Jacob and nephew of Jacob E., took over 

 the management of the farm. In 1923, 

 he purchased the farm from his aunt, 

 the first transfer for a money considera- 

 tion since 1833. 



In 1916, he married Hazel Bronson of 

 Farmland, Indiana. Their twin sons, 

 Robert and Frederick, born in 1921, con- 

 stitute the fifth generation of Seilers 

 who have lived in this house. In 1930 the 

 high line was built and the house and 

 barn were wired for electric lights. This 

 past year, Everett has re- roofed the house, 

 covered the sides with asbestos shingles. 

 The porch on the rear was refloored, and 

 enclosed with windows for winter and 

 screens for summer. The front porch 

 was also screened. The partition between 

 the dining room and the hall was re- 

 moved making a lovely open stairway 

 and also enlarging the dining-room. The 

 old-fashioned cupboard has been replaced 

 by a more modern buffet. In the near 

 future the plan is to install a new water 

 system and modem plumbing. The gaso- 

 line engine (which had taken the place 

 of the windmill) will be replaced by an 

 electric motor. 



Each generation of Seilers has used the 

 old house for the improvement of family 

 and community. When the Sugar Creek 

 school burned, Uncle Jacob Seller, took 

 the "whole kit and kaboodle" into his 

 home and lessons were continued until 

 another school house could be built. Mrs. 

 J. O. Wood, his sister, of Mt. Carmel 

 well remembers that at one time Jacob 

 served as teacher of his own nine chil- 

 dren and several of the neighbors chil- 

 dren in his own home. 



Today the Seller home is used occasion- 

 ally for Farm Bureau gatherings and 

 4-H club meetings. The boys are both 

 interested in pig projects. They also have 

 a milk route in town to keep them busy. 

 With typical Seller ingenuity a bottle 

 washer has been rigged up using an old 

 Daisy churn in which the paddles have 

 been replaced with motor driven brushes. 



Mrs. Seller, in keeping with the fam- 

 ily's tradition of progress, is active in 

 organizing a county Home Bureau. From 

 it she hopes to bring new ideas into 

 her home. 



"I shall be glad to have any sugges- 

 tions from the Extension workers from 

 the University," said Mrs. Seller. "I am 

 hoping that after a year's membership in 

 Home Bureau, my home will reflect its 

 teachings." 



When more farmers regard their 

 homes as a heritage, their farms as a 

 privilege to be maintained and improved 

 with each generation, American agricul- 

 ture will regain its dignity as an occu- 

 pation and a way of life. Then indeed 

 will tenant farming cease to be a prob- 

 lem. Then, too, will this generation be 

 able to feel that it has kept the faith 

 with those early pioneers. 



AN EVEN, THRIFTY BUNCH 

 Howard McDonald, Peoria county, raited these 104 pigs irom 13 sows, sold them 

 through the Peoria Producers a iew weeks ago for $9.40 per cwt. Areraging 204 pounds, 

 they were raised on dean land, led ground oats, ear com and Blue Seal 40 per cent 

 supplement. 



Tax Assessors 

 Take Census 



National production control and soil 

 conservation programs are based on crop 

 acreages of individual farms. To ad- 

 minister such programs fairly, accurate 

 acreage figures must be available. 



To treat each landowner and tenant 

 fairly, county and township administra- 

 tors must have accurate data for each 

 farm. They need to have the right num- 

 ber of acres for each one. They must 

 have the right number of crop acres and 

 the exact number of acres planted to each 

 crop. 



The 60th Illinois General Assembly 

 provided machinery for getting all the 

 necessary information. An annual farm 

 census of crop acreages and utilization 

 of other farm land will be taken by as- 

 sessors in all counties this season, ac- 

 cording to A. J. Surratt, agricultural stat- 

 istician for the state and federal de- 

 partments of agriculture at Springfield. 



Each year assessors will secure the 

 answers to 29 questions pertaining to 

 every farm in his township as a part of 

 his regular duties. None of the ques- 

 tions deal with anything that may be used 

 for taxation purposes. 



The record books, when completed, 

 will show the name of each farm of)era- 

 tor, the total acres in each farm including 

 both owned and rented land, the acreages 

 harvested for the various crops, acreage 

 in pasture, waste or idle land, and the 

 acres of crop failure the year before. 



Why all the bother? The records will 

 help soil conservation workers but, what 

 is more important, they will protect land 

 operators in the future. They will assure 

 fair administration of farm planning pro- 

 grams. 



GEO. Be numm dies 



His many friends over the state were 

 shocked to learn that George B. Rankin, 

 Coles county, assistant supt. of claims 

 for the Illinois Agricultural Mutual In- 

 surance Company, died April 11 in St. 

 Joseph's hospital, Keokuk, Iowa, of a 

 throat infection. 



Mr. Rankin was born in Charleston, 

 111., Nov. 16, 1891. He attended school 

 there and was graduated from the Teach- 

 ers College in 1914. After serving as 

 principal of the high schools at Metcalf 

 and Redmon, he moved to a farm north 

 of Mattoon which he operated until 1935 

 when he went to Bloomington as adjuster 

 for the auto insurance company. Last 

 August he was transferred to Chicago. 



In November 1914, Mr. Rankin mar- 

 ried Anna Farrar of Coles county. She 

 died last August as a result of an auto- 

 mobile accident in Chicago. 



Surviving are two sons, George Ran- 

 kin, Jr. of Atlanta, Georgia, a member 

 of the U. S. Army Air Corps, and John 

 Rankin. 



Special Session 



The legislative committee of the Illi- 

 nois Agricultural Association is planning 

 to attend a proposed special session of 

 the General Assembly which will prob- 

 ably be called early in May. Unemploy- 

 ment relief, a constitutional convention, 

 federal housing in Chicago, state school 

 board, and a drivers license law are 

 among the subjects being considered for 

 the call. 





lAA office hours beginning Monday, 



April 25 are as follows: Monday to 

 Friday inclusive, 8:45 A. M. to 5:00 

 P. M.; Saturdays 8:45 A. M. to 12:55 

 P. M. daylight saving time. 



30 



L A. A. RECORD 



