552

AGRICULTURAL RELIEF
y

The CuairMaN. Marketing on the exchanges? In what particular
oint?

b Mr. AnpersoN. I think it changes the entire scheme.

The CuairMaN. That is rather indefinite. If you will, kindly point
it out.

Mr. AnpersoN. If I understand it, you visualize this bill as operat-
ing to establish a fixed price for the commodities in the United States.
Am I correct in that assumption

The CuarrmMaN. As I stated it is to stabilize prices and give the
producers the benefit of the laws already established, as stated in the
declaration of policy. There is no question about that.

Mr. ANDERSON. My disagreement with you there simply is, I do
not think this bill will do it and you do.

The CrarrmMaN. May I have your reason? You are not only
thinking. You have some good reason for it. You might be able
to point out in what respect. It is rather indefinite to say I think so
and so.

Mr. AxpErson. I pointed out in the statement which I made to
the committee last year that there have been years in which the fluctu-
ation in price was greater than the amount of the tariff. If anybody
can tell me how you are going to stabilize the price over a crop year
when the foreign price fluctuates more than the total amount of the
sariff, then I can not see it.

The CuairMAN. The only way is to do away with the disreputable
practices in respect to the violent fluctuations

Mr. AxpersoN. That is a fluctuation in the world price, not a fluc-
tuation in the domestic price.

The CuamrMAN. The men who operate on the exchanges have
great power. I think they are limited now to about 5 per cent, that
is, under agreements with the Secretary of Agriculture they may not
depress the price more than 5 per cent a day, so if wheat is $1.50
the price can be depressed only 214 cents a day, taking about three
days to depress it 20 cents, and formerly they might depress it 20
cents in one day. When the investigation was made by the depart-
ment it was agreed, as I understand it, that they should not depress
the price more than 5 per cent in any one day. There can be no
dispute about that, for we had that acknowledgment of the exchange
itself to the Secretary of Agriculture.

Mr. ANDERSON. 1 was not discussing fluctuations in the futures
market; I was discussing entirely fluctuations which occur in the
world’s cash price of wheat, and that fluctuation has been in some
years more than the amount of the tariff, and considerably more
than the amount of the tariff less the equalization fee which would be
be measure of the increase in price which vou could get under this

The CHAIRMAN. Are we agreed that the world price establishes the
price of the whole production of wheat here in the United States?

Mr. AxpErsoN. No; I do not agree to that at all.

The CaairmMaN. With the large surplus? |

Mr. AxpersoN. Not necessarily. The larger the surplus the more

likely that is to be true.

The CuairmaN. In fact when we were short of a certain grade we
got the benefit of the tariff on certain grades. For instance, according
to Foreign Crops and Markets, issued by the Department of Agri-