! 



RECORD 



New Rural Electrification 

 Programs Are Announced 



- V By G. W. Baxter 



THIS winter will see a large amount 

 of rural construction to bring elec- 

 tricity to the farm homes of Illinois. 



The Illinois Commerce Commission 

 recently approved an application for a 

 "certificate of convenience and neces- 

 sity" for building approximately one 

 hundred miles of lines in the Suburban 

 Electric Utility Company territory, 

 north and west of Peoria. Work was 

 slated to start December 19 at Dunlap 

 when a demonstration was to be held. 

 About 300 additional farms will be 

 .served, and service to other customers 

 will be improved as a result of rebuild- 

 ing some of the present lines. 



The Central Il'inois Light Company, 

 Peoria, has filed a new rural rate tariff 

 with the Commission to become effec- 

 tive about January 1 if and when ap- 

 proved. This tariff provides that the 

 company will construct new rural lines 

 at their own expense based on a mini- 

 mum charge of $12.50 per month per 

 mile. In other words, if there are three 

 customers to the mile, the average 

 minimum would be $4.16 per month for 

 each farm. This would give the cus- 

 tomer about ninety kilowatts for the 

 minimum charge. The territory served 

 by this company covers parts of Sanga- 

 mon, Woodford, Peoria, Tazewell, F\x\- 

 lon and DeKalb Counties. 



The Illinois Power & Light Corpora- 

 tion has also filed a new rural sched- 

 ule and rate which, if approved, will 

 become effective about January 1. This 

 schedule starts with a minimum of $2.50 

 per month and graduates up to $7 per 

 month. On the lower minimum the 

 company will expend $150 of new con- 

 struction per customer and up to $400 

 per customer on the higher minimum. 

 If a major appliance such as electric 

 stove or refrigerator is used, an allow- 

 ance is made on the minimums. 



We are informed that when tariffs 

 have been approved, these companies 

 are in a position to start an active rural 

 line building program. 



The Sherrard Power System in and 

 around Henry county has had its big- 

 gest year in rural construction in 1935. 

 By the middle of November forty-three 

 miles of rural lines had been con- 

 structed serving 126 new customers. 

 This company has a connection charge 

 of $100 per customer, the company sup- 

 plying the service leads, transformers, 

 etc., including the building of one- 

 quarter mile of line per customer. 



.JANUARY, 1936 ; 



Most farmers want electricity. If 

 satisfactory arrangements are provided 

 for the building of lines, farmers will 

 invest their money on electrical im- 

 provements the same as automobiles 

 and tractors. 



There are about 44,000 farms with 

 electricity in this state. Only 8960 have 

 electric water pumps, 3690 electric 

 stoves, and 4870 mechanical refrigera- 

 tors. Many appliances not now in use 

 on our farms can save many hours of 

 hard work each week, not only to the 

 housewife but in general farm opera- 

 tion. 



The volume of electrical energy used 

 on the farm is an important factor in 

 constructing rural lines, whether on a 

 cooperative basis or where constructed 

 by a public utility. The greater the use, 

 the lower the per unit cost. 



The St. Clair County Farm Bureau 

 is taking an active interest in develop- 

 ing plans for a rural electrification 

 project around Mascoutali where the 

 city council favb^s extending service 

 from the municipal plant to rural cus- 

 tomers. 



A preliminary survey of the rural 

 territory around Mascoutah indicates 

 that there are more than enough farm- 

 ers who want electricity to make line 

 extensions practicable. 



The Rural Electrification Adminis- 

 tration has been invited into the picture 

 and some correspondence has been 

 had but nothing definite has yet been 

 accomplished. The proposal submitted 

 to REA calls for a loan to the munici- 

 pality with which to finance the rural 

 extensions. 



In Monroe county a meeting was 

 held recently at Waterloo where the 

 possibility of extending service from 

 the local municipal plant to neighbor- 

 ing farms was disc^issed. 



Interest in electrifying Illinois farms 

 has been manifest in a substantial 

 number of other counties, and with the 

 institution of favorable plans and rates 

 by additional companies for rural ex- 

 tensions, continued expansion may be 

 expected. 



Music and Drama Feature 



Farm and Home Week 



The largest turnout of rural talent in 

 the seven years' history of the event al- 



ready has started preparations for the 

 annual state mu.^ic and drama tourna- 

 ment to be held during Farm and Home 

 Week, January 13 to 17. at the College 

 of Agriculture, University of Illinois, ac- 

 cording to D. E. Lindstrom, rural so- 

 ciology specialist. 



Fifty-six counties are expected to par- 

 ticipate this year as compared to 4G last 

 year. The state has been divided into 10 

 districts and preparations are- going 

 ahead rapidly in each. County tryouts 

 already have been held in Shelby county 

 and are being planned in 15 other coun 

 ties. Definite plans have not been made 

 in the remaining 40 counties expected 

 to participate. 



Arrangements and details for the 193fi 

 tournament are being handled by mem- 

 bers of a state executive committee un- 

 der the direction of Lindstrom. Membem 

 of this committee are: Homer Curtis. 

 Stockton, district 1 ; Joe McCrudden, 

 Geneva, district 2; Mrs. Webster 

 Gehring, Galesburg, district 3; Miss 

 Marjorie Layman, Lincoln, district 4; 

 Mrs. Howard Jenkins, Streator, district 

 5; Mrs. Creed Shaw, Pittsfield, district 

 6: Mrs. L. D. Graham. Lovington. dis- 

 trict 7; Vance Hulbert, Altamont. dis- 

 trict 8; Lester Helms, Belleville, district 

 9; Rev. E. Lyon, Villa Ridge, chairman 

 and representative of district 10. 



.\ good program with several outside 

 speakers in addition to faculty members 

 has been arranged by Dean Mumford for 

 the week. There will be the usual Utility 

 Corn Show, meetings of breed and seed 

 improvement associations, and the an- 

 nual farm advisers conference. 



IS 



