull' State
<br />of Michigan is a great producer of sugar
<br />beets. Louisiana. Florida, and MI.s.sIs-
<br />slppl. and other Southern States. can
<br />grow tile finest sugarcane in the 'World.
<br />They are dir~t competitors. You take
<br />hogs; )'ou take sheep. and 1;\"001 and bar~
<br />ley, and e,'ery other agricultunJ product
<br />that can be grown In the North and is
<br />grown In the South and will be grown to
<br />a greater extent in the South H we are
<br />held down to this ~onomic level of 221;'
<br />cents a pound for cotton under an eco-
<br />nomic situation that justiftes 65 cent.!: or
<br />70cent.S.
<br />Your farmers will be forced down to
<br />the economIc le,'el of the cotton farmers
<br />ju;;t as surely as the night follows the
<br />dll)".
<br />
<br />NO.I~Il-2
<br />
<br />Mr. HOFFl.fAN. Mr. Speaker. will the
<br />,enUeman )1eld?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I )1eld,
<br />Mr. HOFFMAN, Where Is all this
<br />cotton?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I am getting to that in
<br />a minute_ The only reason that thl5
<br />cotton is being held down t.s this crazy
<br />OPA program. They are preventlllg the
<br />manufacture of cotton goods, while the
<br />American people are beggIng for them.
<br />The other day they brought some cot ton
<br />bedspreads down here to a store in
<br />Washington and let it get out. There
<br />was almost a riot or the women getting
<br />down there to buy them. Why, you
<br />cannot buy a white shirt in Washington.
<br />You cannot buy collon underwear In
<br />Wal,hingtoll. Your wife cannot buy
<br />sheets for her bed. MeaowhUe, the
<br />OPA Is keeping the cotton mills from
<br />manufacturmg these things and the eotw
<br />ton IS pillng up In our warehouses while
<br />many industria] workers are refusing to
<br />work and demanding that their wages
<br />be raised all out of !lne with that of the
<br />farmers of this countO'. Now your
<br />farmers are making just about what my
<br />farmers are malting. Remember that.
<br />TIle)- are on the same economic 11"'1'1 or
<br />will be soon.
<br />Mr. CLEVENGER. Mr. Speaker, will
<br />the ~enUcman yield?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I yield to the gentlew
<br />man from Ohio.
<br />Mr. CLEVENGER. I "'..onder If the
<br />gentleman from Mississippi knows that
<br />this OPA which the adm1nistratlon has
<br />lntllcted on us put the price on sheets
<br />of about $1.31 and then takes your
<br />southern cotton sheets to Spain under
<br />a $20 a bale SUbsidy and pa}'s them $2.40
<br />for the same sheets to gh'e away for rew
<br />Her.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. No; I did not know
<br />that.
<br />What I am trying to tell you Is that
<br />the OPA is a system of totalltarianism
<br />that Is wrecking the American farmer,
<br />be!rinnlng wJlh the cotton farmer.
<br />A~ a result, your wheat and com Is
<br />held down far bE']ow Its economic value.
<br />When the gentleman from Texas IMr.
<br />PAT1UNJ takes the floor again to discuss
<br />this matter I should Uke to have htm dis.
<br />cuss It in the Itll:ht or what Is happening
<br />to the cotton farmers of Arkansa.8 and
<br />Texu.
<br />Mr. H, CARL ANDERSEN. Mr. Speak-
<br />er, will the gentleman yield?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I yje]d.
<br />Mr. H. CARL ANDERSEN. Dot>s not
<br />the gentleman feel, as he expressed It
<br />yesterday, that U these advocates of a
<br />full employment bill would show equal
<br />energy toward malnb.ining parity for
<br />the farmers or the United States they
<br />would not have any fear whatsoever
<br />about giving every man a job who
<br />wanted one?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. V....hy, certainly. I will
<br />say to the gent!('man from Minnesota
<br />[Mr. H. CAlL ANDli:IlSll'il and the !!entle-
<br />man rrom Penns}'lvanla [Mr. RICH 1. one
<br />rea..~on I ha,'c fcultht so hard for rural
<br />electrification Is to carry w these Larmers
<br />light. hope, t'ncouragement, and inspira-
<br />tion to stay there and struRgle along to
<br />make a living. I have not made 1t secw
<br />
<br />tional. You can go into any State In this
<br />Union lUllong the farmers and they will
<br />refer to me as the Father of Rural Elt'<:.
