nber 26, 1925 



WMANY 

 ND SALES 

 ELT AREAS 



Fanner* in 

 U to Arrange 

 me Loan 



of the sales ot 

 warranty deeds, 



t 



J. C. WatMm 



"In sdles of 

 rtgage often ex- 

 y cases greatly 

 A survey of 

 central cornbelt 

 erous instances, 

 re th^n $500 or 

 in from 5 to 10 

 umbntnce. 

 this nature indi- 

 riculture is still 

 tie burden it as- 

 deilation period 

 I War and many 

 from recovered < 

 basis. 



uthem nUnols 



lions of northern ' 

 vestock feeding 

 tern part of the 



character are 

 umbers. This Is 



southern third 

 most farm lands 



incumbrances, 

 louthern Illinois 

 imerous than in 

 :he state. This 

 le to the much 

 : of farm lands 



!ntage of forced 

 show that many 

 oiade purchases 

 lately following 

 pen able to meet 

 lost of the five- 

 :es made during'. 

 1 fall due within * 

 lis. It is doubt- 

 ligations can be 

 such conditions, 

 arrange early tor 

 enewal of their 

 cases, especially 

 re likely to run 

 years, this could 

 fining a federal 

 ;lon or by bor- y 

 }int stock land 



Many Sales 

 on record Infor- 

 y thous&nds of 

 perties all over 

 I information, it 

 t many recorded 



only 50 cents < 

 stamps were af- 

 I deed of trans- 

 t the owner of 



or less in cash 

 erty. 



OMEIS 

 N DOLLARS 



Page 1, Col. 1) 

 esent Inefficient 

 ag eggs. Farm- 

 t receive pay on 



therefore, there 

 exercise care in ' 

 ;s on the farms, 

 e present agen- 

 ^d wi/th the mar- 

 ghly' perishable 

 not able to put 

 stem of buying 

 or quality. In 

 eggs are mar- 

 C they are grad- 

 ;ers receive pay 

 *ade; thus in a 

 le lower grades 

 ted. 



Illinois farmers 



.eveloping more 



'keting phase of 



is the greatest 



A., through its 

 :, to bring about .] 

 ovement in the 

 try and eggs as 

 ihed in the pro- 

 ommodities." 



M 



ULTUMALr I 



=rRE CO 



Volume 3 



Issued Every Other Saturday for 63,000 thinking Farmers — October 10, 1925 



No. 20 



LOWDEN SUGGESTS FEDERAL BOARD TO HANDLE SURPLUS 



Novel on Farm Bureau 



Former I. A. A. Director Writes 



Book on Illinois Farm Life and 



Co-operation. 



Lynn Montross, formerly director 

 of the department of information of 

 the Illinois Agricultural Association 

 has written an- 

 other novel, 

 "East of Eden," 

 lining as a back- 

 ground Illinois 

 .^ farm life and 



past activities of 

 farm organiza- 

 tion work in this 

 state. 



"East of Eden" 

 is based primar- 

 ily on the organi- 

 zation of the U 



Lynn Montro.. g q^^j^ q^^^. 



ers. Inc., in 1921 

 and its publishers, Harper and 

 Brothers of New York, declare that 

 it is the first novel of importance 

 dealing with the history of the de- 

 velopment of cooperative marketing 

 and the farm bureau movement. It 

 includes a clash between the Illinois 

 farm bureaus and the Chicago 

 board of trade leaders in the legis- 

 lative halls at Springfield at the time 

 the Lantz bill was introduced. 



The novel has as its principal 

 characters a typical farm family 

 during the deflation period follow- 

 ing the World War. A county farm 

 adviser is also one of the leading 

 figures in the story and the county 

 farm bureau ofEce is the location 

 of several scenes. Although no defi- 

 nite statement is made regarding 

 the location of the farm of Fred 

 Deering, the principal character, it 

 is indicated that it is situated in 

 eastern central Illinois, mention be- 

 ing made that it is located between 

 Chicago, Springfield, Bloomington 

 and Champaign. 



