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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 30, 1956)
TEW MEDFORD (OREGON) MAIL TRIBUNB Thursday, August 30, 1938 Willamette Valley Gas Users Start on Sunday Portland U.R Willam ette valley gas users should start burning natural gas in their ap pliances Sunday, company of ficials said, with the first Port land areas to be converted slat ed to start using the new fuel Monday. Um MaU Tribune Want Ads For QuIcJcer Easier LOWEST COST 7 A ELASTIC Starches all your wnbable exactly as you like them every time hi MP for starching those fjxcf new petticoats Falling Farm Prices Biggest Domestic Headache for Eisenhower and Benson ' By A. ROBERT SMITH Mail Tribune Correspondent 1 V Washington There is no question but what the problem of falling farm prices has been the biggest and V ft. most persistent domestic head- . ache for Pres ident Eisen hower and his Secre t a r y of Agricul t u r e, Ezra T. Ben son. Due to prob lems for which a. kodl smith ready solutions have yet to be found, the administration has been unable to achieve thus far the president's twin aims of" giv ing the farmer "full parity in the market place" while cutting back government regulation of the farm economy. Today the average American farmer it still tied up in government controls and has considerably less cash in his pockets. But the farm problem is not a new one. It has down across the years plagued virtually ev ery president, be he Democrat or Republican, who has sought means of curbing the boom and bust tendencies of this import ant segment of the economy. fei drvS'S",,w! r j Farm income, to cite some fig ures, hit $15.9 billion in 1948, then fell off to $12.8 billion in 1950 just before the outbreak of the Korean war. It climbed back up to $14.8 in 1951, dropped slightly to S14 in the 1952 elec tion year. This see-saw condition existed under the Truman ad ministration. Income Trailed Off In Eisenhower's first year, farm income trailed off some what to $13.4 but by last year it had plummeted to $10.7. Econ omists predict it will keep fall ing to about $10.3 billion this year. The other index of conditions down on the farm the parity index which reflects farm in come as against the farmers' costs illustrates the problem in another way. The parity ratio averaged 108 for the 1947-49 period, but fell off to 100 the last year of the Truman admin istration, 1952. It fell to 92 the first year of the Eisenhower ad ministration and by last year it was down to 84. It reached a low of 81 last March and since then climbed back up to 86 a change that has, been hailed by the administration as evidence that the long decline is over and that adjustment of the farm economy from war to peace was finally under way. Secretary Benson's conserva tism and slowness to act have brought him into conflict with the more politically sensitive members of the administration, who at times have forced upon him politically expedient deci sions not to his liking. Always he has gone along in the hope that such measures would be temporary and not seriously in terfere with his efforts in the long run to get farmers "off the federal dole." Supports Changed The administration's main vic tory for its way of dealing with the farm question was to get Congress to change from rigid 90 per cent price supports to flex ible supports at a somewhat lower -figure. This was accom plished after Eisenhower vetoed a rigid price support farm bill. While supports could be drop ped to 75 per cent of parity under this bill, the administration has pegged wheat, cotton and corn at 82V4 per cent. Benson has op posed a dual-price plan urged by wheat growers.' The amount of money the gov ernment is putting into the farm economy to support prices hit about $1 billion in 1955, and this year it is running close to twice that amount. Another big farm headache has been the surplus of farm commodities piled up over the years in government warehouses. Benson has worked aggressively to unload them. He has been not ably successful in reducing dairy surpluses, but surpluses of corn, wheat, cotton and some other commodities remain chiefly be cause of continued high sup ports, record production on few er acres, and shrinking world markets. The government has sold or given away nearly $3 billion in surpluses since the in ception in 1954 of a special dis posal program. But the govern ment still has about $8.5 billion invested in price support opera tions, a figure expected to rise to $10 billion with this year's harvest. After hog prices dropped from $20 to $11 per 100 pounds last fall, the outcry from the farm belt reached its highest pitch during Benson's tenure. It led to a cabinet division, with the more politically minded mem bers trying to stir Benson to a pork buying program. With a firm hand they guided him down a path he was reluctant to fol low. Full Approval Doubted It is doubtful even now that he