PROBLEMS OF AMERICA

Hawera Star, Volume LIII, 6 November 1933, Page 5

PROBLEMS OF AMERICA

HITCHES IN RECOVERY PLAN FARM CONFERENCE FAILURE, FURTHER STRIKE POSSIBILITIES COAL DISPUTE SPREADING. (United Prew Association—By Electric Telegrapi. copyright.) WASHINGTON, Nov. 4. A variety of interesting developments occurred to-day on wide fronts in the American plan for economic recovery. Probably the most important was the failure of the Governors’ conference witn President Roosevelt. A gigantic marketing agreement tinder teh Farm Act, covering major farm commodities of the middle west, was proposed yesterday at a conference of tlie Administration and Governors. This new price-lifting scheme would be an agreement under which farmers would be guaranteed a fixed price for j their products based on ‘‘parity” | levels. It is designed to give products I the equivalent pre-war purchasing power. The farmer would agree to | curtail production in future years as i was found necessary by the Depart- j ment of Agriculture to fit the supply j and demand situation for each com-1 modityy . 1 The President to-day issued a state- j ment expressing grave doubts concern- | ing the legality and effectiveness of the farmers’ proposals, but invited further conferences with Governors’ representatives. Governor Langar, of North Dakota, J stated: ‘ ‘The conference was a com- . pie to failure. I am very disappointed and disgusted. The farmer is a forgotten man; everybody else has been here before him and got all the money: There is nothing left for the farmer.” Press despatches from the various States concerned indicate tlie possibility of a widespread farmers’ strike holiday. , . ; The Ford Company s relationship I with the National Recovery Administration again came to the fore when, following upon an announcement that the manufacturer proposed to lay off 9000 men a week in order to reduce the working hours to an average of 35 , as provided in the automobile code, . General Hugh Johnson issued the! statement: “We are glad to consider an exception permitting him to keep the men employed.” The Ford Company’s statement that it is taking this mandatory step m compliance with the new prohibition against work in this country .plainly angered the N.R.A. administration. News from Detroit/ indicated that the tool die makers’ strike has been broken and 1000 strikes in 29 shops iare expected to return on Monday. With a “captive” coal mine strike in three States apparently in process of compromise a new threat to coal mining occurred to-night with a call issued i by the united anthracite members oi { Pennsylvania for a general strike on i Mondav in order xo force recognition j of the' new union. Sixty thousand j workers axe affected. j Conflicting trends swept over the for- | exchange market yesterday. Ster-1 ling rose to 486 J, hut the franc and other gold standard exchanges weak- j ened slightly, so that the gold value! of the dollar rose to 64.60. In face of this advance the Reconstruction Finance Corporation further devalued the purchasing power of the dollar against domestic gold to 32.67 an ounce; in- j dicatinp a valuation oi 63.27 cents for the dollar. The spread between the Reconstruction Finance Corporation s gold price and London continued to widen. The world price at sterling s opening rate of 4861 was equal to 32.13 dollars an ounce. The week’s figures for commodity and stock markets indicated little or no improvement in prices a*s the result of gold purchases. Trade is apparently still unimpressed with the inflationary possibilities of the gold purchases. The “New York Times” financial editor states: “Wall Street undoubtedly believes in the N.R.A. : but it is not overlooked that plain indications within the last few days aria that a radical change in methpds if not m actual control mav be under consideration at Washington. There is the comment that the Government is preparing to delegate more of the responsibilities of direction of the industry recovery activities to business and industrial leaders.” •