The life of the farm family and 

 the inhabitants of the country town, 

 th^fr economic and social problems 

 a»« described in detail. A fued and 

 love affatr are part of the plot. 



The author during the years 1921 

 to '23 directed the editorial work of 

 the I. A. A., making many visits 

 to county Farm Bureaus. He is 

 known to many Illinois farmers. It 

 was during these years that he col- 

 lected the material used in this 

 book. At present Mr. Montross is 

 living in New York and has written 

 pwo former books, "Town and 

 Gown and "Half Gods." 



Limber Up Your Huskin' 

 Arm Boys, The Annual 

 Championship's Coming 



Prairie Farmer's annual state- 

 wide com husking contest will be 

 held this year on the farm of ttarret 

 Perebcom in Lone Tree township, 

 Montgomery county, in co-operation 

 with the Montgomery County Farm 

 Bureau. The farm is operated by 

 William Bergman. 



Aspirants for the state champion- 

 ships will do their stuff in 50 acres 

 of com that will average 60 bushels 

 to the acre. The date has not yet 

 been fixed according to C. V. Gre- 

 gory, editor of Prairie Farmer, but 

 it will be sometime early in Novem- 

 ber. 



Last year the championship was 

 won by Henry Niehaus, a member 

 of the Montgomery County Farm 

 Bureau. 



This year the interestate contest 

 will be held in Illinois, the Mercer 

 County Farm Bureau having suc- 

 ceeded in bringing it into their 

 county. Illinois, Iowa, (Minnesota 

 and South Dakota champions are to 

 compete. 



Former Governor Lowden 



Illinois* former; governor is a great lover of horses. When not away 

 talking before some important convention on the condition of agriculture, 

 he can usually be found at Sinnissippi Farm, near Oregon, Ogle county. 



One of Mr. Lowden's gems of farm philosophy is: "For the life of me, 

 1 cannot tell whether the patter of raindrops on the roof brings beneSt 

 or bankruptcy." (World's Work photo.) 



Charges Against Four 

 Boards of Review are 

 Filed By Farm Bureaus 



Charges stating the refusal or 

 lack of proper consideration, re- 

 garding the reduction or revalua- 

 tion of tax assessments on farm 

 lands, have been filed with the Illi- 

 nois Tax Commission in a com- 

 plaint against four county hoards of 

 review, according to J. C- Watson 

 I. A. A. taxation specialist. 



"Farmers in several counties in 

 this state have had undue diflSculty 

 in convincing their respective boards 

 of review that a revaluation or re- 

 duction in the assessment of farm 

 property should be made to corre- 

 spond with the present sale value of 

 the land," stated Mr. Watson. 



"In a number of counties the as- 

 sessed tax valuation placed on farm 

 property continues as high, or near- 

 ly as high, as the assessment made 

 during the boom years, while the 

 sale value of the land has dropped 

 heavily, in some cases as much as 

 50 per cent. This has caused the 

 landowners to pay a much larger 

 percentage of the cost if the state 

 and county governments than is 

 their rightful proportion. 

 Appear Before State Commission 



"In cases where a reduction 

 should have been allowed and the 

 county boards of review apparently 

 refused to grant the proposal, the 

 farmers took the matter direct to 

 the state tax commission. That was 

 the case when representatives from 

 Kane. Peoria, Franklin and Clay 

 counties appeared before the state 

 tax commission and filed the com- 

 plaint charges as a further step in 

 securing the proper reduction. 



In the last three years, farm 

 bureaus in a number of counties 

 have called the attention of their re- 

 spective tax boards to the need for 

 revaluation and have secured reduc- 

 tions in valuations ranging from five 

 to thirty per cent. These reductions, 

 it is estimated, are saving approxi- 

 mately $2,000,000 each year to Illi- 

 nois landowners. 



The Per Capita Debt in Ili.i.voib increiiaeri 

 from t.3.67 to $14.91 betwf^n the fiflcsl years of 

 1023 snd 1924, according to the United 3 ates 

 Department of Commerce. Increaaed bond 

 issues for road building was tlie cause. 



