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THE I. A. A. RECORD 



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Page Eleven 



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SOMETHING of a prophet is our 

 banker-farmer friend John A. Car- 

 roll, president of several outlying Chi- 

 cago banks, landowner, and member 

 of the Cook County Farm Bureau. 



Said he more than two months ago 

 while speaking of the Chicago milk 

 controversy, "The milk distributors 

 have refused to deal with the organ- 

 ization of the farmers up to now. But 

 they will move toward bargaining with 

 the farmers whether they want to or 

 not. When the public has the facts in 

 the milk producing situation before it, 

 there will be nothing left for the par- 

 ties in the dispute to do but agree to 

 arbitrate such questions as can't be 

 settled between them in conference." 

 All this has happened. 



Ownership of farm land by city 

 business men has an ameliorating in- 

 fluence on their attitude toward the 

 problems of the farmer. Great good 

 might result if more influential capital- 

 ists would invest larger portions of 

 their funds in the business of agricul- 

 ture. Self-interest is a powerful fac- 

 tor in influencing one's point of view. 

 That the majority of Chicago daily 

 newspapers have supported farmers' 

 demands for legislation may be due in 

 part to the fact that most of their 

 publishers own farms. These men 

 have learned first hand about farm 

 profits, or rather losses. When there 

 is a clash of interests, however, such 

 as is embodied in a proposed state in- 

 come tax, it is natural for the individ- 

 ual to take the side which profits him 

 most, or hurts his pocket-book the 

 least. 



The farmer has more friends in the 

 cities than he may suspect. Many 

 Chicagoans were born and reared on 

 farms, countless others have relatives 

 on farms, or investments in land. 

 These contacts have their influence. 

 City people are human and approach- 

 able for the most part when you come 

 to know them. Many do go about 

 with a cloak of reserve and often a 

 cold exterior — perhaps in self-protec- 

 tion made necessary by their environ- 

 ment. But under the crust, people 

 are pretty much alike whether in city 

 or country. 



The editor of the Chicago Evening 

 Post tells us that the average city man 

 looks upon the farmer as a chronic 

 grrumbler. "Somehow we have got 

 that impression; somehow you have 

 given it to us," he says. That comes 

 from reading the newspapers, rather 

 than farm papers. The only time the 

 farmer makes the front page is when 

 he puts on a milk strike, fights tax 

 increases, or appears in Washington 

 to ask for helpful legrislation. Most 



CHAMPAIGN COUNTY FARM BUREAU TAX COMMITTEE WINS FIGHT 



Seated Left to Right: E. J. Tabaka, £. A. Smith, C. C. Bums, Roy Douglai, Chr. 



Standing: A. R. Crindley, John C. Watson, I. A. A. Tax EHrector, James T. Wise. 



An additional 10 per cent reduction in farm land valuations ordered by the Illinois 



Tax Commission, ends the long drawn out controversy in Champaign county. This 



will mean a reduction of three and one-half million dollars in valuations and will 



result in a saving estimated at $24,500. 



city newspapers play up the spectacu- 

 lar. It's just as absurd for city people 

 to base their judgment of farmers on 

 the news that appears in the head- 

 lines, as it is for farm folks to judge 

 Chicago people by the prolific stories 

 of gang murders, bootleggers, and 

 grrasping politicians. 



One newspaper writer asks, "Why 

 is a farmer?" Because he is an opti- 

 mist, loves the life, and believes in his 

 job. Thousands could say as much 

 truthfully. Scores of farmers in Illi- 

 nois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Wis- 

 consin have told this writer that they 

 prefer the farm as a place to live and 

 work in spite of its handicaps. 



In similar vein, a Chicago columnist, 

 Herbert Kaufman, .calls the farmer 

 "The Chronic Bear . . . habitually 

 selling his own market short . . . be- 

 gins with a morning grouch and ends 

 with an evening growl . . . persist- 

 ently discounts the future of agricul- 

 ture, etc." The injustice and inac- 

 curacy of the accusation is self-evi- 

 dent. It comes from placing all farm- 

 ers in the same category. There are 

 bulls and bears in all professions, 

 farming is no exception. But the man 

 who plants in the spring, not knowing 

 what he will reap surely displays some 

 degn"ee of optimism. When he con- 

 tinues to produce food year after year 

 through periods of distress but hope- 

 ful for better days that's real forti- 

 tude, not pessimism. — E. G. T. 



Must Signal 



IT IS proper to (how a custom 

 among automobile drivers, of 

 holding; out an arm as a signal 

 that he is going to stop, or slow 

 down, or change his course, and 

 evidence showing the failure of 

 the defendant to folloir the cus- 

 tom, in a case in which it is ma- 

 terial, is permissible as such evi- 

 dence tends to show a want of 

 ordinary care. 



Farm Baseball League 



Amends By-Laws 



THE eligibility qlause defining who 

 shall be eligible to play in the Illi- 

 nois Farm Bureau Baseball League was 

 amended as usual at the annual meet- 

 ing of the League in Danville, Tuesday 

 Jan. 29. 



Hereafter "any Farm Bureau mem- 

 ber whose principal interest and invest- 

 ment is in farming" regardless of resi- 

 dence will be eligible. So always will 

 be dependent members of his family. 

 It is thought that this modification in 

 the rule will allow many players here- 

 tofore excluded to participate. It was 

 designed also to exclude professional 

 players who have killed interest in 

 many town and city teams. The sport 

 will be maintained, it is hoped, as one 

 primarily for farm boys, although sons 

 of farmers attending college or residing 

 in town will not be barred. Further 

 clarification of the rule will be outlined 

 by the Executive Committee of the 

 League prior to the opening of the 1929 

 season. Players must be members of 

 the Bureau in the county in which they 

 play. 



It was decided to place responsibility 

 for making decisions and arbitrating 

 disputes not settled locally, on a com- 

 mittee of three composed of the presi- 

 dent, vice-president, and one other 

 member to be selected. 



Approximately 200 players, farm 

 advisers, and visitors attended the 

 meeting held in the Wolford Hotel. 

 Carl Lundgren, baseball coach at the 

 University of Illinois, and famed 

 pitcher for the Chicago Cubs in 1905- 

 06-07 talked interestingly about his ex- 

 periences in the Big League, told what's 

 necessary to build a good baseball team, 

 answered innumerable questions about 

 plays, his trip to Japan with the lUini 

 last summer. 



L. R. Welk of Morton was re-elected 

 president, Paul Meharry of Champaign 

 county was chosen vice-president. It 

 was agreed to hold a meeting in the 

 spring well in advance of the baseball 

 season to make schedules and oil the 

 League machinery preparatory to an- 

 other successful season. Several new 

 counties expressed their desire to enter 

 teams. 



