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4 



The Illinoi* AgriculturalJAsaociation RECORD 



March, 1927 



Coolidge Politics Revealed In 



High Sounding Statements In 



New York Speech Before Election 



Veto Abrogates Campaign Pledges of Party and Promises of 

 President in February, 1924 



(Editor's not«: — Following is a letter addressed to President Coolidffe by Sam B. 

 Thompson, then president of the Illinois Agricultural Association in April 1924, sever 

 months before the last presidential election. 



The Horonable Calvin Coolidge, 



President of the United States. 

 Dear Mr. President: 



In I your address to the people of 

 the United States, delivered at New 

 York on February 12, you presented 

 a cle^r picture of the existing con- 

 ditio^ in agriculture and its effect 

 on odher parts of our national struc- 

 ture, j You identified the cause when 

 you said: 



'To this depression there have 

 been \other contributing causes, but 

 the main difficulty has been the price 

 of farm products." 



Th^ situation unmistakably leads 

 to tl^is conclusion, and agricultur- 

 ally-ihinded men endorse it. 



You said on that occasion: 



"There is no sound policy which is 

 narrau) or sectional or limited. • • • 

 lyA^n there is a difficulty which af- 

 fects \so large a population, so large 

 an anea, and so important an inter- 

 est CM that of agriculture, it is dis- 

 tinctly a natiojml question." 



Thpis is a real gleam of hope for 

 agrictil^re in your great declara- 

 tion (n the Metropolis of America: 



"The people of these numerous 

 Statef cast on enormous influence on 

 the ntiaking of the laws by which you 

 are governed. • ♦ ♦ This problem is 

 not n erely the problem of the agri- 

 eultui al section of our country, it is 

 the problem of industry, of trans- 

 porta "ion, of commerce, and of bank- 

 ing." 



Yofir remarkable address from 

 whicti we quote lays down before 

 the Sation in language that may 

 not b|e misunderstood the condition 

 and the cause, and directs attention 

 to thf common responsibility of ap- 

 plying the remedy. 



The hope of agriculture centers 

 upon the principles contained in the 

 McN^ry-Uaugen Bill now before 

 Congress. In brief, the substance 

 of this measure is: 



1. To enable the producers, 

 through an agency created 

 for them, to purchase or to 

 contract with Dthers to pur- 

 chase, the exportable surplus 



' of certain basic crops at the 



same exchange value com- 

 pkred with other commodities 

 that obtained for a normally 

 representative period prior to 

 the war. 



2. To protect that value by an 

 adequate tariff. 



3. To enable the producers to 

 sell this surplus at the best 

 prices ruling in the world 

 markets. 



4. To collect the loss thereon 

 and the costs of operation, 

 from the producer. 



6. To return to the Treasury 

 any funds advanced by it. 



Thi) measure rests upon the 

 promise laid down in your New 

 York address. It prescribes the 

 remedy for the basic difficulty of 

 discriminatory price. The objections 

 that kave thus far been advanced 

 againtt it rest almost wholly upon 

 misrepresentations of the plan. 

 They are that this is price fixing; 

 that it will impair or destroy exist- 

 ing a^ncies that perform useful 

 functions; that a circulating medium 

 of indeterminate value will ensue; 

 that ititemational complication will 

 result; that increased production 

 will fpUow. Not one of these ob- 

 jections will withstand the test of 

 close snalysis. They proceed mainly 

 from one source out of which the 

 element of selfish interest is not 

 lacking. It is only- fair that this 

 oi;ganlzation of agricultural produc- 

 ers be permitted to observe that 

 J u 1 i [OS Barnes, grain-exporter. 



should not be permitted to write the 

 agricultural policies of America. 

 From everywhere intellectual as- 

 sent has been given to your proposi- 

 tion that agriculture is in distress 

 and that a remedy is called for. 



Have the objectors a better plan 

 to accomplish the necessary end? 

 If so, the common interest demands 

 that they make it known. 



With deepest appreciation of your 

 great service in calling attention to 

 the critical situation, we wish re- 

 spectfully to ask you for further 

 leadership in aiding as far as you 

 properly can, the enactment into 

 law of this measure that provides 

 equality for agriculture in the net- 

 work of protective legislation that 

 supports industry, and finance, and 

 labor, and transportation in our 

 present-day structure. 



