creased demand for water for human consumption, irrigation, and industrial use will develop into serious problems unless we immediately plan and put into operation a sound program of water conservation.

(3) Sanitation.-Our rapidly expanding population centers will make it increasingly necessary that we give additional thought to programs of sanitation for both rural and urban areas.

(4) Family-size farms.—We hear much about the plight of the family-size farm and the role it will play in the future of rural America. This is a problem that must be settled through sound and realistic thinking on the part of all interested groups.

(5) Corporation-type farming.-Just what is the status of corporation-type farming-as opposed to family-type farming-and what is the actual relationship that should exist between the two? Just how far should we go in encouraging family-size farms, and how far should we go in opposing or obstructing the development of corporation-type farming?

(6) Vertical integration in agriculture.-What is the future of vertical integration in agriculture? What will be its affect upon citizens of rural America, and upon the American economy?

(7) Rural communities.-Just what is to be the effect of technological and other developments upon the rural communities, as we have known them in the past? How far should we go in an attempt to preserve the rural community as a center of schools, churches, and recreational facilities?

Decisions made in connection with the problems and developments we have just mentioned, will determine the future of rural America. We believe that a commission such as that provided by this legislation can be of great assistance in studies, appraisals, and considerations resulting in decisions which will more effectively serve the best interest of rural America and the future of the American way of life. We, therefore, recommend the approval of H. R. 11844.

Mr. THOMPSON. Then let us go ahead with Mr. Johnson.

Mr. JOHNSON. I would appreciate the opportunity to give the statement to you orally.

Mr. THOMPSON. Go right ahead.

STATEMENT OF REUBEN JOHNSON, COORDINATOR OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES, NATIONAL FARMERS UNION

Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I feel very humble following the distinguished educators, religious leaders, and particularly the distinguished farmer from Wisconsin, whose statement I thought was very excellent and appropriate on the subject before the subcommittee.

I am Reuben Johnson, coordinator of legislative services, National Farmers Union.

We are convinced that farm families on family farms are an essential balancing force in the social and political structure that is vital to the stability, preservation, and improvement of representative democratic government, of an efficient and productive economic system, and of a satisfying world society.

On the family farm, the business and home are one, the family is owner of capital, borrower of funds and accumulator of savings, manager of home and business, and the major source of labor. The child grows up with the opportunity for well-rounded knowledge of life, nature, business, and home. He learns the meaning of ownership and the security of a place called home. Grave danger to democratic institutions would result if we allow our entire population, including agriculture and small business, to become divided into separate groups of owners, managers, financiers, and workers.

The preceding three paragraphs, Mr. Chairman, are quoted verbatim from the official program of National Farmers Union for 1958. These paragraphs have been given a prominent place in our statement on H. R. 11844 because we feel that the study and work of the Commission on Country Life should be centered around the family

farm and the pressures which threaten to weaken and destroy the environment necessary for its growth and well-being.

We feel sure that the sponsors of H. R. 11844 intend that the Commission's report 2 years hence should contain recommendations for legislation and other actions necessary to protect the opportunities of families to own, to manage, and to work their own farms with assurance of the bargaining power necessary for earnings on a par with other families who earn their livelihood in nonfarm pursuits.

Because we share these concepts with the sponsors of a Commission on Country Life, we are glad to appear before the Family Farm Subcommittee in support of H. R. 11844, introduced by Congressman Brooks Hays of Arkansas.

Mr. DIXON. What is the community college?

Mr. JOHNSON. I didn't get your question.

Mr. DIXON. Why do you support the community college?

Mr. JOHNSON. Dr. Dixon, for a number of years, Farmers Union has felt that there was a need for community colleges to permit farm youths the opportunity to continue their education beyond high school at more reasonable costs. The farm family pressed for income to send young people away to colleges have a very definite need for this type of institution we feel. And we sincerely hope that the Commission that will be established under the legislation before this subcommittee would study the problem to see what could be done to solve it.

Mr. DIXON. Do you think that it is heresy that everyone has to have a 4-year degree-do you not think that is heresy?

Mr. JOHNSON. We are not implying Dr. Dixon, that we would deny young people on farms the opportunity to pursue post-high-school educational opportunities through the 4-year college level. We hope that the opportunity will continue to exist for them to get college degrees. We do feel, however, there is a need for the community type of institution.

