THE ILLINOIS AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION RECORD 





mi 



To advance the purpose for which the Farm Bureau was organized 



namely, to promote, protect and represent the business, economic, political APRIL 1937 



and educational interests of the farmers of Illinois and the nation, and ' 



to develop agriculture. VOL 15 N0« 4 



Published monthly by the Illinois Agriculturil Asso- 

 ciation at 1501 West Washington Road, MendoU, III. 

 Editorial Ofiices, 608 So. Dearborn St., Chicago, III. 

 Entered as second class matter at post office, Mendota, 

 Illinois, September 11, 1936. Acceptance for mailing 

 at special rate of postage provided in Section 412, Act of 

 Feb. 28, 1925, authorized Oct. 27, 1935. Address all 

 communications for publication to Editorial Offices, Illinois 

 Agricultural Association RECORD, 608 So. Dearborn St., 

 Chicago. The individual membership fee of the Illinois 

 Agricultural Association is five dollars a year. The fee 

 includes payment of fifty cents for subscription to the 

 Illinois Agricultural Association RECORD. Postmaster: 

 Send notices on Form 3578 and undcliverablc copies 

 returned under Form 3579 to editorial offices, 608 S. 

 Dearborn St., Chicago, 111. 



Editor and Advertising Director, E. G. Thiem ; Assistant 

 Director and Ass't. Editor, Lawrence A. Potter. 



Illinois Agricultural Association 



Greatest Stale Farm Organization in America 



OFFICERS 



President, Earl C. Smith Detroit 



Vice-President, Talmage DeFrees Smithboro 



Corporate Secretary, Paul E. MathiaS Chicago 



Field Secretary, Geo. E. Mbtzger Chicago 



Treasurer, R. A. CowLES Bloomington 



Ass't Treasurer, A. R. WRIGHT Varna 



BOARD OF DIRECTORS 



(By Congressional District) 



1st to 11th E. Harris, Grayslake 



12th E. E. Houghtby, Shabbona 



13th..„ Leo M. Knox, Morrison 



14th Otto Steffey, Stronghurst 



15th .M. Ray Ihrig, Golden 



16th. Albert Hayes, Chillicothe 



17th C. M. Smith, Eureka 



18th Herman W. Danforth, Danforth 



19th Eugene Curtis, Champaign 



20th K. T. Smith, Greenfield 



21sL Dwight Hart, Sharpsburg 



22nd -A. O. Eckert, Belleville 



2}rd Chester McCord, Newton 



24th. Charles Marshall, Belknap 



25th August G. Eggerding, Red Bud 



DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS 



Comptroller R. G. Ely 



Dairy Marketing Wilfred Shaw 



Finance R. A. Cowles 



Fruit and Vegetable Marketing. H. W. Day 



Legal and General Counsel Donald Kirkpatrick 



Live Stock Marketing „ Ray E. Miller 



Office _ „ C. E. Johnston 



Organization _ _ _ G. E. Metzger 



Produce Marketing. F. A. Gougler 



Publicity _ George Thiem 



Safety C. M. Seagraves 



Taxation and Statistics J. C. Watson 



Transportation-Claims Division G. W. Baxter 



Young Peoples Activities Frank Gingrich 



ASSOCIATED ORGANIZATIONS 



Country Life Insurance Co L. A. Williams, Mgr. 



Farmers' Mutual Reinsurance Co. ..J. H. Kelker, Mgr. 



Illinois Agr. Auditing Ass'n F. E. Ringham, Mgr. 



Illinois Agr. Mutual Ins. Co...A. E. Richardson, Mgr. 



Illinois Agr. Service Co Donald Kirkpatrick, Secy. 



Illinois Farm Supply Co L. R. Marchant, Mgr. 



Illinois Fruit Growers' Exchange....H. W. Day, Mgr. 



Illinois Grain Corporation..Harrison Fahrnkopf, Mgr. 



