AGRICULTURAL RELIEF 
197 
Mr. Kenok. I am fixed in my conclusion that the equalizetion fee 
will do the work and will not take a cent out of the United States 
Treasury. You and I are Democrats. We do not want to put any- 
body’s hands into the United States Treasury, and we never did. 
And I do not want to disturb any relations in this country that will 
pull anybody down to a level of the American farmer. I want them 
all raised up. I do not believe in making things cheap. If in des- 
peration the farmer finds himself doing that, I am not going to be 
engaced 1n 1t. 
I do not want the standard of living in the United States reduced, 
anywhere. I want the farmer given a chance to come up to it, and 
given a fair chance in the race of life; that’s all. 
Mr. FrLsmer. Mr. Kehoe, it is your contention if they should pass 
the bill they have now before the committee and cut out the equaliza- 
tion fee, that they would just simply have a loan fund, and that no 
loan fund will better the situation? 
Mr. Kenok. No; it will not better the situation. We have plenty 
of credit. There is no trouble about that. We never had any trouble 
about credit. The Government has gone out with its credit. But 
the Government in lending money on American farm land has not 
equalized or kept the price up. 
I took a loss of $4,000 less than four months ago upon a farm that 
the Government had made a loan on upon two-thirds valuation, and 
I stood by and saw it go for less than the Government loan. I would 
not make a bid and nobody else would. 
The Government is going to be the biggest land owner in the 
United States, and the next fellows you will have down here, clamor- 
ing for assistance for the farmer, will be the fellows who came when 
the railroads were in distress. It will be the bondholders of these 
Federal land bank bonds, and they will be coming representing the 
great msurance companies and the gréat bankers. The farmer then 
will have a new friend. But he does not want to wait for that, because 
his house and property will then be gone. He is ready to meet the 
issue. He wants this thing settled now. He wants to be given this 
chance, and if you will give it to him he will work it out; he will 
foot the bill and he will not be degraded as a patient or pet of the 
Government. He does not want any favoritism, dole, or subsidy. 
Mr. AsweLL. 1 am personally interested in all vou said, my only 
daughter lives in Kentucky and she and her husband own and operate 
a tobacco farm. So I am personally interested. And when vou talk 
about the distress of the people back home, all vou say is true. 
But that is why I want some legislation: that is exactly the 
reason. I have no defense to make for President Coolidge, in fact 
[ would like to see him do something that would defeat the Repub- 
lican Party. But the fact is that he will veto this and we will oo 
back without anything if we insist on the fee. I tell vou frankly 
if I were to say this morning that I insisted upon the equilization fee 
or nothing, I would be arguing against it. I would be saying “Get 
a veto’; I would not be saving “Get legislation.” That is the way 
it looks to me, honestly. 
Mr. Keuor. But if I got the veto, I would not let the veto stand 
in the way. Congress is not bound by the President’s veto. 
Mr. ASWELL. Suppose vou did not have two-thirds: what would 
vou do?