fully approves of the soil bank plan, which is just now going into effect. For it is an extension of an idea from New Deal days of paying farmers for taking land out of production. Benson has viewed it as continued sub sidization of agriculture under the guise of conservation. Benson had thought in terms of a modest soil bank of some $200 million a year to help farm ers retire land unsuited for crops and plant it to grass and trees. But the program adopted amounted to $1.2 billion, liber ally designed to let farmers take advantage of the grants before election. The soil bank was. accompan ied by the rise in the price sup ports on corn, wheat and cot ton, so that the full operation of the flexible price support sys tem was set aside for another year. These actions have served to placate dissident farm mem- East Side FEATURING Specials Good Friday and Saturday Market 4-H LAMB Closed Labor Day, Sept. 3 Baby Meals OcIcoffee swiff, 2canst,sjJ Hills Bros. 2-lb. can 2.17 Zee Tissue 9c Franks Assorted 4 rolls-aF Swift Premium lb. pkg. Roasi Beef Fryers MMfi Swift 12-oz. canj Swift Premium Ib.f PrSpes 1SC Leg 'o Lamb fiEe Seedless 2 lbs. U Viy 4-H Ib.VMW K,es Q Lamb Patties Op U. S. No. 1 10 lbs 4-H lb.M Oranges lc Lamb Chops SnoBoy 5-lb. bag jtfjjf Shoulder cuts 4-H b.Jf bers of the Republican party. But, also, they have served to frustrate the president's ex pressed hope of freeing agricul ture from government controls and moving away from what was regarded as far left of center into the middle furrow of con servatism in which the farmer would return to his legendary role as a rugged individualist. (NEXT The up and downs of civil rights.) Largest Rock Crushing Operation To Start Pendleton (U.R) Houck & Sons, Pendleton, will start what is termed the largest rock crush ing operation in the Pacific Northwest next Tuesday. Machinery has been set up 10 miles south of here. Six large crushers will turn out the rock at about 300 yards an hour. Eleven conveyor lines will carry the rock to waiting trucks. The rock will come from a 14 acre site from which the opera tion is expected to crush be tween 150,000 and 160,000 yards. It is estimated there are more than 10,000 species of destruc tive insects in the United States. First Nonpartisan Candidates Fair Slated Here on October 27 Five Republican and five Democratic candidates for elec tion this fall will appear in Med ford at McLoughlin Junior High school on Oct. 27, at the first nonpartisan Candidates Fair to be held in this area. Republicans attending the Fair will be Gov. Elmo Smith, in cumbent up for reelection, Doug las McKay, candidate for U. S. Senator; Harris Ellsworth, na tional representatives running for reelection; Mark Hatfield, candidate for secretary of state; and Sig Unander, candidate for reelection for state treasurer. Democratic Candidates Democratic candidates ap pearing at the Fair will be Wayne Morse, senator running for reelection; Charles O. Por ter, candidate for national rep resentative; Robert D. Holmes, candidate for governor; Monroe Sweetland, candidate for secre tary of state; and Robert Y. Thornton, attorney general run ning for reelection. Local candidates scheduled to appear at the Fair are Robert A. Boyer and Robert B. Duncan, Democratic candidates for state representative from the 19th dis trict, and E. A. Littrell, Repub lican incumbent running for re election as state representative. District Attorney Walter D. Nunley and his opponent. Dem ocrat Thomas J. . Reeder, will also be present. County candidates who will ERST SIDE mflRKET OF MEDFO0 OREGON k0 ArtOH Open To Serve You 7 DAYS A WEEK Week Days 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays 10 'a.m. to 6 p.m. Service Directory Distribution Starts A directory of health and so cial services for Jackson county, compiled by the Jackson county Inter-Agency council and printed through cooperation of the Unit ed Medford Crusade, is being distributed among several health and social agencies, min isters, doctors, lawyers, schools, police and other interested groups through the Jackson county Inter-Agency council. Purpose Told The directory was prepared to help people find the kind of ser vice they need, according to council officials. The Inter-Agency council met in the courthouse auditorium on Aug. 28 to complete plans for distributing the directory. The program for the day was a re view of camping programs in the county, campsites and owner ships available to children who do not have financial resources. . Charles Jones, president of the Junior Chamber of Com- merce, was a guest and discus sed his group's project of pro viding a campsite for use by other organized groups during the summer. Experience Needed Miss Shirley Hutchinson, child welfare woker,' Jackson county public welfare commission, spoke of the paucity of camperships available, stating there are more children needing camping ex perience than there were camp erships available