March, 1927 



The Illinois Agricultural Association RECORD 



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Pare? 



I. A. A. SAVES FARMERS OF ILLINOIS $60,000 ON LIMESTONE RATES 



JohnH. Walker 

 Statt, Labor Head 

 Asks Farm Backing 



Points To Improvement In Re- 

 lations Between Agricul- 

 ture and Labor 



WITH THE passing of the old 

 style institute and the forma- 

 tion of the present Illinois Agricul- 

 tural Association and the county 

 farm bureau system, relations be- 

 tween labor and agriculture have 

 steadily improved," declared John 

 H. Walker, president of the Illinois 

 State Federation of Labor in a re- 

 cent speech before a state labor con- 

 ference at Champaign. 



"The old farmers organizations 

 were not representative of the ac- 

 tual farmers at all," said the speaker. 

 "The officers invariably were the 

 largest landowners of the county 

 concerned and often did not even 

 live on their farm lands. The farm- 

 ers, the ones who faced the real 

 problems, had little or no authority 

 in determining the policies of their 

 organizations. Worst of all they were 

 poisoned against labor when they 

 should have been working with labor 

 for mutual aims. 



Wronflf Idea 



"They had the idea too that the 

 Federation was after wages and in- 

 terested'only in that. Labor knew 

 long ago that its interests and its 

 prosperity were dependent upon the 

 interests and prosperity of agricul- 

 ture. But farmers' minds were so 

 poisoned against labor that the goal 

 of cooperation is not reached even 

 yet. 



"It is indicative of a more sym- 

 pathetic understanding between the 

 two organizations that the Illinois 

 Agricultural Association sent two 

 authorized delegates to the last con- 

 vention of the State Federation of 

 Labor at Streator. That, I believe 

 was the first time in the history of 

 the Federation that agriculture was 

 officially represented at a Federa- 

 tion convention. These delegates 

 remained throughout the conven- 

 tion. They learned of the problems 

 and ideals of labor and presented 

 those of agriculture. Their pres- 

 ■ence represents a long stride in im- 

 proved relations between the two 

 organizations. 



Whole-Hesrted Welcome 



"I attended the state convention 

 of the Illinois Agricultural Associa- 

 tion at Peoria a short time ago and 

 I venture to say that no other speak- 

 er was given the whole-hearted wel- 

 come I received. That proved con- 

 clusively that labor and agriculture 

 arc well along the road to under- 

 standing. There are fine men at 

 the head of the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association and I have a great ad- 

 miration for their work and that 

 of the association." 



EGYPTIAN SEED 

 GROWERS SELL 

 MUCH RED TOP 



Eighteen carloads of cleaned red 

 top seed and five carloads of un- 

 cleaned seed were handled by the 

 Egyptian Seed Growers Exchange 

 in 1926 according to Curt Anderson, 

 manager. The first nine and one- 

 half cars brought approximately 

 25 He per pound gross and five cars 

 more averaged between 22 and 

 23% cents. These prices were real- 

 ized when independent buyers were 

 offering farmers around 16% and 

 17 cents per pound. 



The Seed Growers Exchange owns 

 its own building and equipment with 

 a capital investment of approximate- 

 ly $20,000. It has close to 800 

 members. 



No Money Allowed For Expenses On 



European Tour, I. A. A. Committee Decides 



Party Proposes to Leave New York, July 30, for Isle of Jersey, 

 Germany, Denmark, and Other Points on S. S. Aurania 



NO farm bureau money will be 

 spent to send any delegates or 

 officials to Europe on the proposed 

 1927 American Farm Bureau Feder- 

 ation Pilgrimage, according to a de- 

 cision of the Executive Committee of 

 the I. A. A. at a recent meeting. 

 This announcement is made follow- 

 ing reports from downstate to the 

 effect that officers and delegates 

 from the I. A. A. and the American 

 Farm Bureau would make the trip 

 at the expense of the membership. 



The American Farm Bureau Fed- 

 eration arranged the tour "to pro- 

 vide a unique and unusual oppor- 

 tunity to farm people desiring to 

 visit Europe ; to make the trip in the 

 company of congenial companions 

 and under favorable circumstances." 

 According to the A. F. B. F. the tour 

 was arranged to meet what it con- 

 siders is a general demand for such 

 a pilgrimage. It states that the U. 