Illinois Livestock Marketing Ass'n...Ray Miller, Mgr. 



Illinois Milk Producers' Ass'n Wilfred Shaw, Mgr. 



Illinois Producers' Creameries....F. A. Gougler, Mgr. 



J. B. Countiss Sales Mgr. 



GEORGE THIEM, Editor 



State Capitol, Sprrngtieid 



' VER since the Lord com- 

 manded Joshua to cross the 

 River Jordan and possess the 

 land of Canaan for his people, the 

 question of land ownership has been 

 a vital one. This is due to the fact 

 that most men have the urge to own 

 land, and then more land. Land is 

 the universal token of wealth and 

 security against want. All wealth 

 springs from it. Our own George 

 Washington, father of his Country 

 was said to be "land hungry." - 



Nations generally recognize that 

 their future is closely related to their 

 possessions of fertile lands, the 

 source of food for their people. 

 Japan's penetration of Manchuria 

 and Mussolini's bold theft of Ethi- 

 opia are current illustration of na- 

 tions attempting to make themselves 

 more secure by adding to their lands. 

 These things explain the interest of 

 governments in the division of land 

 within their borders, in land use, in 

 soil conservation, etc. 



Not so many years ago the Com- 

 munist government in Russia seized 

 all the land for the state, abolished 

 private ownership, started its pro- 

 gram of setting up state-operated 

 and collectivist farms. More recently 

 the socialist government of Mexico 

 took over the big plantations, divided 

 them into small tracts, and distrib- 

 uted the land among the peons. 

 Recent reports indicate that the peons 



are worse off now than they were 

 working for the big landowners be- 

 cause they lack the equipment, abil- 

 ity, initiative or other necessities for 

 operating the land to the best ad- 

 vantage. 



In Germany where the church and 

 the nobility have vast land holdings, 

 the church is being warned to be 

 liberal in donating lands for gov- 

 ernment settlers "lest authorities find 

 themselves forced to take compulsory 

 measures." Dr. Heilman, official of 

 the ministry of labor in the Nazi 

 government is quoted as saying, "The 

 Nazi state recognizes private prop- 

 erty, but it no longer is unrestricted 

 — it must be justified in its existence 

 by submitting to the requirements of 

 the community. This is especially 

 true of the soil which renews the 

 blood of the nation and provides the 

 basis for its nourishment. The soil, 

 therefore, concerns the whole na- 

 tion." 



In England, a noted and respected 

 agricultural economist, C. S. Orwin of 

 Oxford University, is seriously advoca- 

 ting national ownership of lands. He 

 writes of the heavy death duties" which 

 must be paid in cash and which frequent- 

 ly are not paid by the time the new owner 

 dies and the land is subject to another 

 heavy inheritance tax. "// may be doutiled 

 whether there is an agricultural estate in 

 England today upon uhicb a full year's 

 rental should not be spent upon necessary 

 uori in the repair and replacement of 

 buildings, the improvement of roads and 

 ualer supplies, and in land drainage." 

 writes Orwin. . . . "Slate ownership is 

 not a question of political convictions or 

 illusions about the Rights of Man. but a 

 question of social order and good busi- 

 ness. I believe in it solely because I love 

 the land, and hate to see the way in which 

 it is either exploited or starved under a 

 system which has outlived its uiefutness." 



This writer believes that interested pri- 

 vate ownership is the best system for 

 handlmg this most valuable natural asset 

 of any country. But he also believes that 

 the government is justified in demanding, 

 by compulsory regulation, if necessary, 

 that landowners and tenants protect the 

 soil against wasteful erosion, depletion of 

 fertility, and general exploitation. The 

 generations to come — and the nation it- 

 self — have a large stake in soil conser- 

 vation. We let private enterprise grab 

 our rich natural forests and log them off, 

 the reason why lumber is so high priced 

 today. We ought to be more sensible as 

 a nation about protecting the soil. — 

 E.GT. 



APRIL, 1937 



