TWENTY-FIRST ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART VII 613 



li'rance, the balance of the world six years ago was practically pigless. 

 During the war, the supposition is, the pigs in those countries engaged 

 In the war were wiped out, leaving the United States practically in con- 

 trol of the pork production of the world. 



Along the line of sheep, it is interesting to note that the number 

 of sheep increased remarkably during the war, because the countries that 

 were engaged in the war never did produce very many sheep. Russia, I 

 think, had somthing like 45,000,000, and those, probably, were wiped 

 out during the war. Australia, New Zealand, Africa and South America 

 produce by far the greater number of those animals. During the last 

 few months there have been imported into the United States something 

 like 25,000,000 frozen carcasses of lambs. Those that have been frozen 

 in the United States amount to about 1,900,000. So when you find the 

 sheep market in the United States down to li/^ cents a pound, you imme- 

 diately think of the 25,000,000 frozen carcasses that have come in from 

 some other part of the world. 



You know those countries in South America, for instance Argentina, 

 comprise a territory 2,000 miles long and about 600 miles wide, reaching 

 from the Tropics to the Antartics, rich, fertile territory. Just north 

 of it is Brazil, with a territory almost as large as the United States, also 

 rich and undeveloped. Brazil we think about as an exporter of coffee, 

 and practically all of our coffee comes from there, but Brazil today is 

 supporting 20,000,000 head of cattle, and it is exporting hides and tallow 

 and fresh meats. Argentina is doing the same thing. Vegetable oils 

 are coming into the United States by the millions of pounds. 



Iowa is not insolvent. They talk about the $91,000,000 that we owe 

 the Federal Reserve Bank. We have got 26,000,000 hens in Iowa, and if 

 they all laid an egg a day, that would be over a million dollars, because 

 eggs are worth 5 cents apiece just now, and if we kept those hens laying 

 for ninety days, we could pay off the Federal Reserve Bank and besides 

 have a few eggs for breakfast while we are on the job. (Applause.) 



So I say, Iowa is not insolvent, when it has something like $700,- 

 000,000 worth of produce, even at these low prices. Dairy products last 

 year alone ran $140,000,000. Stay by the ship! I think we have given 

 the Federal Reserve Bank to understand that we know our position, and 

 we are not insolvent. I think they understand us much better than they 

 did before they made the trip with the bankers' train. I think they will 

 give us a little more time; and, finally, boys, we are going to work this 

 thing out, and the best place to do it now — and it will be a better place 

 after this thing is worked out — is the Iowa farm. I have faith in this 

 proposition, and it is up to us to stick to it until we finally get results. 

 (Applause.) 