 S. Department of Agriculture has 

 received many requests from farm 

 people asking what particular points 

 of agricultural interest could be 

 viewed. 



other motor trip up the cast coast of 

 Denmark. At Frederikssund the 51 

 cooperative slaughter houses will be 

 visited. On the return trip to Copen- 

 hagen the seed exchange and cathed- 

 ral at Roskilde will be seen. 



The party will continue from here 

 on in to Germany to Berlin, Pots- 

 dam, and Frankfort. The steamer 

 trip down the Rhine from the docks 

 at Mainz to Cologne is said to be one 

 of the most picturesque in the world. 



Four days will be spent in Hol- 

 land. A part of this time will be de- 

 voted to things of scenic and his- 

 toric interest and the remainder to 

 Agricultural methods. 



The week in Paris will be devoted 

 to sight-seeing. Trips will be made 

 to the great art galleries, cathedrals, 

 parks, to the American battle fields 

 of Chateau Thierry and Rheims, and 

 a day will be spent at Malmaison, 

 the home of Napoleon and the Pal- 

 ace at Versailles where the peace 

 treaty, was signed. 



The schedule provides for two 

 weeks in England. One will be spent 

 in London and vicinity. On the jour- 



Recent Ruling Of Commerce 



Commission Upholds Association 



Quarry Representatives Appear in Support of Low Rate 

 For Farmers on Fertilizer 



A SAVING of 30 cents a 

 ton net on one-third of 

 all agricultural limestone 

 used in Illinois will be real- 

 ized by farmers as a result of 

 the recent decision of the Illi- 

 nois Commerce Commission in 

 upholding the application of 

 the combination rule on ship- 

 ments of limestone. This will 



amount to approximately $60,000 

 annually it is estimated if the 1926 

 figures are used in the calculation. 



Following a recent appeal by the 

 railroads asking that the combina- 

 tion rule be cancelled, the I. A. A. 

 through its transportation depart- 

 ment, protested showing the impor- 

 tance of preserving a low rate ^>n 

 limestone to help farmers maintain 

 and improve soil fertility. Repre- 

 sentatives of all the larger lime- 

 stone companies appeared before 



the Commission at the call of the I. 

 A. A. in support of its stand. 



In making its decision in this con- 

 troversy, the Commission said, "No 

 effort has been made to justify 

 the increased rates resulting from 

 the proposed cancellation of the 

 Kelly Combination rule. Until 

 such time as joint through rates 

 are published to apply on all traf- 

 fic, or until such time as the car- 

 riers present evidence to show that 

 the resulting through charges are 

 just and reasonable, we conclude 

 and find that the Kelly Combination 

 Rule should continue in effect." 



During 1926, Illinois farmers 

 most of whom were farm bureau 

 members bought approximately 

 650,000,000 tons of agricultural 

 limestone for soil improvement pur- 

 poses. At least 200,000,000 tons, 

 based on last year's business, will 

 be effected by the new ruling so 



j as to secure the advantages of a 

 much lower rate on shipments 



I travelling over more than one line. 



Producers In First 

 Place at Chicago and 

 St. Louis Stock Yards 



Chicago Association Breaks 

 All Records With 13.37 Per 

 Cent of U. S. Yards Receipts 



Kronborf — The Castle of the Lefend of Hamlet at HeUinfor 

 (Shakespeare's "Elsimore") 



The proposed voyage and tour is 

 expected to start from New York on 

 the S. S. "Aurania" on July 30. 



The first stop will be made at the 

 Island of Jersey where a day will be 

 spent visiting the herds and breed- 

 ing establishments for which the is- 

 land is famous. The boat will land 

 at Helgoland, the famous German 

 North Sea fortress the next day. 

 From there the party will continue 

 to Cuxhaven and Hamburg, by train, 

 and thence across the famous Kiel 

 Canal to visit the Agricultural Ex- 

 periment Station at Askov and the 

 Royal Agricultural School at Brorup. 



A motor trip will be provided 

 through the most fertile sections of 

 Denmark near Odense, followed by a 

 train ride to Copenhagen and an- 



ney to Scotland, stops will be made 

 to sec the Shakespeare country, the 

 Liverpool Cotton Exchange and the 

 famous Manchester Ship Canal. 

 Headquarters in Scotland will be set 

 up at Edinburg. The main tour will 

 end here and the first sailings home 

 will be scheduled from Glasgow to 

 Montreal or froiq Liverpool to New 



I York. 



In all seven countries and their 

 Capitols and 43 cities and towns will 

 be visited. Sixty-seven thousand 

 miles will be traveled by steamer, 



' 2500 by train, and 550 by car. 



