454 TWENTY-THIRD ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART VII 



Mr. Goodenow, your treasurer, also assisted in this work, and you doubt- 

 less will be interested and encouraged to know that in spite of the very 

 close money situation, farmers and stockmen still believe in the Corn 

 Belt Meat Producers' Association, and stand ready to back it up with 

 their financial and moral support, and our field work was very successful 

 and satisfactory. 



During the coming year, a very earnest and intensive campaign should 

 be conducted to build up and increase the membership of your associa- 

 tion; this can only be done through a diligent and systematic effort. 



In this brief report, I have attempted to give you a little resume of 

 the activities of your officers and the accomplishments of your associa- 

 tion during the past year. So we will now turn to a forward look into the 

 future, and call attention to some of the important problems confronting 

 you, which I believe deserve your careful consideration in outlining your 

 policies for the ensuing year. 



Railroad Rates and the Transportation Act 



The important question of rail transportation and freight rates is 

 still with us, and should be given the most careful consideration by this 

 convention. 



Freight rates on live stock are now about 53 per cent above pre-war 

 prices, while the price of ordinary live stock is less than 25 per cent 

 higher than the pre-war prices. This shows conclusively that freight 

 rates are entirely too high and out of line with the prices the live stock 

 producer receives, and that the live stock business can not recover itself 

 until a proper adjustment of freight rates has been made. Then, on the 

 other hand, the price of live stock has been cut squarely in two from 

 the peak prices following the close of the war, while the cost of trans- 

 porting it to market has been reduced but 10 per cent here in Iowa. This 

 condition places the stockmen and feeders at a very great disadvantage, 

 and I believe that steps should be taken by your organization in the 

 near future to secure a further reduction in freight rates, which is so 

 vitally necessary to the upbuilding and future existence of the live stock 

 industry. 



The question of a three-quarter rate on feeder hogs shipped into the 

 feed lots from the markets, the same as cattle and sheep enjoy, is becom- 

 ing a very live question among hog feeders, and constant demands on 

 us are being made by these men that your association make an effort to 

 secure this concession in the rate on feeding hogs. Under these condi- 

 tions, I believe we owe it to the industry to make a ve/y careful survey 

 of the movement of feeder hogs, and if it is found that a three-quarter 

 rate is justifiable, an action should at once be started before the Inter- 

 state Commerce Commission to establish such a rate. 



I would like to digress just a minute here in regard to this matter. 

 This is a matter that has been up for several years. There has been 

 quite a little controversy over it as to why feeder hogs should not enjoy 

 the 75 per cent rate the same as feeder cattle and sheep. 



The matter has been taken up informally with different members of 

 the Interstate Commerce Commission, and the belief has been expressed 

 on the part of these men that we have conferred with,, that the volume 

 of business would not justify a 75 per cent rate on feeder hogs. We 



