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Medford and Jackson County
History from tha fifes of The
Mill Tribune 10, 20, 30, 40
and 50 years ago.
10 YEARS AGO
Mar 21. 1953 (Thursday)
More than 100 laundrymen
throughout Oregon are regis
tered (or the 31st annual con
vention of the Oregon State
Laundry Owners association
here.
Searchers work on a 'hot
new lead" In attempts to find
a plane missing since last
Monday In a flight from Gold
Beach to Grants Pass.
20 YEARS AGO
May 21. 1943 (Friday)
Mai. Bruce Guthrie, former
Medford resident, dies of
wounds suffered during fight
ins In Tunisia.
From Arthur Perry's "Ye
Smudge Pot" column: "The
Juvenile element mourns the
closing of school June 4.
30 YEARS AGO
Mar 21, 1933 (Sunday)
New Pacific highway be
tween Medford and Central
Point slated for opening in
near future.
Southern Oregon hotelmen
hold convention in Medford.
40 YEARS AGO
May 21. 1923 (Monday)
Many people reported using
tennis courts at Willow
Springs.
Mr. and Mrs. O. V. Meyers
leave Medford for trip to
Willamette valley.
SO YEARS AGO
May 21. 1913 (Wednesday)
J. J. Houser, mayor of Med
ford In 1900, visits friends
here.
Preliminary hearing held in
Judge Taylor's court for man
accused of burning down
Rogue River church.
What's Your I.Q.?
Nine er tan carract Is suaetlet;
even er eight Is excellent! thro er
sis h feed.
1. Would the vibrassae of a
cat be Ha feet, meows, or
whiskers?
2. In labor relations par
lance, forcing an employer to
hire and pay more men than
he needs is called what?
3. Elephants can, or cannot,
swim?
4. Drake is the name of the
male of which swimming
bird?
8. Madame Marie Curie was
the co-discovered of what?
0. How many Innings In a
regulation Softball gome?
T. Name the smallest Cen
tral American republic.
8. . Nov. 8 is the anniversary
of the discovery of the Guy
Fawkes' gunpowder plot to
blow up what government
building In London, England;
9. When an aulo la travel
Ing forward, do the passengers
lunge forward or backward
on acceleration?
10. Is the movie "Mutiny
on the Bounty" based on facts.
or purely fictional?
Answerst I. Whiskers. 1
Feather bedding. 3. Can. 4,
Duck. t. Radium, t. Seven.
7. El Salvador. 9. Parliament
9. Backward. 10. Facts.
EAR BITER GUILTY
San Diego, Calif. John
Ira Baylea, 48, was placed on
three years probation Monday
for biting off his former wife's
left ear In an argument over
money. Bayles, who pleaded
guilty to a charge of mayhem,
also must pay restitution to
the victim, Mrs. Helen Jenks,
when the amount is deter
mined. I
I
WfajflW fUllllHIII
TUESDAY. MAY 21. 1983
To End the
With the legislature
gles, and due to adjourn
early next week, we can
islation calling for a vote of the people on the
question of capital punishment in November of
The question, of course, has been widely de
bated over 'many years, and will be again in Ore
gon as election time grows near.
Most people probably have their minds al
ready made up, but there may be some who are
undecided, or willing to discus the matter. It is
even possible tnat some could change their
minds.
AS previously stated,
" punishment.
There are, as we see it, only three possible
excuses for it:
1. To get the offender out of the way for the
protection 01 society.
2. Retribution against the offender.
3. As a deterrent to others.
None of these, in our eyes, constitute a suf
ficient reason to continue the practice, which
puts the state in the position of deliberately
taking a life a process as cold blooded, calcu
lating, and evil as murder itself, and in some
ways worse.
THE first end mentioned above can be taken
care of by imprisonment. For those who say
that the state should not waste money" by keep
inrr convicted murderers alive, it should be noint-
ed out that in virtually
j . . .. .. ..
execute a man than it does to keep him in prison
all his life.
One recent study found that the cost of keep
ing a man in prison for 30 years is about $45,000,
but that the costs of a capital trial and appeals,
special detention handling in jail, and an execu
tion itself, costs in excess of $60,000.
In such notorious cases as that of Caryl Chess
man, executed some months ago in California
after years of appeals and other litigation, the
cost to the state was far
had been kept in prison
THE second reason retribution is an emo
f irtMn 1 etna ofomm ?m t -f -w tVa nlA iiatex
VIVliai Vlll 01 I It I 111 l 1 VI II ti5 V1U VJC 1UI ,
eye" belief. It is, to our mind, a barbaric attitude.