Mr. DIXON. You do not need to apologize. I think you said one of the finest things I have heard in all of these hearings. I think that the community college is definitely the greatest solution to our problem of higher education with a terminal program, vocational work, and all of that, where we handle the boys and girls from across the tracks and on the farms and every place else.

It is really the American institution in my opinion.

Mr. JOHNSON. Well, the Farmers Union believes that we need to make progress on other educational fronts as well.

We have supported vocational education that you mentioned over the years.

We hope, Mr. Chairman, that the Commission will give attention. to the enrichment of rural neighborhoods and communities in other ways. In adopting the official program of Farmers Union, delegates gave recognition to religious influence in life on the farm. The interest of Farmers Union in our churches is reflected in a paragraph from our program as follows:

Religious influence has a major role in the improvement of family farm living. The unique spiritual values of living on the land must be preserved. We urge the development of an understanding and application of the great religious principles in our daily living. The increasing concern that church groups have shown for the family farm is most encouraging. We desire to cooperate with church groups in a continuing application of religious and ethical principles to the great agricultural policy issues of the day.

We are gratified that many church groups are interested in the work of a Commission in Country Life because we feel that such groups will be able to contribute substantially to the work and study of the Commission and thereby to its final report to the Congress.

We support, also, the early establishment of public rural and ruralurban educational centers to meet the needs of adults as well as children. These centers should include parks, playgrounds, day nurseries, meeting halls, recreation facilities and equipment, and libraries with traveling auxiliaries.

We urge that the Commission study inadequacies of such facilities in rural areas and devise ways to meet the need that exists. There continues to be a need also for more community colleges to afford young people the opportunity to obtain at least 14 years of education in their own communities. This is another matter that we urge the Commission to study and make recommendations for solving.

Other matters which are of great interest to farm families and their organizations which we urge the Commission to study are as follows: It was of great interest to me, as a spokesman for Farmers Union, to hear Mr. Swanton comment so strongly on some of the points that we have enumerated in our testimony.

1. Vertical integration in the interest of farm families.

2. Strengthening farmer cooperatives.

3. Administration of farm programs by farmer-elected committees. 4. Means to good soil-conservation practices and land-use planning. 5. Improved farm credit.

6. Expanding consumption-school lunches, school milk, food-stamp plan.

7. National food reserves.

8. Deficiencies of medical personnel and facilities in rural areas and means of meeting health needs of farm families.

9. Expanding REA and RTA services.

10. Problem of increasing farm exports without working such exports to the economic disadvantages of nations with whom we are competing over these markets: Renewal on international wheat and sugar agreements, international food and raw-materials reserves, international agreements for other farm commodities entering importantly into world trade.

We think these points should be subject to study and consideration, by any commission that would be established under the legislation. before the subcommittee.

It is of significance, we feel, that a bill to establish a Commission on Country Life is before the Family Farm Subcommittee for hearings. It puts such legislation in the right kind of climate at the outset and reflects accurately the attitudes and feelings of those who support enactment of the bill.

We appreciate very much the opportunity to appear and present our views.

Mr. THOMPSON. Thank you very much, Mr. Johnson.

And for the committee I want to say that we appreciate your feeling about this being a good climate in which to present your views and to present the legislation we have in mind.

Mr. JOHNSON. May I say in this connection, Mr. Chairman, as you know, we have followed very closely the hearings that the Family

Farm Subcommittee has held over the Nation. And many of our members have participated in the hearings. We feel that you have rendered a very great service to American agriculture in the type of hearings that have been held and the publishing of these hearings and in contacts you have made out over the Nation in pointing up some of the problems of the family farmer.

Mr. THOMPSON. If we are successful in passing this legislation (much of the success of this will depend on the attitude of the Department of Agriculture and of farm organizations, all of them), I would certainly hope that the Commission, itself, would follow the course that we took in getting a bus and going on out into the country, to take the Government to the people who do not have a chance to come to Washington. It was one of the most rewarding experiences of my own life-it has been all of the time.

Mr. DIXON. I noticed a splendid appeal for exports and anything that will increase the consumption of our surpluses in your statement. Mr. JOHNSON. Yes.

