STATEMENT OF MR. J. W. SCOTT, GRAND FORKS, N..DAK. The CHAIRMAN. You have known, Mr. Scott, of course, of the depression in the price of wheat in the Northwest which has resulted in the past few months. As a producer of grain you have naturally looked into the subject of the causes of that. Can you give the committee any information that will be of use to it on that question? Mr. SCOTT. On the cost of production? The CHAIRMAN. No; on the causes of the slump in the price. Mr. SCOTT. As I see it in North Dakota, the real cause for this big slump was this Canadian wheat coming down in such great quantities that it took the place of our wheat and depressed our market. I might say, I suppose, that the bears took advantage of these conditions, and they can help it along by selling immense quantities of wheat that does not exist. I believe they do some harm sometimes in that way. But, on the other hand, they have got to buy that wheat back. There is no way that they can avoid buying it back, and it seems to me that if they depress the price when they are selling it they must to some extent, anyway, put the price up when they buy it back-and they have got to buy it back. The CHAIRMAN. That is, the man they sell to must buy it back? Mr. SCOTT. They have got to. There is no way that they can get around it. They have got to buy it back, and they have got to buy it back in the market where they sell it. If they sell in Minneapolis, they have got to buy it back there. If they sell in Chicago, New York, or Duluth, they have got to buy it back there. Our Democratic friends up there were the first ones to ask the President for an embargo, in our State, that I know of; but we all think, both the Democrats and the Republicans, that this Canadian wheat coming into the United States was the main cause for depressing the price away below the cost of production. Every farmer that sold after October came in, sold his wheat at a loss. The CHAIRMAN. And this immense amount began to come in in September? Mr. Scort. Yes, sir; in September I guess the greatest amount came in. It kept coming from September right along up to the close of navigation. Their wheat comes into the United States principally by water from Port Arthur and Fort William. It comes down the Lakes. That is the cheapest way. The CHAIRMAN. Is there anything else you want to say? Mr. SCOTT. No; nothing, unless you wish to ask any further questions. The CHAIRMAN. I have no further questions. Have you, Senator McLean? Senator MCLEAN. No. The CHAIRMAN. We are very much obliged to you, Mr. Scott. The CHAIRMAN. I want to put into the record, following the testimony of Mr. Scott, a letter from the Farmers Grain Co. upon the subject of abolishing future trading in grain, and I ask that the reporter enter it in the record. (The letter referred to is as follows:) Senator P. J. MCCUMBER, Washington, D. C. THE FARMERS GRAIN Co., Devils Lake, N. Dak., January 10, 1921. DEAR SIR: There are several propositions before Congress, as we understand it, to abolish future trading in grain. While we will readily admit that there has been abuses of future trading in the past, and especially this last fall, we are afraid that if Congress changes our present marketing machinery they should be very sure that something workable is put in its place. If not, losses will result to the interests that it is aimed to help. The farmers' elevators have materially changed the country end of grain marketing from what it was 20 years ago, and it has undisputably been to the advantage of the grain growers. If hedging is abolished, we think we would all be put out of business, as we do not think we could get credit and be financed without hedging our purchases. Grain would undoubtedly have to to be bought on larger margins to cover the greater risks, and that would have to come out of the grain growers' pocket. We have watched carefully the different plans proposed by different farmers' organizations and have not yet seen any practical, working plan that is ready to take the place of what we have now-grain exchanges, with their chance to hedge your purchases. We represent directly 18 country elevators that this company owns, but indirectly all the farmers' elevators in the State. Take hedging away and we can not continue business. Respectfully, THE FARMERS GRAIN CO. By OLE SERUMGARD, Manager. (Thereupon, at 4.30 o'clock p. m., the committee adjourned, to meet at the call of the chairman.) INDEX OF WITNESSES. Page. Aspegren, John, Portsmouth, Va., president of the Portsmouth Cotton Oil 79-80 Briggs, George D., New York City, representing the National Sheep and Wool Bronson, W. H., Boston, Mass., representing New England Milk Producers Chaffe, Joseph B., New Orleans, representing the American Cane Growers Delapenha, Rodolph U., Poughkeepsie, N. Y., president of the Olive Oil Dunn, Arthur, San Francisco, Calif., representing Foreign Commerce Associa- Dunn, Charles W., New York, N. Y., attorney at law representing the Soap 87-89 57-67 235-242, 254-256 189-196 242-244 160-175 100-113 205-208 184-188, 189 Farmers' Grain Co., Devils Lake, N. Dak., statement. Atkeson, Dr. T. C., representing the National Grange, Washington, D. C.... 224-226 232, 266 287 Fitch, Walter, of Fitch Cornell & Co., New York, N. Y.; representing New 251-254 Gearm, C. P., New York, N. Y., representing New York Mercantile Ex- 256-258 Groner, Hon. D. Lawrence, Norfolk, Va., representing the peanut industry.... 80-87 244-247 Hagenbarth, F. J., Salt Lake City, Utah, on behalf of the Woolgrowing Indus- 4-39, 51 Ittner, M. H., New York, N. Y., representing Colgate & Co. and the American 196-200 Johnston, Albert T., New York, N. Y., representing the Borden Co. 261-264 Loomis, A. M., Washington, D. C., secretary National Dairy Union.. 55 264-266 258-261 McNary, Hon. Charles L., United States Senator from Oregon; cherries.. 219-222 55-56 151-160 Loos, K. D., Chicago, Ill., representing the California Citrus League; lemons. 127-150 Milling, Robert E., New Orleans, La., sugar.. Munn, M. D., Chicago, Ill., president National Dairy Council. 232-235, 249-251 114-125 222-223 New York Mercantile Exchange, Julius D. Mahr, president, statement of.. 274-275 30422-21-19 Nichols, J. D., Cleveland, Ohio, representing Ohio Dairy Produce Association Page. 247-249 Ogg, W. A., Boston, Mass., president American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co.; · 275-285 Page, Hon. Thomas Walker, United States Tariff Commission. 230-231 Reid, Joseph E., New York City, representing receivers and distributors of Ber- 175-184 Rheinstrom, James A., president Rheinstrom Bros. Co., Cincinnati, Ohio; 208-209.226-230 Schilling, W. F., Northfield, Minn., president Twin City Milk Producers Asso- Scott, J. W., Grand Forks, N. Dak., farmer. 51-55 Smith, H. M., New York, N. Y., president Vegetable Oils Association and rep- 185-188 Thurmond, George M., Del Rio, Tex., secretary and treasurer of the Texas Sheep 39-51 Walsh, Hon. Joseph, Representative in the Congress of the United States from Turner, Francis M., New York, N. Y., chemical engineer, American Nut & 89-95 96-99 Wood, John P., Philadelphia, Pa., National Association of Wool Manufacturers, 67-79 |