Imprisonment, in some ways, is as much "punish
ment" as death, and serves to protect society
from further depredations.
Vindictive justice can hardly be justified on
moral, ethical or religious erounds. and certain
ly should be beneath the
sovereign state.
If we can agree that imprisonment is cheaper
and just as effective a way of protecting society
from a criminal, and that vindictive justice is in
compatible with civilized standards, only in the
deterrent argument remains.
THERE is no evidence
ishment serves as a
murderers.
First of all, a vast majority of murders are
either crimes of passion, committed in a highly
emotional state when no thought of any penalty
would have any effect, or else they are so planned
that the murderer believes he'll never be caught.
In either case the deterrent aspect of the death
penalty is ineffective.
S Akl 11... ....
Auuub uic uniy uue uieaaut emetic ui me ue-
terrence of capital punishment on potential mur
derers Is statistical. And the statistics show that
states which have capital punishment have, on
the average, murder rates just as high, and in
some cases higher, than those states which have
abolished the death penalty.
IN AN excellent little booklet entitled "The
1 Unexamined Death," the author, Hans W.
Mattick, sets forth the conclusions of long study
of capital punishment. They are far more detail
ed than space permits to reproduce in full here.
(The booklet is available in single copies
from the John Howard Association, 608 South
Dearborn St., Chicago 5, 111.)
Here are his final paragraphs:
"On the basis of the evidence presented above,
and In many other studies, there Is no reason to be
lieve that capital punishment serves any rational pur
pose for society.
"On the contrary, the evidence Indicates that
those who favor capital punishment are sentimental
ists, pure and simple. The hardheaded and practical
people who say, 'let us examine the evidence,1 find
that the evidence cannot support the arguments as
serted with strong conviction, and embellished by
special-pleading anecdotes, by th proponents of capi
tal punishment.
"The means and ends of this public policy are not
related, and, therefore, the death penalty does not deal
with the homicide problem. The venerable Socrates,
who was executed In 399 B. C, maintained to the bit
ter end that 'the unexamined life is not worth living.'
Our examination of capital punishment has led to the
conclusion that the unexamined death is not worth
dying.
"Jesus Christ, who was executed at the beginning
of our era, said, at the end, Father, forgive them, (or
they know not what they do. We are still executing '
people .... and there is still no evidence that we
know what we are doing when we Inflict the death
penalty.
"Every rational Inquiry Into the relation between
the death penalty and murder has demonstrated that
capital punishment is Irrelevant to the homicide rate.
It is, however, a cruel, expensive, and demoralising
Irrelevancy to maintain. Since capital punishment Is
indefensible on any rational grounds, and since tha
only purpose It can serve is that of an irrational ven
geance that Is no better than the original homicide
to which It answers In kind, it Is high time that the
death penalty be abolished ..."
Let us hone that the
just that in the 1964 election. E. A.
J
Death Penalty
now in its final strug'
either this week end or
still expect it to pass leg'
we are opposed to capita!
all cases it costs more to
..
higher than if Chessman
all his life.
dignity and order of a
to show that capital pun-
deterrent to potential
... . iU - ,1
voters of Oreeron will do
1
"Those Alabama Stories Are Sickening. Why
Can't They Be Like Us And Find Some Nice,
Refined Way To Keep The Negroes Out?"
Communications
Letters to tha Editor must bear tha name and address of the writer,
although under certain circumstances the use of a pen name or initial
for publication is permissible. The Mail Tribune reserves the right to
edit all letters with a view to clarification and condensation. Letters
submitted for publication must not exceed 400 words. Tha letters
printed in this column do not necessarily represent tha views of tSe
paper. In fact the contrary is often
Aquarian Age
To the Editor: There is no
stronger defense against truth
than a closed mind. As truth
i. eternal, changeless ana in
finite, how can any of us be
so egotistic as to assume that
we know It all - mere isn i
nv more?
My cnosen sudjcci inmv
concerns the Aquarian ab
and events pertinent to it.
While it is a controversial
subject, It is Imperative for
all who are interested ana
wUIlng to learn more about
it tn Ho n In order that they
may be somewhat prepared
for It. There will be many
fheno-Mi. and unless we are
sufficiently spiritually forti
fied, our ohyslcal venicies
will be unable to withstand
the higher vibrational fre
quency of the sign Aquarius
into which Earth is presently
passing with ever-accelerating
speed.
