Page Sixteen 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



Kirkpatrick Revie^vrs 



Co-operative Legislation 



Discusses Future Problems in Illi- 

 nois Before Farm and Home 

 Week Conference 



A REVIEW of co-operative marketing 

 legislation and the adjustment co-op- 

 eratives in Illinois must make to meet the 

 legal requirements of the Federal Farm 

 Board were covered in an address by 

 Donald Kirkpatrick, 

 legal counsel for the 

 Illinois Agricultural 

 Association, before 

 the Farm and Home 

 Week conference at 

 the University of 

 Illinois, Urbana, on 

 January 13. 



20 Per Cent 

 Co-ops 



Donald Kirkpatrick ,« . l. 



An mquiry by 



the Department of Agriculture has disclosed 

 that only 20 per cent of the farmer-owned 

 and farmer-controlled country grain eleva- 

 tors in Illinois are organized on a purely 

 co-operative basis and are operating as 

 such," said Mr. Kirkpatrick. "The other 

 400 elevators can, therefore, only be classi- 

 fied as farmer-owned and farmer-controlled. 

 Thesj elevator associations, in my opinion, 

 can reorganize without great difficulty by 

 amending their articles of incorporation in 

 some instances, and amending their by-laws 

 in all instances, making it mandatory on 

 the part of the board of directors that no 

 capital dividend be paid in excess of eight 

 per cent per annum, and additional earnings 

 or savings be paid to stockholders and pa- 

 trons on a patronage basis. 



Can Reorganize 



"The flexibility of the Marketing Act of 

 1923 would justify many country grain 

 elevator associations that desire to be purely 

 co-operative to reorganize under this Act. 

 This can be done without difficulty or much 

 expense." 



The speaker stated that the great cash 

 coarse grain belt of Illinois, Iowa and Ne- 

 braska is serviced with approximately l,fOO 

 farmer-owned and farmer-controlled coun- 

 try grain elevator associations. Twenty per 

 cent of those in Illinois come within the 

 Capper- Volstead Act requirements, a lesser 

 percentage of those in Iowa are co-operative, 

 and about an equal percentage of those in 

 Nebraska are strictly co-operative. 



Chain 'Em Together 

 "The cash grain producers in this terri- 

 tory should at an early date look to the 

 reorganization of their country elevator 

 units so that such units will become Cappcr- 

 Volstead associations and be permanently 

 entitled to the favor and consideration of 

 the Agricultural Marketing Act and the 

 Federal Farm Board, and with this reorgani- 

 zation should develop a plan for chaining. all 

 these units together not only by contract,- 



but also in a corporate way^" said Kirk- 

 patrick. "Big business has abused this meth- 

 od, not stopping with proper and effective 

 control which can be obtained in this man- 

 ner, but has used it for the sinister purpose 

 of covering up profits and keeping from 

 public, commissions and others entitled to 

 know, the inner workings of corporate 

 transactions. 



Will Help Agriculture 



"The advantages which have inured to 

 big business through corporate control and 

 organic interrelationship should and are 

 being mobilized for agriculture. One of 

 the problems of the federal and state 

 agencies, constituted to assist this basic in- 

 dustry, along with the educational farm or- 

 ganizations, is as I see it, to guide this de- 

 velopment in the proper channel so that the 

 Virtues of organized co-operation may be 

 realized with the minimum of abuse. 



Co-ops. Must Co-operate 

 "The rank and file of middle-west pro- 

 ducers of farm commodities believe in co- 

 operative marketing and its possibilities. 

 There are some, however, within the ranks 

 and also some in positions of management 

 of local co-operatives, who believe that co- 

 operation stops with a community. When 

 such leaders sense the larger problem, when 

 they will practice more fully what they 

 have pronounced to the men on the farms, 

 in other words, when the co-operative asso- 

 ciations themselves will co-operate, a tre- 

 mendous impetus and inspiration will be 

 given the movement. When the local co- 

 ipperative is ready to assume a similar obliga- 

 tion to that which it expects the individual 

 producer to assume, and will so rearrange 

 its structure as to fit into a nation-wide 

 co-operative commodity selling organization, 

 then and in that event the full advantage 

 of co-operation can be expected and re- 

 alized." 