Yours very respectfully, 

 ILLINOIS AGRICULTURAL ASSN. 

 S. H. Thompson, 

 * ' President. 



Com Borer Bill 

 Is Introduced In , 

 Illinois Legislature 



Provides For State Payment 

 To Farmers In Com Borer 

 Cleanup Work 



A bill known as the "Insect Pest 

 and Plant Disease Act" introduced 

 by Rep. C. M. Turner in the House 

 and by Senator Simon Lantz in the 

 Senate provides among other things 

 for the reimbursement by the state, 

 of farmers who sustain a cost in 

 excess of $1.50 per acre over and 

 above all money received from the 

 federal government while following 

 out instructions or regulations of 

 the state in eradicating the Europ- 

 ean corn borer. 



The federal bill provides for re- 

 imbursing farmers to the extent of 

 $2 per acre for such cleanup work- 

 Thus if an Illinois farmer sustains 

 a cost of more than $3.50 per acre 

 in excess of regular farm practice 

 while following state regulations in 

 stopping the borer, the state accord- 

 ing to the bill, will reimburse him 

 for the excess cost. Funds will come 

 out of the appropriation to the De- 

 partment of Agriculture. 



Provides for Qnarmnline 



The Act likewise empowers the 

 State Department of Agriculture to 

 establish quarantines within the 

 state to stop the dissemination of in- 

 sect pests and plant diseases from 

 an infested section to an uninfested. 

 Preparatory to enforcing a quaran- 

 tine the state must hold a public 

 hearing allowing interested persons 

 to come and be heard. 



The proposed Act will take pre- 

 cedence over a similar one filed June 

 29, 1917. 



Reply to Veto 



{Continaed from pase S) 



mand are fairly balanced, prices will equate 

 themselves in line with general prices and 

 with Keneral business conditions. In this 

 equation other than basic commodities will 

 And their level; thus there is no justifica* 

 tion for the charge that it will destroy 

 diversification or that it favors one crop 

 at the expense of another. 



There is no Government bnylns or Bell4 

 ins: there is no price flxins by Govern- 

 ment asency; there is no guarantee of 

 profits to millers or packers. The board 

 is directed to assist in removing or with- 

 holdiny or disposing of the surplus of the 

 basic agricultural commodity by entering 

 into agreements with cooperative associa- 

 tions engaged in handling the basic agri- 

 cultural commodity, or with a corporation 

 or association created by one or more of 



Five Times President 



L. C. Warner, of Warner, was re- 

 elected president of the Henry 

 County Farm Bureau for the 6fth 

 consecutive year at its recent an- 

 nual meeting. Mr. Warner was one 

 of the early organizers of the farm 

 bureau in that county. Under his 

 able leadership, aided by strong 

 executive committees and good ad- 

 visers, the Henry County Farm 

 Bureau has thrived consistently. To- 

 day it is one of the strongest county 

 organizations in Illinois. 



I. A. A. AUDIT SERVICE 

 FAIVIE SPREADS 



TO FAR EAST 



A letter from Jerusalem, famous 

 in Bible history as the capitol of 

 Palestine, was received by the Illi- 

 nois Agricultural Cooperatives As- 

 sociation recently asking for a copy 

 of the "Analysis and Summary of 65 

 farmers elevators in Illinois." 



The request came from the gen- 

 eral manager of the Central Bank of 

 Cooperative Institutions in Pales- 

 tine, Ltd. Jewish farmers in Pales- 

 tine are developing rapidly in co- 

 operative marketing and are inter- 

 ested in all old and new ventures of 

 this kind in this country. The same 

 bank recently asked for a copy of 

 the plan of the Illinois Milk Produc- 

 ers Association at Peoria. 



LAIVIB AND 



CATTLE POOL 



FEEDERS WARNED 



To secure the benefit of the feed- 

 ing-in-transit rate wherever it is ap- 

 plicable it is necessary for the ship- 

 per to present his inbound freight 

 bills to the local agent at the time he 

 makes out his bill of lading for ship- 

 ment to market, according to L. J. 