<br />trLficaUon, because I have tried to spread
<br />1t over every State in the Union.
<br />Mr. RICH. Mr. Speaker, will the gen-
<br />tleman }1eld?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. I yield.
<br />Mr. RICH. Now, there Is the place
<br />where you and I differ, bt'cause YOU want
<br />the Government to do this and I want
<br />pri\'ate Industry to do It; I want It done
<br />by the public utilities of this COWltI)'
<br />who ha\'e givt'n the greatest senice to
<br />the people of thts country and have rl'.
<br />dul'ed thdr rates, have never faltered In
<br />furnishing current and power to everyw
<br />body who wanted it, with the exception
<br />of a few out In the couotry districts.
<br />They are gradually goini out there.
<br />There Is the only place I dUfer with the
<br />gentleman. I want to see these utilities
<br />extend and go out and furnish that
<br />power. II yOU will let them alooe, they
<br />\\ill do It.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. The reason the gentle.
<br />man from Peons)'l\"anla disagrees with
<br />me is that he is not Informed on that
<br />subject. Twe!\'e years aio, when I start~
<br />ed this drl\"t', there was only I farm
<br />out of 10 In this couotry that had any
<br />electrlclty at all. Ninety perccot of the
<br />farmers of Germany, 90 percent of the
<br />farmer:; of Japan. 94 percent of the farm-
<br />ers of Italy, 94 percent of the farmers
<br />of France had electricity. Sixty-five
<br />percent of the farmt'rs in New Zealand,
<br />a new and sparsely settled country. had
<br />e1~trlclty.
<br />Mr. RICH. We are talking about the
<br />United States.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. Oh. )'('s. The Govern~
<br />ment U gettlnR back every dollar, and,
<br />as a rt'sult of my tight, I have even re-
<br />duced rates in PennsylvlUlla and every
<br />other State. One of my greatest contri-
<br />butions to American life has been my
<br />fight fQr rural t']cctr;f1cation.
<br />Mr. HOFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, will the
<br />gentleman Yield agam about cotton?
<br />Mr, RANKIN. Yes. I want to get back
<br />to that.
<br />Mr. HOFFMAN. Yes. Gct otI the
<br />power Issue, The hearings before the
<br />Smith committee, which extended over
<br />several 'il/eells. disclosed that while price
<br />regulatlon was to get the 10W~PriCed gar-
<br />ment" into the hands of the lowwlncome
<br />families of the C'ountry,it had practically
<br />the opposite t'!feet. In my district, for
<br />Instance, In November of la.st year, the
<br />mt'rchants'dld not have any work :-hirts
<br />or o,'era1lS; they were short on children's
<br />underwear-all sorts of common cotton
<br />garments, low-priced garments. The
<br />reason was the regulation of tbe OPA
<br />which prevented the manufacturers from
<br />prodUcing that stuff.
<br />Mr. RANKIN. That Is rlllh~.
<br />Mr. HOFFMAN. Can the gt'ntleman
<br />tt'1l us what bf>came of hIS cotton? 'Vhy
<br />did it not 10 Imo tht' garments that my
<br />folks \\'ant?
<br />Mr. RANKIN. Simply b~ause the
<br />OPA t!,-ould not ano\\' the manufacture!"!,
<br />to manufacture it for that. purpo~. For
<br />thaI reason I opposed the cresWon of the
<br />OPA, t told yoU then what would hnJ)w
<br />peo. The Quicker '"I' abolish it and g'E't
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