It is not and never has been
my purpose to convince any-
nni nr anvimna. nor 10 one.
anyone s pre - conceivea
thouaht oatterns. It is regret
uhle if mv letters have the
effect of riling anyone, for
anger Is not a healthy emo
tion. While I can assume re
sponsibility for the words, i
certainly cannot for any in
dividual reaction to them. As
we have only our own
thoughts to contend with, we
are each responsible for our
own actions and reactions.
Therefore, to persons adverse
ly affected, I can only suggest
that they refrain from read
ing my letters, for they win
all relate to the afore-mentioned
subject.
There is much concrete evi
dence of space visitors and
various types of space craft In
our atmosphere and on oc
casion, landing. The father of
modern rocketry, Prof. Her
mann Oberth, says, "I believe
that 'flvlni saucers are pilot
ed by supernatural forms of
life who have observed Earth
for a long time." Rear Ad
miral George Dutek, USN
says, "I think it s very stupid
for human beings to believe
that no one else in the uni
verse is as intelligent as we
are." Frank Edwards, TV and
radio commentator and author
says, "It you believe in flying
saucers you're In good com
pany." Mr. Edwards has com
piled a list of world-famed
astronomers, rocket experts
and military authorities -even
the former head of our
Central Intelligence Agency -
who are convinced of the
existence of UFO's (unidentl
died flying objects).
As requested, (or perhaps
"dared"?), in a future letter
I will list some instances of
Biblical accounts of what we
now refer to as "flying sau
cers" and their occupants.
Space will not allow for It
this time.
Louise Wopschall
Route 1, Box 408
Eagle Point, Ore.
Birthday
To the Editor: May 19th.
1963 - I'm 80 years old today
and going strong for a bor
rowed timer.
Just pick up a dish cloth
or broom and ting-a-llng:
"Happy birthday to you,"
comes over the phone in tune,
outta tune and - we won't gn
into the betwixters. but all
sounded very sincere and I
said "Thank you" lust as
though that was the first time
I'd ever heard It.
I know over 400 people In
and around Medford, and I
believe - well, I wish I had
counted 'em. Thanks folks,
and I will write oftcner to
Communications if E.A.
doesn't kick ma out. I would
not blame him. I can't write
many personal letters. J am
allergic to licking five cent
stamps. The four centers
didn't bother so much. I am
trying to live ungraciously on
Social Security and dragging
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD, OREGON
the cese.
my feel, but my feet work to
fast dance-music pretty well
at the Security Benefit club
Wednesdays from 11 till 4.
That is - we only dance from
two till four. Bet you'd like
to visit us, eh wot? Come as
you are. It's potluck or 50
cents. Only thing you'll get
on the cuff is gravy, but it's
worth it.
Mr. Clifford and Nevah
were over to see me this P.M
and we are planning a June
picnic for Michiganders. Since
I went to school there for over
a term, I could be counted.
If any of you are interested
(I hope you are) send me your
address and days you aren't
booked for something else, on
a postcard. If you have horse
shoes, baseball, etc., bring il
along.
Any old gals going fishing?
have my license, sleeping
bag and air mattress. I went
out to dig some worms, but
the low lifers heard my foot
steps and plowed themselves
deep under. I found only
three. If, and when, it rains
again I'll show them who is
holding spades.
eye now.
Pearl Spackman
Jacksonville, Ore,
Holding Gold
To the Editor: Why the
secrecy? For some strange
reason the press has been very
reluctant to print what many
would consider startling news.
A recent Federal Court de
cision legalizes the private
ownership of gold In any form
or quantity. Therefore, for the
first time in 33 years, Ameri
can citizens have the same
right as citizens of most other
nations - the right to hold
gold by the ounce, pound or
ton if they can afford it.
M. J. Olson
Route 4, Box 325
Medford.
Editor's note: This is the
first we'd heard of any such
ruling, and we are making
further inquiries to find out
about it. The head of the U.S.
Secret Service office In Port
land knows of no change in
the Gold Reserve Act, either
through legislation or court
ruling.
Tha Queen
To the Editor: "To the
Queen."
This is the title of an ed
itorial which appeared in the
Medford Mail Tribune Sun
day, May 19, referring to an
approaching birthday of
Queen Elizabeth II-"by the
grace of God, of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland, and of Her
other Realms and Territories
Queen, Head of the Common
wealth, and Defender of the
Filth . . . The British affec
tion for monarchs grows with
the passing of time . , ."
Strange, how free men,
praising Democracy,
Obsequiously laud stale
Monarchyl
"Elizabeth Second-by the
grace of God . . ."