for them. Miss Mary Aldrich, executive director of the local Girl Scout council, was chairman pro-tem of the meeting. The next meet ing will be held Sept. 18 at the Y when a discussion of the wom en's program offered at the YMCA will be held. Truman To Stump Butler Declares Washington (U.R) Demo- cratic National Chairman Paul ; M. Butler said Wednesday night I former President Truman will j take the stump "in his inimita i ble way" for the Democratic ! ticket this fall. Mr. Truman, who originally j opposed the presidential aspira tions of both Democratic presi i dential candidate Adlai Steven j son and vice presidential can didate Estes Kefauver, said aft ! er Stevenson's nomination he would campaign "if asked." Butler said he is "sure" Mr. Truman will campaign under the auspices of the Democratic National Committee. He said Mr. Truman would campaign in "some of the larger metro politan areas where he has very great strength." Read end Use Classified Ads The Community's Blfgest Marketplace attend are Republicans L. G. (Shy) Morthland, incumbent of the county court; Allen D. Cur ry, candidate for county asses sor; Anna R. Scott, candidate for county treasurer; and Dem ocrats Ray J. Schumacher, can didate for county assessor, and Karl Janouch, candidate for county treasurer. Alf B. Mekvold, unopposed county school superintendent on the nonpartisan ballot, Ralph James, Democratic candidate for county commissioner, and Jus tice of the Peace candidates from the Ashland district. There will be a meeting of the steering committee planning the Candidates Fair at Medford Senior High school at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13. This committee is composed of members of the League of Women Voters Service group and representatives from the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, Jackson County's United Nations organization, County Election's department, Medford Garden club, Southern Oregon Child Guidance ' clinic. city and county planning com missions and the fruit and lum bering industries. Party Representatives Mrs. Kathleen Bash .and Mrs. Rosemary Keeney will repre sent the Republican party, and Mr. and Mrs. Marc Norton and Robert Boyer will represent the Democratic narty. Mrs. I. S. Thomas, general chairman, has explained the pur pose of the Fair is to acquaint the public with candidates from both parties, to inform voters of hallot measures and issues, to stimulate interest in voting and participating in government, and to present a cross-section of city and county interests through ex hibits and displays. Around Hollywood By ALINI MOSBT United Press Correspondent Editor's Note: Aline Mosbv U on vacation. Today's sucst writer. Richard Widmark. answers the question often put to him Does the violence In his films harm young fans? By RICHARD WIDMARK Written for United Press Hollwood U.R) I've been quite a violent fellow in motion pictures. If you counted the notches on my Screen Actors' Guild card you'd find almost a hundred. I've slain good actors and bad in quite a variety of ways. But movie mayhem rests light ly on my conscience. There is a wide divergence of opinion as to whether violence on the stage or screen incites some persons in the audience to violence. I may be rationalizing my point of view, but J think it does not. We're Violent We have to face the fact there is a more-or-less supressed urge to violence in all of us. A good husband and father at times comes pretty close to being a homicidal maniac while driving his car. The housewife who ang rily smashes a dish and the rude salesgirl are being violent in their own ways. The papers are full of exam ples of less inhibited violence, and of course we all live under a cloud of mass violence, the possibility of war. I think that persons seeing violence on the screen may work off some of their own more prim itive emotions. I would doubt very much that a maniac needs a suggestion from a movie to set him off into some act of atrocity. It's true that my wife and I haven't let our little daughter see some of my epics because wa feel they are too rough. We are pretty selective in the type of entertainment we permit her to see and only recently acquired a television set. The point I'd like to make is the people who provide enter tainment can't be expected to gear it to children. The respon sibility for what the child sees rests upon the parents. We think our daughter should discover the ranges and aberrations of human emotion gradually. BEWARE or IMITATIONS LOOK FOR THE HAPPY mm COG TOPS IN QUALITY! LOW IN PRICE 'S Vr ? ' v 3 k ?. a. FrtuF $Zfh BLUE 0mrOS Pm TBiPLIiffi THI$75t ipdbfAwi "ov,OKlT W rhRV55 ' l51r9r5lE A reaI I .for your outdoor enjoyment 1 Delicious Blue Bell Potato Chips Jte, v 'he height of golden freshness! x - - V O Three perfection-protected wax j y 4, " bags... open 'em as you use 'eml j' sSIlUnG BEKliCl O All in a sturdy crush-proof box y&ctib Chips j Great indoors,