Resen-ations may be secured by 

 an advance deposit of $60 to the 

 American Farm Bureau Federation. 

 The balance of $925 will be due {our 



I weeks before sailing. 



"pHE CHICAGO and East St 

 ^ Louis Producers Commission As- 

 sociations have consistently led all 

 other houses in these two terminals 

 in recent weeks. Producers at the 

 National Stock Yards has led that 

 market since its organization but 

 its business reached 22.6 per cent of 

 the total receipts the week ending 

 February 26. The following week 

 231 cars representing 19.2 per cent 

 of total receipts were received. 



Likewise the Chicago Producers 

 crept up during Februar>- to first 

 place where it has remained consist- 

 ently since then. The high point 

 was reached on Feb. 3 when 116 

 cars representing 11.8 per cent of 

 the entire Chicago receipts went into 

 the Producers alleys. This record 

 stood only one day, for on Fri- 

 day, the day following, 73 cars rep- 

 resenting 13.37 per cent of the 

 total receipts came in. The best 

 week's business was 396 cars re- 

 ceived the first week in February 

 which was 144 ears more than were 

 handled by any other firm. 



Gross sales of the Chicago Pro- 

 ducers aggregated $26,738,100.91 in 

 1926, for the total of 13,005 car- 

 loads of livestock received. Receipts 

 comprised 6.2 per cent of all live- 

 stock shipped to the Union Stock- 

 yards. TTie largest receipts were in 

 hogs which averaged eight per cent 

 of all receipts. Gross purchases of 

 feeder cattle, calves, and lambs, 

 amounted to $1,282,513.46. This 

 business increased 25 per cent for 

 cattle and calves and 35 per cent 

 for sheep during the past year. 



The East St. Louis Producers 

 gained 1228 cars in 1926 over the 

 1925 record. The total cars received 

 for the year aggregated 13,699 com- 

 pared with 12,371 for 1925. Re- 

 ceipts in 1926 were 17.6 per cent of 

 the saleable stock sold on this mar- 

 ket. Net earnings were $70,258.95, 

 estimated savings made from reduc- 

 ing commissions $58,510.13, or a 

 toUl of $128,769.08. Illinois led all 

 states with 4,775 cars. 



The Adams county, Illinois, Ship- 

 ping Association led ail county as- 

 sociations with 728 cars on which it 

 received a patronage refund of $2,- 

 059.09. The Columbia Cooperative 



R A. Cowles 



1000 Bu. Seed Com 

 Bought For Flooded 



Out Valley Farmers 



One thousand bushels of high test 

 seed com was brought for distri- 

 bution to flood sufferers in the 

 counties adjoin- 

 ing the Illinois 

 valley flood are* 

 according t« 

 Robt. A. Cowles ■ 

 of the Illinois " 

 Agricultural As- 

 sociation who is 

 assisting the 

 farm bureaus of 

 Menard, Fulton, 

 Mason, Schuyler, 

 Morgan, Scott, 

 Brown, Ca s s. 

 Pike, and Greene 

 counties in meet- 

 ing the needs of their people. 



This action followed a meeting 

 of the farm ad-, -ers and Mr. Cowles 

 at Jacksonville n Feb. 24. Dis- 

 tribution of tht ^eed will be made 

 according to needs and the funds 

 available for this purpose. The 

 committee in charge will make an 

 effort to see that everj- worthy can- 

 didate for aid is supplied with seed 

 com. 



It is pointed out that thousands 

 of acres of flooded lands will be 

 unfit for recropping this spring, 

 while others are still submerged, 

 unreclaimed from the floods. 



Mr. Cowles expects to make an 

 extended trip through the flood 

 areas within the next two weeks as- 

 sisting in apportioning aid where 

 most needed and expending funds 

 for seed com where it will do the 

 most good. 



Applications for aid made to the 

 county farm bureaus will be investi- 

 gated and help given where needed. 



Shipping Association of Columbia, 

 Mo., led all individual associations 

 in the number of cars shipped to the 

 St. Louis Producers with 300 cars 

 on which the refund amounted to 

 $792.24. 



The St. Louis Producers have 

 commission rates approximately 20 

 per cent lower than other Arms on 

 that market. 



Farm taxes take more than half 

 the rents of farms in the lower pen- 

 nsula of Michigan, the State College 

 announced following its sur\-ey of 

 1133 farms. Taxes average 52 per 

 cent of the net rents to farm own- 

 ers between 1919-26. 



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