Rules o'er an "Empire" that
heeds not her nod . . .
With useless crown on head
and wave of writs,
Victorla-or Elizabeth-would
Insist
'Tis thus a sovereign rules
an "Empire"
Without a horde of troops
who serve for hire!
It's time that Father Time al
last rang down ,
The tyrant's scepler held by
showy clown
Who charged huge taxes
empty show lo see
By slavish subjects chatter
ing they were free!
That Nation's blessed with
freedoms God-like
flower,
That's free from sovereign's
whim-or prison Tower'
Kenneth Ostlumer
3761 South Pacific Hwy.
Medford
Conflicting Appraisals Given of Man
Who Will Lead Independent Kenya Soon
. ill at,;L, - V a..., eat tea 'as
By PHIL NEWSOM
UPI Foreign Naws Analyst
As the British crown colony
and protectorate of Kenya
passes into African hands
this week,
one of the
most contro
versial of all
African lead
ers is the man
tagged the
most likely to
become its
Lmj
premier. He is
J o m o (Burn
Nswsom
ing Spear)
Kenyatte, who spent nine
years under imprisonment
and house detention a chief
organizer of Kenya's white
hating Mau Mau.
Said his convicting judge
in 1953:
"It is my belief that . . ,
you started to organize Mau
Mau, the object of which was
to drive all Europeans from
Kenya, and in doing so to kill
them if necessary. I am satis
fied the master mind behind
this plan was yours . . . You'
have turned the clock back
many years."
Former Kenya Gov. Sir Pat
rick Renison called him "the
African leader to darkness
and death."
A man long acquuainted
with Kenya politics said of
him:
"He is the only wholly evil
man I have ever known . . .
a Communist ... a true re
trogressive who wants to
drive out the whites and
browns and return to the ter
rorist Africa of old."
To all of which Kenyatla
retorted:
"My leadership has not
been to darkness and death
Strictly Personal
By Sydney
(cl Field Enterprises. Inc.
FOND BELIEFS
In my recent piece on "left-
handed thinking," which dealt
with our resistance to changes
of thought, I
mentioned the
hard time giv
en to new
ideas .in sci
ence, from
Harvey on the
circulation of
the blood to
Freud on the
role of the un-
Hartia conscious. We
might expect that Freud
would be bitterly opposed.
because he, after all, dragged
into the light the repressed
sexual conflicts of people, and
outraged the social conven
tions as well as the 'medical
convictions of his age.
But why should people -
and the medical profession as
as much as anyone - have
objected to William Harvey's
discovery of the circulation
of the blood? His investiga
tions did not embarrass "mor
ality," nor did his theory
have any theological or philo
sophical consequences, as Dar
win s did a few centuries
later.
Nevertheless, Harvey
could hardly find tha cour
age to publish his results,
even alter many years of
dissecting no fewer than
80 species of animals, in
cluding reptiles, crustace
ans and insects. Whan he
finally published, he dedi
cated tha book to King
Charles, hoping it would re
ceive a more sympathetic
hearing - and in the dedi
cation compared tha King
and tha realm lo tha heart
and the body.
It seems almost Incredi
ble, but Harvey confided
in a letter to a colleague
that his theory on the quan
tity and the source of blood:
". . . is of so novel and
unheard-of character that I
not only fear injury to my
self from the envy of a few.
but I tremble lest I hare
mankind al large for my
enemies - so much do habit
and custom, that become as
another nature, and doc
trine once sown and that
hath struck deep root, and
respect tor antiquity. Inllu
ence all men; still tha die
is cast, and my trust Is in
love of truth, and tha can
dour that inheres in culti
vated minds."
As Prof. W. I. B. Beveridse
remarks: "His fears were
well founded for he was sub
jected to derision and abuse
and his practice suffered bad
ly. Only after a struggle of 20
years did the circulation of
the blood become generally
accepted."
NOT GENTLEMEN
WashinBton-OTM3cntlemen
may prefer blondes but a
grand jury has indicted three
men here on charges they pre
ferred blondes, brunettes and
red heads. An Indictment Mon
day accused the three men of
grand larceny for the theft of
the three shades of wigs from
a high fashion shop which
valued the hair pieces at $64
each,
but to light and prosperity . .
"I am a true African na
tionalist ....
"Anyone who says I am or
was a Communist is a liar.
