The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Williams, do you have anything you would like to bring to the attention of the committee?

Mr. WILLIAMs. Yes, Mr. Chairman.

The CHAIRMAN. Suppose you come up to the committee table.

FURTHER STATEMENT BY CARL WILLIAMS, MEMBER OF THE FEDERAL FARM BOARD, WASHINGTON, D. C.

The CHAIRMAN. You may proceed, Mr. Williams.

Mr. WILLIAMS. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, there are two or three exhibits which have been asked for and which I shall be glad now to supply.

In the first place, Senator Brookhart asked on yesterday for certain information in regard to American exports of cotton in proportion to the total of all exports. I will be glad to present certain tables for the record in reference to

(1) The world supply and distribution of American, foreign, and all cotton:

World supply and distribution of American, foreign, and all cotton [American cotton in thousands of running bales; foreign cotton in thousands of 478-pound bales]

World supply and distribution of American, foreign, and all cotton-Con.

Source: Based primarily on New York Cotton Exchange service. NOTE.- Supply less consumption does not equal carry-over exactly owing to small amount of cotton destroyed.

(2) The consumption of American cotton in thousands of running bales, and of foreign cotton in thousands of 478-pound bales, in the United States, in Europe, and in Asia, from 1920-21 to 1930–31:

Consumption of cotton

[American cotton in thousands of running bales; foreign cotton in thousands of 478-pound bales]

(3) Production of foreign cotton in the world, by nations and by years:

TABLE 1.—Production of foreign cotton in the world

Source: Based primarily on New York Cotton Service.

Now, all that may be summarized by stating that in 1929-30 the United States exported 6,690,000 bales, Egypt 1,333,000 bales, India 3,078,000 bales, and miscellaneous countries exported to the United Kingdom 847,000 bales.

These are the figures for 1930-31: The United States exported 6,760,000 bales as compared to 6,690,000 bales; Egypt 1,380,000 bales as compared to 1,333,000 bales; and India 2,960,000 bales as compared to 3,078,000 bales in the preceding year. And miscellaneous to the United Kingdom 575,000 bales as compared to 847,000 bales.

The total exports of cotton from the above countries in 1929–30 were 11,948,000 bales, and in 1930-31 were 11,675,000 bales.

The percentage of American exports of cotton as compared to the above exports in 1929-30 was 56 per cent, and in 1930–31 it was 58 per cent.

The records for the first four months of this year show that the figures are still going up in percentage of American cotton exported as compared to world exports.

Senator NORRIS. As I remember it, that bears out Senator Brookhart's statement of what he thought were the facts, does it not, in regard to the world exportation?

Mr. WILLIAMS. I think it does. The United States furnishes a majority of world's export.

Senator NORRIS. Yes. That bears out Senator Brookhart's statement. Senator Brookhart is not here to-day.

Senator SHIPSTEAD. And exports are going up?

Mr. WILLIAMS. And exports of American cotton are going up. They went up slightly in the year 1930-31 as compared to the year 1929-30, and they are going up rapidly this year. In the first four months of this year exports to Great Britain of American cotton increased 16 per cent as compared to the same four months of the last fiscal year and to the Orient 162 per cent above the same four months last year.

Senator SHIPSTEAD. You mean exports increased 162 per cent? Mr. WILLIAMS. Exports to the Orient, meaning Japan, China,

and India

Senator SHIPSTEAD. Increased that much this year?

Mr. WILLIAMS (continuing). Increased in the first four months of this year 162 per cent over the same period of last year. I speak of the fiscal year from August 1 to July 31.

Exports to Germany and the Central European countries, on account of the continued business depression there, continued to decline. The first four months show 18 per cent less than the same period last year.

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Consumption in the United States was up in that same four months per cent over the same period of last year.

And the consumption of American cotton in the world was up 15 per cent in the first four months of this year as compared to the first four months of last year.

There are one or two general observations I would like to make, Mr. Chairman, in connection with the testimony which has been given and to which I have listened. The first is that if I had approached this subject without previous detailed knowledge of the situation it would have been exceedingly hard for me to grasp the magnitude and complexity of the Farm Board problem and the tremendous size of its operations as presented in these hearings. I feel like congratulating the members of the committee for the way they have attacked the subject and the exceedingly intelligent questions they have asked.