Coolidge to Hear 

 Farmers' Plans at 

 A. F. B. F. Meeting 



Chief Executive Accepts Invi- 

 tation To Address Annual 

 Farm Meeting the Day After 

 His Message to Congress. 



On what is thought to be another 

 attempt on the part of the President 

 of the United 

 States to un- 

 derstand and 

 acquire the 

 viewpoint of 

 American 

 farmers, Cal- 

 vin Coolidge 

 has accepted 

 an invitation 

 to attend and 

 make the prin- 

 cipal address 

 at the seventh 

 annual meet- 

 ing of the 

 America Farm 

 Bureau Federation to be held at the 

 Sherman hotel, Chicago, December 

 7, 8 and 9. 



It is understood that the reports 

 of the president's agricultural com- 

 mission, appointed last year, did not 

 meet with the , entire approval of 

 either agricultural leaders or Con- 

 gress and President Coolidge's trip 

 to the A. F. B. F. meeting is to as- 

 sist him to meet and understand the 

 desires of the rural leaders and to 

 get their proposed program for de- 

 veloping a more prosperous agricul- 

 tural industry in this country. 



President Coolidge will journey 

 to the farm meeting the day after 

 he gives his message at the opening 

 of the 69th Congress and the farm 

 representatives who attend the an- 

 nual meeting will no doubt get first- 

 hand information regarding the 

 President's plans for the agricultur- 

 al program which will receive con- 

 siderable attention during the com- 

 ing session of Congress. 



The President's address at the 

 Chicago meeting will be broadcast 

 from both the WLS and KYW radio 

 stations as well as from other sta- 

 tions in various parts of the country. 



Former Governor of Illinois, Writing in 

 " World 's Work, ' ' Says the Farm Problem is 

 Not Solved and Nation Should Recognize It 



Federal Board Would Function in Syskpathy with Co-oper- 

 atives; Cites Brazil's Success in Handling Surplus Coffee 

 Through Valorization Plan and Britain's Remedy for the 

 Rubber Surplus. 



Hon. Frank O. Lowdtn, the author aj the accompanying article, ie a 

 Member of the Ogle County Farm Bureau and the Illinois Agricul- 

 tural Association. Be is a leader in the agricultural thought oj the 

 country. Men of "big busimss" respect his judgment. You should 

 read carefully and thoughtfully what he has written. The article is 

 entitled "What We Can Do for the Farmer," and is reprinted from 

 the October issue of the "World's Wirk." — Editor. 



-b- 



By FRANK O. LOWDEN 



THE farm problem is not solvied. It will be we!! for us if 

 we recognize this fact. 

 In the monthly supplement, Crops and Markets, for 

 July, published by the Department of Agriculture, appears 

 the statement that the farmer'* net income for the year 

 1924-25 had increased somewhat over the preceding few 

 years. This has been heralded as proof that the situation 

 upon the farm was righting itself. Nothing could be farther 

 from the truth. As the Department points out, this increased 

 income nets the farmer but 3.6 per cent upon his capital in- 

 vestment, after a wage allowance for the farmer's labor 

 which is less than common labor receives in industry. And 

 this does not allow for depreciation and depletion. If de- 

 preciation and depletion had been deducted, as they well 

 might, the farmer's returns upon his investment must almost 

 have disappeared. 



It is true that this is an improvement over the preceding 

 four years, when the highest net return was 1.7 per cent, 

 and the lowest a loss of more than 5 per cent. But it would 

 liardly be regarded as an evidence of health in any other in- 



Ptfofessora Warren and Pearson, of 



dastry. And this increase, the Depart- 

 ment says, is due almost wholly to the 

 higher grain and meat animal prices, 

 particularly of wheat and ho^. The 

 high price of wheat was the result 

 largely of a short crop in other wheat- 

 producing countries, and the high price 

 of hogs was caused in part at least 

 by our own inferior corn crop of the 

 year. When the prosperity of the Amer- 

 ican fanner depends upon the failure of 

 a crop either at home or abroad, it 

 hangs by a very slender thread. 