I went to Russia for an edu
cation. I also lived in England
for a long time but that does
not mean I became an Eng
lishman." Kcnyatta did live In Eng
land for 15 years. There he
shared a flat with American
Negro singer Paul Robeson
and later married a white
English woman whom he
abandoned to return to Africa.
During his imprisonment.
there were reports that Ken
yatta had become an alco
holic degenerate with a mind
hopelessly clouded.
But visitors found him in
top mental and physical con'
dilion, apparently deeply in'
tercsted in Buddhist philoso
phy and the non-violence
teachings of Ghandi.
He has declared he would
like to stay clear of both
East and West and added:
"When two elephants fight,
it is the grass that suffers.
If East and West fight over
Africa, only Africans will
suffer."
Such was the conflicting
word pictures of the man now
expected to become the first
premier of an autonomous
government which within
year is to lead Kenya to full
independence.
Kenyatta is a member of
the Kikuyu tribe whose one
million members made it by
far the largest among Ken
ya's more than eight million
people.
His political party is the
Kenya Africa National Un
ion which has promised that
J. Harris
(I highly recommend, by
the way, Beveridge's book,
"The Art of Scientific Inves
tigation," now available in a
Vintage paperbook for $1.25)
The human race, it seems,
oannot be reminded too often
and too forcibly that our
thought processes tend to
grow mechanical and habit
forming; that anyone who
dares to challenge these proc
esses becomes abused, ridi
culed, feared and finally
hated. It is worth suffering
a thousand crack-pots rather
than close our ears to one true
genius who calls into question
our fondest beliefs.
In the Day's News
By FRANK JENKINS
Major Gordon Cooper goes
22.7 times around the earth,
a distance of slightly more
than half a million miles, and
comes down only 7,000 yards
(about four miles) from the
rescue ship that was waiting
U pick him up. And ... he
may have landed deliberate
ly wide of the mark to make
sure that the ship hadn't
changed its position.
???????
I reckon we can hit with
a bomb just about any spot
on earth. It gives one a slight
attack of the shivers, doesn't
it?
fjiHE distance he traveled In
his 22 and a fraction trips
around the earth was just un
der 600,000 miles. The round
trip to the moon is a little
less than 500.000 miles. His
time was a little less than a
day and a half.
So
It appears
The time may come when
a round trip to the moon will
be merely a week-end jaunt.
T ISTEN to this:
" In New York a reporter
was interviewing people gath
ered in the huge Grand Cen
tral Station, where the com
muter trains leave for the
suburbs. One of those Inter
viewed was 10-year-old Chris
tine Lewis. Asked what she
thought about it all, she re
plied: "I feel so happy! I'd LIKE
TO VISIT THE MOON MY
SELF, SOME TIME."
4 MONG those questioned at
New York's Grand Central
was a University of Utah
geologist. Dr. William Hewit.
He replied:
"It was a most amazing
achievement for all the world.
Fifty years from now. Major
Cooper's flight will look as
cumbersome tn us as the
Wright Brothers' airplane
does today."
0N
V 18
903. only 60 years ago.
when Orville and Wilbur
Wright made the world's first
flight In a power-driven air
plane at Kitty Hawk. North
Carolina, it Is probable that
no one who saw It or read of
it could have imagined the
Jet airliners of today which
make it possible to have an
early lunch In Paris and late
dinner in San Francisco.
whites, Indians, Arabs and
blacks all will be accorded
equal treatment in a new gov
ernment. What Kenya's 66,000 white
Matter of Fact y -?
e Nw York Hrld Tribune Syndlcat
DOLLAR WHEAT?
Washington - Last weeks
Senate passage of the feed
grains bill was a hardly no
ticed major
Congressional
success for the
a d m i nistra
tion. It means
that the Ken
nedy legisla
tive program
is going better
than most
people sup-
Aim. pose, a aiso
set the stage for this week's
wheat referendum.
This wheat referendum also
deserves more notice, as an
event with really convulsive
possibilities. The Agriculture
Department, which expect',
the wheat farmers to approve
its proposals, is forecasting a
record vote of more than a
million wheat growers and
their wives.
If the Department is right,
stricter production controls
will be approved, designed to
hold next year's wheat crop
to about 1.1 billion bushels:
but in compensation, the farm
ers will get high price sup
ports for their wheat. But if
barely more than one-third
of the farmers vote "no" in
the referendum, production
controls and effective price
supports will both go out the
window.