 Quasey, director of transportation in 

 a statement to livestock feeders who 

 bought cattle and lambs in the 

 feeder pools of 1926. 



"If this is not done, technical 

 rights to the feed ing-in -transit rates 

 are lost," states Quasey. 



such cooperative associations, or with tier- 

 sons engaged in processing the basic agri- 

 cultural commodity, or with other persona 

 if there are no such competent cooperative 

 agencies. Such agreements may properly 

 provide for the payment of the losses, 

 costs, and charges arising out of con- 

 tracts dealing only with surplus, ^here 

 is no interference with the balance of the 

 crop. 



Proponents of this legislation have never 

 claimed that it is a cure for all the ills of 

 agriculture. It is recognized that high 

 costs of production, distribution, transport- 

 ation, local- and State taxes, and other 

 causes must be addressed. It is claimed, 

 however, that the bill would remove one 

 of the major hindrances to agricultural 

 recovery, i. e., the difficulty of equating 

 supply to demand over a reasonable length 

 of time, and of preventing excess supplies 

 from demoralixing markets which other- 

 wise would be profitable. 



/. A. A. Seeks Gas 

 Tax With Provision 

 I For Secondary Roads 



SOME provision for improving our 

 secondary roads as soon as possi- 

 ble with a portion of the funds de- 

 rived from the proposed gas tax is 

 the position taken by the Illinois 

 Agricultural Association on this 

 most important issue. 



In declaring for the 75 per cent of 

 the farmers of Illinois who now live 

 on relatively unimproved road, the 

 I. A. A. is following the sentiment 

 of its members as expressed at the 

 recent Peoria convention. 



No particular bill has received of- 

 ficial endorsement. But the gas tax 

 has been accepted as a fair and 

 equitable way of shifting at least 

 part of the road tax burden on those 

 who secure the most benefit. 



President Earl C. Smith has com- 

 piled a great deal of useful infor- 

 mation on the cost of completing 

 the hard road system on the gas tax 

 issue, and on general road matters in 

 an effort to fairly represent the in- 

 terests of the membership. 



A compromise measure with cer- 

 tain recognition to the needs of 

 farmers for better farm to market 

 roads will undoubtedly be the out- 

 come of the shuffle for disposition of 

 the proposed gas tax funds. 



In the meantime, the Chicago Mo- 

 tor Club is fighting a gas tax. It 

 will secure some support downstate, 

 but from all appearances the agri- 

 cultural group in the legislature has 

 the balance of power and will have 

 the final say so on this issue. 



HOW THE SENATE 

 VOTED ON FARM BILL 



For the bill — Republicans: Cam- 

 eron, Capper, Curtis, Deneen, Fra- 

 zier, Gooding, Gould, Harreld, How- 

 ell, Johnson, Jones of Washington, 

 La Follette, McMaster, McNary, 

 Means, Norris, Nye, Oddie, Pine, 

 Robinson of Indiana, Schall, Stan- 

 field, Stewart and Watson — 24. 

 Democrats: Ashurst, Bratton, Cara- 

 way, Copeland, Dill, Ferris, Fletcher, 

 Hawes, Kendirck McKellar, May- 

 field, Neely, Pittman, Ransdell, Rob- 

 inson of Arkansas, Sheppard, Sim- 

 mons, Smith, Steck, Trammell, Ty- 

 son and Wheeler — 22. Farmer-I<a- 

 bor: Shipstead — 1. Total, 47. 



Against the bill — Republicans: 

 Bingham, Borah, Couzens, Dale, 

 Ernst, Fess, Gillett, Goflf, Greene, 

 Hale, Keyes, Lenroot, McLean, Met- 

 calf. Pepper, Phipps, Reed of Penn- 

 sylvania, Sackett, Shortridge, War- 

 ren, Weller and Willis — 22. Demo- 

 crats: Bayard, Blease, Bruce, Ed- 

 wards, George, Gerry, Glass, Harris, 

 Harrison, Feflin, King, Overman, 

 Reed of Missouri, Stephens, Under- 

 wood, Walsh of Massachusetts and 

 Walsh of Montana — 17. 



Pairs were announced as follows: 

 Broussard (D) for, with Moses (R.) 

 against; Jones of New Mexico (D) 

 for, with Wadsworth (R) against; 

 Norbeck (R.) for, with Edge (R.) 

 against. 



