AGRICULTURAL RELIEF
fact that your farmers and your association can borrow all the money
you need?

Mr. BLEDSOE. Yes.

Mr. FuLser. At what rate?

Mr. BLEpsoE. At 414 per cent.

Mr. Funmer. You will agree with me that for the past 10 years
the average production, including the two large crops mentioned, was
a little over 13,000,000 bales in 10 years—was 1t?

Mr. BLEDSOE. Yes.

Mr. FuLmer. And that the high and low average price during this
period amounted to 2534 cents, and your idea is to insure the pro-
ducers so as to get an average which would be satisfactory at the
time of marketing? |

Mr. BLepsor. May I go further, there, and say that the insurance
facilities for cotton—that is, the hedgers, you understand, or the
number of speculators in the market at any one time, make the price.
While you are suggesting that, I will go further and say that the
exchanges of the world pass on those prices, so that the grower must
be insured and encouraged to promote orderly marketing of his
sotton.

Myr. Fort. Wouldn't it be a fairer insurance proposition if we
insured you that the average price from the date of your delivery
to the end of the marketing season would not be less? In other
words, does not that eliminate the matter of individual judgment
and discretion in the handling and the selling, and make us insure
you on this ascertainable, statistical figure? Insurance is based
exclusively on the laws of average, of accumulated figures, and is
based on what has actually happened in the past, so far as it can be
statistically covered; and we know that insurance is based on that,
whether it is life, fire, theft, or anything else and not on individual
cases of judgment. Now, if we insure on that statistical basis, aren’t
you getting all the protection that you really ought to ask us to
give, and not ask us to insure you against this particular exercise
of your uncontrolled judgment as to when to buy and when to sell?

Mr. Brepsok. I think your point is well taken, but I think, like
on other forms of insurance, that we would have a better contract,
and you would, by taking this statistical information; and I further
believe that those figures would be indorsed by experts for this kind
of insurance. That is our judgment of the average which would
be shown.

Mr. Fort. But, the question is here what rate ought there be.
You are trying to complicate this matter by individual judgment
against statistical trends, and that is what T am getting at.

Mr. BLEpsoE. Yes.

Mr KincreLoE. Let me ask you this: You propose in your
amendment to give this board the power in their discretion. to fix
certain prices per pound against loss.

Mr. BLEpsoE. A premium per pound or per bale.

Mr. KincueLoE. Yes. And if the cooperative comes in and pays
that, he is insured absolutely against loss.

Mr. BrLepsoe. He reports daily the number of pounds he wants

nsured and pays the money for it. |

\ Jomnio Then he is insured against loss.

Mr. soE. For a 12-month period.