-
THIS is the feature that
mnlrpa thA i-AfprenHitm nn.
t e n t i a 1 1 y convulsive. The
Farm Bureau Federation,
which has been leading the
opposition to the wheat plan,
has been grossly misleading
the farmers on this point. For
example, Farm Bureau Presi
dent Charles Schumann has
publicly promised the wheat
growers that Congress will
quickly "bail them out"" if
they vote no.
In reality, the odds are bet
ter than ten-to-one against
any bailing out operation. It
would again have to take the
familiar, pernicious form of
bill subsidizing over one-
half production at vast cost,
by offering high price sup
ports combined with lax pro
duction controls. But the
mood has shifted, both in Con
gress and in the executive
branch.
THAT historic day at
Kitty Hawk. Orville
Wright piloted the little con
traption that by courtesy and
with great pride they called
an AIRPLANE.
He flew 120 feet and re
mained in the air for 12 sec
onds. Only five' persons were
interested enough to watch
the flight, and few newspa
pers wrote anything about it.
Most persons thought the
Wright brothers were crazy.
But they weren't dismayed
by what happened at Kitty
Hawk. They continued to
work on their crazy contrap
tion, and in 1905, two years
later, they flew 24 miles In
39 minutes.
T'HE next year they received
a patent for their inven
tion.They tried to interest peo
ple in their flying machine,
but on one listened to them.
The U.S. government thought
it impractical and dangerous.
That was only an average
lifetime ago. And look what
has happened since! So who
can predict what will come
of space travel?
"... and 1 say to this columnist, 'You're a dirty,
linking, opinionated rat, and you haven't got the
courage of your convictions.' Signed Anonymous . . .!"
settlers think of Kenyatta s
promises is of small moment,
of less moment than a dust
devil stirred by Africa's
"winds of change."
Of course the Republicans
from the farm states will of
fer the kind of bill above-ouU
lined if the wheat plan is
voted down; and of course
they will try to make political
capital out of it.- But only
Farm Bureau President Schu.
mann thinks the Congress can
be persuaded to pass such at
bill. And in the most unlikely
event that such a bill is pass
ed, It will be vetoed by th
President.
a
CONVULSIVE is therefore
mild word to describe the
consequences of a heavy "no"
vote in the wheat referendum.
With no controls, wheat out
put is expected to rise to 1.5
billion bushels, or 400 million
bushels more than the reason
able current requirement.
With no effective price sup
ports, the wheat price will
almost certainly drop from
the present $2 level to around
$1 a bushel.
Great numbers of wheat
farmers will then face ruin
or near-ruin. The wheat-growing
areas will be economically
disrupted. The wheat markets
will become chaotic. And the
effects will ramify outwards
into the markets for other
farm products.
This does not necessarily
mean, however, that the strict
control - high - price - support
combination is the only way
out of the farm problem. At
least for the long run, a much
simpler, much less costly ap
proach is advocated by Sen.
Herman Talmadge of Georgia,
and both the President and
Secretary of Agriculture Or
ville Freeman are now show
ing signs of increasing inter
est in the Talmadge approach.
Cotton, which Is Senator
Talmadge's special interest, is
In a super-mess. The cotton
program is immensely expen
sive, yet only 3 per cent ol
the 650,000 cotton farmers
get 56 per cent of the Federal
payments. A single producer,
Russell Giffen of California,
gets $2,000,000 per annum
from the Treasury, and the
five largest producers receive
as much as the combined total
payment to the 250,000 small
est producers. Meanwhile the
artificially high domestic cot
ton price is ruining the Amer
ican cotton-textile manufac
turers.
ALL this, says Senator Tal
mariffe with sntinrl Inffip.
is vicious nonsense, without
economic or moral justifica
tion. But he adds that there
is a moral, social, and even
biological justification for
helping the smaller higher
cost farm producer to stay on
the farm with his family.
Hence the Senator has of
fered a cotton bill, now before
the Senate Agriculture com
mittee, which will do two
things. It will pay direct sub
sidies to cotton growers, in
reverse proportion to their
output - high to small pro
ducers, very low indeed to
larger producers. And it will
return cotton to the market
place, getting the U. S. gov
ernment out of the costly busi
ness of "buying, storing, trans
porting, selling, and giving
away cotton."
Incidentally, the Talmadge
bill is also estimated to save
the taxpayer $500 million an
nually. But the main attrac
tion of the Talmadge approach
is Its logic. It avoids the deci
mation of the farm popula
tion which the anti-control
ideologists seem to want, with
out admitting it. It helps
those who need help and no
one else. It cleans up an ugly
mess. In fact, it ought to per
suade everyone but the ideolo
gists.