McLEAN COUNTY 

 MILK PRODUCERS 

 ORGANIZE 



At a recent meeting of the Mc- 

 Lean County Milk Producers' As- 

 sociation Guy Hilton was elected 

 President. Other officers for the 

 coming year are as follows: W. F. 

 Coolidge, vice-president; Jay J. 

 Wright, secretary; Homer R. John- 

 son, treasurer. Directors are: Con- 

 rad Schaefer, J. W. Smith, Wm. 

 Welch, Howard B. Mason and H. 

 W. Enns. 



Officers of the Woodford County 

 Farm Bureau for 1927 are Joe 

 Jochums, president, Fred Parks, 

 vice-president, J. Ira Powell, secre- 

 tary and Jo Major, treasurer. 



/. A. A. Executives 

 Vote to Adopt New 

 Organization Plan 



State To Be Divided Into Eight 

 Districts With Man In 

 Charge of Each 



A DEFINITE step toward a 

 larger state organization was 

 taken by the Executive Committee 

 of the I. A. A. at its meeting on 

 Mar. 10-11 when a plan providing 

 for the employment of eight dis- 

 trict managers to supervise organ- 

 ization work in the state was for- 

 mally adopted. 



The plan will go into effect at 

 once and district managers are to 

 be selected as soon as convenient 

 to coordinate the organization work 

 in every county in Illinois. 



Under the new arrangement 

 which has been under advisement 

 for more than a year, a force of 

 full-time managers will be placed 

 in the field under Director G. E. 

 Metzger, whose business it will be 

 to help or direct county farm bu- 

 reau drives, organize leadership, 

 and give assistance toward building 

 up a more effective and representa- 

 tive organization in counties and 

 communities needing assistance. 



The field force will be chosen by 

 Mr. Metzger subject to the approval 

 of the officers and Executive Com- 

 mittee. The new managers will be 

 chosen entirely on their merits. All 

 political considerations will be 

 waived aside in their selection. The 

 force will be divorced from partici- 

 pation in any of the politcal aspects 

 of the organization ani trained in 

 the act of building effective mem- 

 bership selling groups in every com- 

 munity, township, and county. 



The new managers will establish 

 residence in a conveniently lo- 

 cated city near the center of the 

 district from which they will be 

 within easy driving distance of the 

 counties. Moderate salaries, and 

 per diem expenses while out on the 

 road are provided in the new plan. 



The change in policy came fol- 

 lowing a general recognition that 

 maintaining an organization with 

 an adequate membership to make it 

 effective is a year 'round job. Un- 

 der the new arrangement of field 

 forces a group of skilled and 

 trained men will be at work 12 

 months a year seeking and develop- 

 ing leaders and new thoughts 

 toward making the county farm 

 bureaus and the I. A. A. more rep- 

 resentative and effective in every 

 county. 



C. W. Wray Is New 

 Field Secretary For 

 Illinois Holstein Ass'n 



GW. WRAY of Lake county will 

 • take care of all calls for field 

 service for the Illinois Holstein- 

 Friesian Association in the coming 

 year. This announcement was made 

 at the last directors meeting of the 

 Association. 



Mr. Wray has been an officer in 

 the state Holstein breeders associa- 

 tion for the past two years. He 

 operates a purebred Holstein herd 

 and a 120 acre dairy farm at the 

 preseht time. At the urgent request 

 of his executive committee he agreed 

 to devote part of his time to field 

 work in the interest of the organi- 

 zation. 



Mr. Wray is a graduate of the 

 University of Illinois, class of 1916, 

 where he specialized in dairying. 

 Previous to operating his own farm 

 in Lake county, he managed dairy 

 farms in Pennsylvania and Indiana. 

 He will give assistance to counties 

 on forming Holstein calf clubs, cow 

 testing associations, sales, registry 

 and transfer information, and in 

 helping to locate and select breeding 

 stock for members. 



Farmers elevator accounting will 

 be the subject of a talk by Geo. R. 

 Wicker of the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association during the Grain Deal- 

 ers' Short Course at Purdue Uni- 

 versity, Lafayette, Ind., on Mar. 16. 



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