Thanks for Promptness 



"Illinois Agricultural Mutual Ins. Co., 

 608 So. Dearborn St., 

 Chicago, Illinois. 



"I need not tell you that I received the 

 check in payment of the damage to my car 

 while on my way here as you have that evi- 

 dence, but I do wish to show my appreciation 

 of your promptness. You could not have re- 

 ceived my bill and report before the 20th of 

 January, your letter was written the 21st, check 

 signed the 22nd and came through promptly. 

 Appreciated more on account of my distance 

 from the home office. 



"Received check for $195.44 in full for 

 damages to car. Nash, Coupe No. 9 J 595, 80 

 per cent of damage. Should I not have another 

 blank with me? If so please mail one. I hope 

 I never need it." 



Accontplishtnents of I. A. A. 



(Continued from page 9) 

 making a grand total of 765 carloads which 

 netted growers $411, 398. JJ. Exchange pur- 

 chased co-operatively $12,600 worth of 

 fertilizers and $42,896.22 worth of packing 

 supplies and equipment. Assisted in organ- 

 izing Illinois Growers Marteting Association 

 to sell Illinois fruits and vegetables co-op- 

 eratively at roadside markets. 



(13) Helped organize 17 new co-opera- 

 tive produce marketing associations. Twen- 

 ty-eight counties now have 4 J marketing 

 units handling approximately 4,000,000 

 pounds of butterfat annually or about 10 

 per cent of the state production. Increased 

 returns to producers estimated at $120,000 

 per year. 



(14) Assisted in organizing milk pro- 

 ducers' co-operatives on several new mar- 

 kets. Pure Milk Association members in 

 Illinois received approximately $1,600,000 

 more money for their milk in 1929 than if 

 they had no organization to represent them. 

 Approximately 60 per cent of the Illinois 

 fluid milk production is now sold co-op- 

 eratively. Milk co-operatives now operating 

 at Chicago, Peoria, Bloomington, Cham- 

 paign, Quincy, Springfield, DeKalb, Wauke- 

 gan, and other markets. Now assisting in 

 organizing producers around St. Louis, De- 

 catur, Rock Island and Moline. 



( 1 J ) Co-operated with farmers' elevators 

 and planned a regional co-operative grain 

 marketing agency for Illinois to co-operate 

 with the Farmers National Grain Corpora- 

 tion. 



(16) Assisted red top seed growers in 

 southern Illinois in reorganization plans to 

 get control of bulk of commodity. 



(17) Assisted, in organizing co-operative 

 for soybean growers to sell crop through one 

 agency. 



(18) Helped bring about material im- 

 provement in sampling and grading grain at 

 Chicago market. 



(19). Through the Organization and In- 

 formation Departments the Association 

 maintained a strong membership and 

 brought about support and interest in the 

 self-help efforts of Illinois farmers. 



J. C. Everett, 

 Streator, 111. 



Present mail address 

 501 W. Broadway 

 Glendale, Cal. 



Annual Audit Necessary 



(Continued from page 14) 

 to make effective use of the Agricultural 

 Marketing Act by organizing to control 

 production as well as to sell and distribute 

 the crop after it is produced. 



In the election following President 

 George L. Potter refused to ruh again. B. 

 W. DeBord of Princeville, Peoria county, 

 was elected to the Board of Directors for 

 the first time. Other directors for the com- 

 ing year are Henry Shafer, Illiopolis, Henry 

 H. Parke, Genoa, Albert Heckle, Quincy, 

 A. J. GilfiUan, Watseka. The Board will 

 choose its president and vice president at its 

 next meeting. Geo. Metzger and Robt. 

 Cowles are secretary and treasurer re- 

 spectively. 



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