Mr. DIXON. I am a little surprised that you did not mention in there our struggle for utilization research of farm crops. We only use 7 percent of our agricultural commodities in industry. For the life of us we can't seem to create much steam behind what I think is one of the best solutions to the farm problem.

Mr. JOHNSON. Dr. Dixon, I wish I could share completely the enthusiasm that you have for this approach. We in the Farmers Union have supported legislation to provide for more industrial use of farm commodities.

Mr. DIXON. We have not had any hearings on that this year.

Mr. JOHNSON. The delegates to our convention expressed themselves in our official program as feeling that food for human consumption should come first. In other words, we should meet the human needs that exist, before we get into the utilization of food for industrial purposes.

Our State president in Nebraska, Mr. Elton Berck, appeared before the hearings of the Senate committee in support of their legislation and I understand now that the Senate has approved a bill. We believe that the bill has some shortcomings as it is presently drafted. But we are hoping that we can strengthen it before it becomes law. Possibly, we will have an opportunity to do that on the House side. Mr. DIXON. That was the bill by Senator Curtis?

Mr. JOHNSON. They have reported out a clean bill in the Senate Agriculture Committee which combines many of the points in the various bills that have been before the committee introduced by a number of Senators. So far as not including it in our list, I want to assure you that this is only a partial list of those things that we feel the Commission might very valuably investigate, study, and report upon.

Mr. DIXON. I look to that as one of the great opportunities in this whole movement for rural families.

Mr. JOHNSON. There are so many things that this Commission might study that I did not attempt to list all of them. These are some of the more important things. You will notice that I listed the problem of vertical integration first in our list. We feel that this is a serious threat to the family farm as we know it today and have known it, and that the Commission should devote a great deal of attention to the

study of vertical integration and how farmers may use it in their own interests. We are not opposed to vertical integration in the Farmers Union. We just want the farmers to learn how to use it so that they do not become employees of somebody who gets into the business of farming from outside of the present farm sector of our economy. This, of course, could involve expanded use of cooperatives. We would, certainly, feel that this is another matter which the Commission should consider.

Mr. DIXON. The problems are bound together. I want to compliment you on your paper.

Mr. Chairman, I should like to correct the record on what I said, we haven't had hearings on our utilization. We did in 1957 have hearings. There have been no hearings in 1958. I would like the record to show that I made several requests for hearings on utilization research program this year but so far we haven't had any and I am in hopes that we can, so that the House committee can go along in this progressive move with the Senate committee.

Mr. THOMPSON. Thank you very much, Mr. Johnson. We appreciate your testimony.

The Chair notices the presence here of Miss Krettek, of the American Library Association. Miss Krettek, we will be glad to have you file a statement, which I understand that you desire to do. Also, we would be very glad to have you testify at future meetings of this particular committee. I doubt that we will meet tomorrow. We will have to have a meeting next week some time.

Mr. DIXON. May I ask a question? How did we come out on the appropriation for your new rural libraries?

Miss KRETTEK. It is still in conference, Mr. Dixon. The Senate raised the amount to $6 million. That is still in conference.

Mr. DIXON. We would like the House to go along with that.

Miss KRETTEK. Very much, and we feel that we should like to extend the service to those who do not have such service. We hope we will have you go along with us.

(The statement referred to above is as follows:)

STATEMENT BY GERMAINE KRETTEK, DIRECTOR, WASHINGTON OFFICE, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION

Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, my name is Germaine Krettek. I am director of the Washington office of the American Library Association, a nonprofit, professional association of more than 20,000 members, consisting of librarians, trustees, and friends of libraries interested in the development, extension, and improvement of libraries as essential factors in the educational program of the Nation.

The American Library Association has long had a deep concern in the problems of country communities. It has participated regularly in meetings of the various groups and agencies devoted to an appraisal of and action on rural questions. It was out of this concern that the Library Services Act of 1956 grew and came into being. This library legislation is now bringing significant educational opportunities to small towns, villages, and farm communities hitherto unreached by library services. It is hoped that before long, adequate library service will be available to the many millions of adults, young people, and children who now have little or no library service.

Our activity in connection with this rural library legislation, and with other rural extension work, has brought forcibly to our attention the need for a new Commission on Country Life. We feel that it is very important for this Commission to be established to give thoughtful consideration to the economic and social changes which are affecting all phases of human life and endeavor in