u 



1934 this had grown to 22.2 per cent. 

 During 1935, this total had grown to 

 28.1 per cent. In face of increased loss 

 payments, he said, assets at Dec. 31. 



1935 were at the satisfactory figure of 

 $1,086,077.29 while surplus was equally 

 sufficient at $480,616.46. 



Judge John Gutknecht of the Mu- 

 nicipal Court, Chicago, made a stirring 

 plea in behalf of a state drivers' license 

 law. "You have a 50 per cent better 

 chance of escaping death from auto 

 accidents in the City of Chicago than 

 you have outside the city,"' he said. 

 "The downstate death rate from auto 

 accidents is 50 per cent greater than 

 that of Chicago. The drivers' license 

 law is a first necessity if we are to 

 make our state safe. 



"There are around 700 people in this 

 meeting. Based on the law of averages, 

 10 of you will be killed within a year, 

 and nearly half of you will be injured 

 in automobile accidents. In Chicago we 

 have reduced speed and cut out fixing 

 tickets given for traffic violations. Now 

 we need your help to make further 

 gains in suppressing accidents. There 

 is no fee in the pending bill and no 

 examination for present drivers. Only 

 beginners are to be examined. 



"The thousands of traffic violators 

 which come into my court during the 

 year show that carelessness and alco- 

 hol are the two principal causes of auto 

 accidents. The craze for speed is re- 

 sponsible for the many deaths." 



He outlined the steps that were 

 being taken by the traffic court to re- 

 duce accidents. Boys and girls who vio- 

 late traffic rules are required to bring 

 their mothers to court. "In most cases 



mama handles the situation,'' he says. 

 "She takes the car away at least for a 

 time. We take all these first offenders 

 to the morgue and let them see the 

 results of careless driving. Then we 

 take them to the county hospital to see 

 the scores of people who have been 

 crippled and maimed. Instead of levy- 

 ing a fine we tell these youths to pay 

 small amounts, usually $2 or $3. to the 

 injured people in the hospital. This 

 spares them from a court record. Be- 

 tween 1600 and 1700 traffic violators 

 have paid around 87.000 to victims 

 since we started this plan. 



"This Mutual Company of yours, 

 good as it is, will continue to cost you 

 more for your insurance unless you 

 have a drivers' license law. In other 

 states where they have such legislation 

 the death rate is only about one-half 

 what it is in Illinois." 



Other reports were given by L. A. 

 Williams, acquisition manager, who 

 pointed out that there were still some 

 Farm Bureau members who were not 

 insuring their autos and trucks in the 

 Farm Bureau company. He prophesied 

 that, with the full co-operation of 

 members, agents and directors, 1935's 

 record could be beaten in 1936. L. V. 

 Drake, superintendent of claims, re- 

 ported that there were 12,663 claims 

 in the auto division. 222 in the employ- 

 er's liability division and that $1,465.25 

 was paid to 4-H club members for 37 

 calves which died while insured in the 

 company. Almost 48,000 claims have 

 been filed with the company since it 

 started and all have been settled ex- 

 cept 1.571. the larger part of which 

 came in the last few weeks of the vear. 



During 1935 the compjany paid out 

 $343,716.75 in cash on claims. Losses 

 incurred were $433,128.75. which is 65.8 

 per cent of the premiums earned. 



Other highlights of the meeting were 

 tho reading of the treasurer's report 

 and the presentation of winners of the 

 district Skilled Drivers Club contests. 



A million dollar corporation to pro- 

 mote the organization of co-operative 

 department stores was recently an- 

 nounced by Edward A. Filene, famous 

 American merchant of Boston. "Dis- 

 tribution is now our basic economic 

 problem," said Mr. Filene. "By 

 eliminating the tremendous wastes of 

 traditional merchandising, we could 

 sell goods at such low prices that the 

 buying power of every customer would 

 be tremendously increased. We have 

 not been selling according to our 

 capacity to consume. We have had 

 to curtail production and bring on un- 

 employment which of course so limited 

 the public's buying power that all busi- 

 ness became depressed." 



LAST YEAR IT WAS A GIRL; THIS YEAR 

 a boy. Gerald Sammons of Monfgomery coun- 

 ty chosen state president of the Skilled Driven 

 Clubs. 



District winners, left to right, front row. are: 

 Don Baldwin, Vermilion county; Genevieve 

 Bowyer, Williamson county; Mildrad Scholl. 

 McLean county; Helen Mobley, 1935 president, 

 Montgomery county; Gerald Sammons, pres'- 

 dent, Montgomery county; Louise Blimling, 

 Morgan county; Delbert Geiser, Stephenson 

 county. Left to right back row, are: Curtis 

 Bohleber. White county; Lester Culp, Bureau 

 county; Roger Smith, Lawrence county; Walter 

 Ringering, Madison county; LeRoy Nelson, De- 

 Kalb county; Truman Gustus, Henry county: 

 Robert Webb. Will county. 



NOli 

 right: 

 necht 

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 the 

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