AGRICULTURAL RELIEF
234
fields and can use large units of machinery. We think that our per
capita production of bread and mest is larger than that of any State
in the Union. About 95 per cent of our industry is agricultural.
However, we have in the Black Hills, which the President honored
us by visiting, a considerable mining industry. But that, I believe,
in conjunction with timber, represents about 5 per cent of our total
yearly production; all the rest is agriculture, and largely a diversified
agriculture. There are wheat districts in our part of the State, but
wheat does not concern us very much. We believe that the principles
of the McNary-Haugen bill will also apply to our fat pork and fat
cattle. Further west of us the range district.
Mr. FuLmEer. May I ask you a question?
Mr. WeLLER. Certainly. :
Mr. FuLmer. There is a tariff, I believe, on wheat of 42 cents.
Mr. WELLER. Yes, sir.
Mr. Froyver. Do you get any benefit out of it?
Mr. WELLER. Not that we can find at all. The spread between
our local price and the Winnipeg price, I know at one time was 27
cents. I believe it was easily twice that during the war period. We
grow hard wheat in our district; that spring wheat; very little
winter wheat is grown there, and that gh protein winter wheat,
at that.
Mr. FoLmer. You say you
the legislature?
Mr. WELLER. The legislature created
tural equality committee. I was apre mt
others were appointed; there are three of us.
So I might say we represent the 686,000 peops. vi South Dakota,
outside of the mining regions.
Mr. Frrsmer. Does that word “equality” in that name suggest
trying to assist agriculture so as tc but it on an equality with other
industries?
Mr. WELLER That is my conception of it; yes, sir.
Mr. FrLMER. Do the farmers in vour State generally know anv-
thing about this proposed legislation?
Mr. WELLER. Generally.
Mr. FrLMmer. Are they for the equalization fee?
Mr. WeLLEr. I will say that we have farmers whose feeling is
that they are getting the worst of it. They discuss tariffs consid-
erably. Iam frank to say some of them belicve the whole thing would
be better solved to do away with special privilege to other industries.
We do believe that special privileges have heen cranted to other
industries. Qurs is commercial farming largely. Very little of the
stuff that is grown on our farms goes on the farmer’s table. We sell
our wheat and buy flour. We do cure our own bacon once in a while,
but generally we take that to a little local packing house and give
them 25 cents a slab for curing it.
The point I was making by that reference was that we grow raw
foods and sell raw foods, and with the money obtained therefor
proceed to clothe ourselves and take care of the expense of our
business and therefore is commercial farming. We use two-row ele-
vators and tractors; and all that sort of thing—sometimes the larce
tractors much to our recret.
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