Legislative Assembly

ports which place before the people the top level of possibilities in agriculture. Their estimates of production, to my mind is away out. They don’t take into consideration the seasons, the difficulties that prevent the production of crops at a high level. I re-emphasize that the problem here, our chief problem in the Province of Prince Edward Island, is the enunciation and application of policies that are going to bring more money into the hands of the farmers who produce here. If he is able to pro- duce a bushel of potatoes or a hog or a steer or even the eggs, and it’s a long way back there, if he can produce them at a profit, you needn’t worry about extra farm land. The farmer will take care of that. If he’s making money on fifty acres, he’ll get a hundred acres and we don’t have to go out on some foolish promotional plan to clear up and bring into production 400,000 acres more land, a great bulk of which is not fitted for agriculture and should be left in woodland. Now, Mr. Speaker, I’m going on. I will leave that at that point, but I would like to say something in con-

nection with agriculture.

Hon. Alexander B. Campbell: Agriculture?

Walter R. Shaw: What?

Hon. Alexander B. Campbell: Agriculture?

\Valter R. Shaw: Yes. I must have planned that. Hon. Alexander B. Campbell: Oh, you just started.

Walter R. Shaw: Yes. Now, I wonder what I did with that. Has an enemy got into my notes here? Now, let me see. Well, the first thing I got here is, let us take a look at it. Let us take a look at the farm situation, and we have taken a look at it. All winter our people in this province would be in far better position on the farms if this Government had done it’s job since they came in to power. Take a look at this. Mr. Speaker. You’re a very wise and sagacious sort of a citizen and hear his claim. “We will place more emphasis on agriculture than any other Gov- ernment in the history of the Province.” Well, here’s the chance. They’ve asked him for something. “We will appoint a Director of farm labor.” Where did he go? “We will give financial assistance for agriculture and education.” Well, we were doing that for some years. “We will have more field representatives and engineers in the Department of Agriculture.” I wonder where they are? “We will expand credit on mortgage loans.” This is a good one. “We will give spare parts and service to farmers in need.” Where is it? “We will give assistance for farm clearing and drainage,” which we have been doing for a number of years. “We will have the A.R.D.A. program work for farmers and on farm loans,” “there will be no interest for three years,” Mr. Premier. Are you listening to me? No interest for three years and no payment for principle for four years. This is the time, this is the time when they ask for a moratorium on these accounts. This is the time for the Premier of this Province and this Government to act. They made that promise dur- ing the election campaign. These promises. ..they have no more intention of filling them than a goose has to go to Constantinople. “We will do more under a Liberal Government. which I will have the honor of leading, in meeting the needs of our farmers than has even been done by any previous Government in the history of the Province,” states Mr. Campbell. Right in the middle of the fulfillment of these pro- mises you have representatives of the farm industry. representatives of the Fed- eration of Agriculture coming in to the Government and saying, ‘we never had harder times in this country for agriculture’ and that’s backed up by the statement of the man who moved the resolution yesterday. That can’t be denied and you can’s answer it. Low cost money for farmers and fishermen and modern housing for Island farm- ers. By the way, where are they? We propose to establish a research and produc— tivity council to provide new methods and better prices.” What a wonderful outlook. It’s no wonder that many of the farmers in this province were rather led away by those flamboyant promises that they had never any intention at all of fulfilling. “P.E.I. economy will rise to a new high: farmers will become our primary concern” and What has happened? From the moment they came in to power they forgot the farmer and the Federation of Agriculture had to recently wake up my Honourable friend, the Minister of Agriculture, to the fact that conditions are now worse than during the period of the depression in the 19305. That is the story. They know the conditions. Demand that moratorium. After all, is this not substantially the promise that was made to meet that moratorium? The appropriations to help farmers in

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