Red Orders

Another Iron Curtain country took an obliging bite out of Canada's Worrisome wheat surplus last week. Shortly after Soviet Russia had signed a three-year contract to buy 100 million bu., Czechoslovakia placed an order for up to 11,800,000 bu. Poland had already ordered 12,950,000 bu., and Hungary was reported ready to buy some 3,000,000 bu. Prospects looked good that Canada would unload nearly 15% of her wheat surplus to Communist customers.

In Ottawa, where the wheat glut is the government's No. i political problem, there was such satisfaction over the orders that few people paused to consider why the Reds had placed them. In the past the Iron Curtain nations were wheat exporters themselves. The surprisingly big Soviet order for Canadian wheat, which is to be delivered to Siberia, was supposedly placed in order to spare the Russians the trouble of rail-hauling grain from the Ukraine. But if that were the case, there should be surplus grain on hand in western Russia for satellite Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary.

One explanation might be that the Iron Curtain nations suffered a well-concealed crop failure last season. Another possibility is that the Red orders were placed for a propaganda purpose. Buying token amounts of wheat from Canada at a time when the country is deeply worried about its wheat surplus would be a devious but possibly effective way to make friends. Trade & Commerce Minister C. D. Howe made it clear, however, that as far as Canada was concerned, the business was strictly business. Said Howe: "No quid pro quo has been asked for and none has been offered."

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