 Farm«r'a Capital Decreased 



There are other interesting figures 

 contained in the same report. They 

 show a continuous decrease in the farm- 

 er's capital over a period of five years. 

 Zn 1919 and 1920, it is stated, the farm- 

 ers' combined capiUl was $47,000,000.- 

 000, which continued to shrink, until 

 last year it was but 132,000.000.000. 

 This decline in values is startling 

 enough in itself. To visualise it, how- 

 ever, let us assume that all of the prop- 

 erty of the six and a half million 

 farmers of America was capitalized upon 

 the basis of earnings that other busi- 

 nesses enjoy and see vhat the result 

 would be. 



I have taken the United States Steel 

 Corporation for comparison, because it 

 is one of the ablest managed as well as 

 the largest corporation in the world. 

 It. too, produces basic commodities, just 

 as the farmer does. Its securities are 

 dealt in on the open market. Its com- 

 mon stock, after depreciation and de- 

 pletion, earns, according to its last re- 

 port, about 10 per cent, upon its market 

 value. -Now, if all the property of all 

 the farmers, according to the govern- 

 ment report, was capitalized upon the 

 same basis, the $32,000,000,000 would 

 further shrink to about $12,000,000,000! 



Economists See Gloomy Future 



The economists who have written 

 upon the subject in recent years, with- 

 out exception so far as I know, have 

 painted the future of American agri- 

 culture in gloomy colors. Professors 

 Richard T. Ely and Edward W. More- 

 house, in "Element!) of Land Econom- 

 ics.'* recently published, aay: "A down- 

 ward trend of land values during the 

 next ten yean is not improbable." 



Cornell University, in their recent booW 

 called "The Agricultural Situation. 

 seem to think that the depression may 

 last from fifteen to twenty years if 

 ndthing is conseioosly done to help the 

 situation. 



Another error we are likely to fall 

 into is to assume that agriculture was 

 receiving very Urge rewards in the 

 y«rt before the war. It is true that 

 frOra the beginning of this century until 

 the outbreak of the World War. agri- 

 culture in America did enjoy a prosper- 

 ity greater than had been its lot in The 

 pneceding years. Land values steadily 

 increased throughout this time. It was 

 from this increase in farm values rather 

 than from the actual operation of his 

 f«m) that the farmer's profit* largely 

 cam*. 



Surveys recenUy made of farm opera- 

 tions in the Central West for the years 

 preceding the war, show that the actual 

 returns upon the current values of the 

 farms did not exceed 3 per cent. In- 

 deed, the public has grossly over-esti- 

 mftted the returns to the farmers, even 

 dOring war times and immediately 

 after. The report of theT>epartment of 

 Agriculture, from which I have already 

 quoted, goes back to the year 1919-1920, 

 which was a peak year for farm profitc 

 It discloses the fact that even in that 

 y«ar the rate earned on the farmer's 

 n*t capital was but 6.1 per cent., while 

 upon the capital borrowed, in the form 

 of mortgage and other indebtedness, he 

 p«id 6.7 per cent. Tta^t is to say. in a 

 yfear of great prosperity the farmer 

 actually earned upon, his own capital 

 l*s than ho paid for such capital as he 

 h^d borrowed. 



In the early days of agriculture, the 

 ftrm was really a self-sustaining home 

 aftd little besides. The pioneer farmer 

 c^uld sell the surplus of the things he 

 had produced primarily for his own use 

 f*r enough at least to meet his small 

 c«sh outlay. In the evolution of farm- 

 ing, however, since those early days, 

 everything has changed. Commercial- 

 ised farming has taken the place of pio- 

 neer farming. 



There are those who. regret the paa^ 



i»g of the freedom and independence of 



the Hd days. But let them reflect that 



(Cam»inu»d on pag€ t, CoL 1.) 



I 



