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Legislature Wrestles 



With Unemployment 



(Continued from page 16) 

 = officers and employees under him. Mil- 

 lions of dollars of the people's money are 

 being expended each month by this or- 

 ganization which is beyond the review of 



any court or any tribunal 



"Many of the employees of the Illi- 

 nois Emergency Relief Commission are 

 imbued with the notion that the state 

 relief organization is a permanent insti- 

 tution, and that they' will always have a 

 job as social workers at the expense of 

 the state. It is evident that these offi- 

 cers and employees are working to l)uild 

 up a profession whose business will be 

 to dispense the money taken by the state 

 for charitable purposes from the taxpay- 

 ers. Their idea of the matter .seertis to 

 be that the people paying the taxes are 

 incapable of selecting the persons to dis- 

 tribute the relief. Under the present sys- 

 tem the idea of local self-government in 

 relief matters by the people who pay the 

 taxes is not even seriously considered i>y 

 the persons actively in charge of relief 

 distribution. 



Tax .Money Kxhaustihif 



"Some members of the Illinois Emer- 

 gency Relief Commission seem to hav<- 

 no conception of the obvious fact that it 

 is impossible for either the state or th»* 

 nation to continue indefinitely to get the 

 vast sums of money now being collecte.l 

 from the taxpayers for relief purposes. 

 When the opinion wa.* expres.sed by a 

 member of your Investigation Commis- 

 sion that ultimately the point would be 

 reached where sufficient funds would be 

 no longer available because of the fact 

 that the taxpayers of the state could no 

 longer bear the tax burden necdssary to 

 produce the mimey, a prominent member 

 of the Relief Commission state<l with 

 great emphasis, 'the money will be pre- 

 duced from some source.' He seemed to 

 be totally oblivious to the fact that the 

 time is coming, if we continue to spend 

 at the present rate, when the money can- 

 not be produced from, any source." 



The commission reports that the cost 

 of administration was 9.77 per)Cent of 

 the total amount paid out to December 

 1 . 1 934. This administration cost 

 amounted to $20,934,905.80. The com- 

 missioners expressed the belief that the 

 cost of administration js unnecessarily 

 high, but blamed this excessive expense 

 on requirements of the Federal Relief 

 Administration which "demands a certain 

 >et-up that requires a large personnel of 

 officers and workers, which your com- 

 missioners feel is unnecessary." 



The commission coticludes its rejiort 

 iiy recommending thj^t county directors 

 I'f relief be appointed by the governor 

 of the state with power of removal in 



MARCH. 1935 



DISTRIBUTING CORN-HOG BENEFIT CHECKS IN OFFICE OF LOGAN COUNTY FARM BUREAU 

 ftt Lincoln. Gporpe J. Stoll. former I. A. A, director, is chaiinian of tho county production control 

 Association. 



him, and that such administrators should 

 be sliictly prohibited from political ac- 

 tivities in coniu'ctimi with rtlicf niattei>. 



For Local Cimtrol 



Kep. Burns concurs in the findings uinl 

 recommendations except that given above 

 regarding appointment of county diiec- 

 tors. "It is my conviction that adniiiws- 

 tration of relief should be returned t" 

 the county and township authorities." 

 said Mr. Burns. 



In a sujiplementary report ."si'natc.i 

 Hickman of Edgar county say.-^: "Tin 

 statute creating the Illinois Emergency 

 Relief Commission should be repealed or 

 amended and provision matie for the han- 

 dling of relief problems by local author- 

 ities. High priced executives, district 

 supervisors, county a<lministrators and 

 case workers should be dismissed. Pro- 

 fessional Welfare workers have fastened 

 their griji upon state and nation. It is 

 their business to make the relief busines> 

 grow bigger and bigger regardless of 

 costs and who pays the cost. The relief 

 problem shoidd be controlled by the resi- 

 dents of the community where ailminis- 

 tered." 



The commission highly comiiiendeil 

 "the unselfish devotion to duty of Mr. 

 Dunham, the chairman, and the members 

 of the Illinois Emergency Relief Com- 

 mission who have given of their time ami 

 energy to the cause without pay." 



While a large number of bills have 

 been introduced in both houses, which 

 I. A. A. representatives are studying to 

 determine how they will affect the in- 

 terests of farmers, very little considera- 

 tion has been given by the committees 

 to the proposed legislation. 



Devine Is Speaker 



The new Speaker. John P. Devine of 

 Dixon, is one of the most able downstatc 



F. C. A. Studies Methods of 

 Illinois Farm Supply Co. 



The i'ooperative Division of the Farm 

 Credit .Administration is making an eco- 

 nomic-analysis of the organization and 

 operating methods of the Illinois Farm 

 .■Supply Company. This cooperative pur- 

 cha.'^tnt; association, which is affiliat<-,) 

 with the Illinois Agricultural Associa 

 tion. has developed very rapidly during: 

 Its eight years.of operation. The v<dume 

 of retail business handled through its 

 ■")K associated member units amounted to- 

 a|>proxiniately $7.000.(»0li in 19;!4, and 

 patronage dividend> amounted to ap- 

 proximately Sr>:!OJ)00. The company han- 

 dles such farm supplies as oil, gas. kero- 

 sene, grease, paint, and fly spray. 



The Cooperative Division is convinceii 

 that the study will be of benefit not only 

 to the Illinois Farm Supply Company but 

 also to similar farm purchasing associa- 

 tions in other states. The projt^-t should 

 yield information that will be generJi 

 helpful in determining operating effi 

 cieiicy standards for farm supply pur- 

 chasing as.sociations. The study is bein;; 

 made with the full cooperation of tht 

 Illinois Farm Supply Company and its 

 affiliated member companies under the 

 <lirection of Joseph G. Knapp and John 

 H. Lister, staff members of the Coopera- 

 tive Division. 



legislators and has been a leader for 

 many years in the General Assembly. 

 Senator W. H. Hickman is the new chair- 

 man of the .Agricultural Committee in 

 the Senate, and Rep. Frank B. Wilson of 

 Ogle county is chairman of the .Agricul- 

 tural Committee in the House. 



An effort will be made again to in- 

 crease the state school fund. Bills have 



(Continued on page 21, Col. 1) 



17 



X 