I think that some phases have, perhaps, not been fully covered and that some things, perhaps, have been unconsciously overemphasized by some of the witnesses. As, for example, the paper losses on wheat and cotton.

I had a compilation made yesterday showing the values at which the various lots of cooperative and stabilization cotton could be sold to clear the Stabilization Corporation and the cooperatives of all indebtedness. Those figures show that stabilization cotton could be sold on the basis of middling seven-eighths near month New York at 17.85 to clear all indebtedness, that the American Cotton Cooperative Association cotton could be sold at less than 11 cents to clear all indebtedness, and that if the Stabilization Corporation should take over the cotton of the cooperatives at cost the total loss to the corporation could be entirely cleared by the sale of all cotton at a trifle over 13 cents.

The CHAIRMAN. That is twice its present value, though?

Mr. WILLIAMS. It is approximately twice its present value. There are those paper losses. I submit to the committee, however, that 13-cent cotton is in no sense an impossibility, and that the board itself and the cooperatives themselves confidently intend to go forward with this program until it can be worked out on such a basis. Some question was raised by Senator Thomas-I am sorry he is not here with reference to the position in which the cooperatives find themselves bearing this burden of so-called paper loss. The suggestion was made by me to the officials of the American Cotton Cooperative Association that in view of that situation they might be nervous about it, and that they might be willing to consider the tak

ing over of American Cotton Cooperative Association cotton by the Stabilization Corporation. That matter was discussed in a meeting of the board of directors of the American Cotton Cooperative Association and indignantly rejected. They felt that they were in a very much better position to go forward as they are, believing as they do and as we do that the thing will work out eventually to the profit of all concerned, than to allow the Stabilization Corporation to take over their holdings.

Reference has been made by Senator Gore this morning to the costs of cooperatives. I would refer you to the annual report of the Federal Farm Board, and I would like to read for the record this repetition :

Within the past year much progress has been made toward reducing the costs of operation of cotton cooperatives. Total operating costs of member associations of the American Cotton Cooperative Association last year varied, in the case of specific associations, from about $0.61 to as much as $1.53 per bale. With the assistance of the board, considerable reductions have been made in the budgets of several associations for the season 1931-32, and still further reductions are in prospect. Since the cotton cooperatives frequently render many services to their members not rendered by private dealers, their operating costs can not fairly be compared directly with those of other agencies. With a view not only to still further reducing costs but also to improving service to farmers, the board has encouraged the associations to adopt uniform accounting systems and, subject to local conditions, uniform methods of operations.

I may say in that connection that the Federal Farm Board receives daily reports of the operations of State associations, including that of A. C. C. A. Those daily reports are checked against monthly balance sheets. Those monthly balance sheets are checked against annual audit reports by outside certified public accountants. By that method we keep ourselves fairly well informed concerning the operations of the cotton cooperatives and are able to intelligently suggest improvements in method, reductions in cost, and increases in efficiency. I hold no brief at all for their perfection. They are by no means any more perfect-perhaps in some cases not as much so as private business corporations. They are improving all the time, however, in the service they render, in the efficiency of that service, and in the economy of that service to farmers. I think progress is being made.

Senator GORE. On that point, Mr. Williams: The reason I brought that up this morning, I understood Mr. Creekmore yesterday in saying 50 cents, that he meant that covered the total handling from the farmer to the ultimate consumer.

Mr. WILLIAMSs. No. That would be the cost of the services performed by the national organization. Certain services such as the gathering of the cotton, of membership relations, local classing offices, educational work, conducting membership campaigns, handling the members' accounts, handling and remitting the moneys

Senator GORE. Mr. Creekmore said it was 50 cents, and I said I thought it was bound to be more than that; I thought it was around $1.25, private. And I was curious to know the difference. Now can you tell what cooperatives handle for 60 cents?

Mr. WILLIAMS. I could. I would hesitate to follow your question through and answer what cooperative cost $1.53. I do not want to make invidious comparisons between them.