EDITORIAL 



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Take Your Choice 



y^ NDI VIDUAL corn and soil depleting acreage allot- 

 M ments are now in the hands of farmers. Reports 

 \^ indicate that in many instances the allotments pre- 

 sented a distinct shock to the owners and operators of 

 farms. In such cases the sharp reductions no doubt were 

 due to unusual situations in the county and on individual 

 farms in '36 and '37, or where topography and soil justified 

 a much higher percentage of the land in clover and grass. 



No doubt some mistakes have been made in determin- 

 ing allotments due to the tremendous pressure under which 

 committees have been forced to operate in recent weeks. 



Where mistakes have been made, farmers have re- 

 course by applying for a review of their allotments. Upon 

 the diligence of review committees in giving every farm 

 fair and equitable treatment hinges much of the success of 

 the new program. 



In many counties, perhaps in the majority, it appears 

 that there will be general acceptance and observance of 

 the allotments. In others the extent of participation will 

 depend on making justifiable readjustments plus a county- 

 wide campaign to promote better understanding. From all 

 quarters come reports that some farmers are thinking in 

 terms of acres, bushels, and ears of corn and not in dollars. 

 Some have lost sight of the real reasons for acreage adjust- 

 ment. 



Let's think about the fundamentals of this program. 

 Why was it enacted.^ First to bring about parity prices 

 (today approximately 83 cents for corn) ... to control crop 

 surpluses through storage on the farm ... to conserve soil 

 fertility ... to store unneeded bushels of corn, wheat and 

 other crops in the soil in the form of plant food. 



Seldom has there been so large a carryover of corn, 

 estimated at 1,067,678,000 bushels on the farm April 1. 

 This is a much greater than normal supply. On a recent 

 trip through the Illinois grain belt we saw cribs, old and 

 new, bulging with corn, thousands of bushels stored out 

 on the land in temporary snow-fence cribs. 



What would be the result if everyone put in as much 

 corn as "he had planned to.-* " With average weather and 

 no acreage reduction, 35 cent corn is a definite possibilit)'. 

 With wholehearted participation of farmers in the commer- 

 cial com area 70 cent corn (including price adjustment 

 payments) is not only possible but probable. 



Corn acreage allotments were figured this year to 

 produce, with average weather, a normal crop. If we are 

 really in earnest about wanting parity prices for corn, farm- 

 ers as a whole must keep within the acreages designated for 

 1938. The choice offered every corn grower is to help price 

 maintenance or to assist in wrecking the price level. With 

 every farmer given his fair allotment, the choice should not 

 be hard to make. 



On Truck Regulation 



^*^^ ESTIMONY before the commission of the state 

 ^*— ^ legislature on motor vehicle and truck legislation 

 ^^ is a reminder of a growing tendency to put the 

 trucking business into a straight jacket which can mean only 

 higher and higher transportation costs. 



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Regulation in the interest of public safety, and protec- 

 tion of the highways against overloaded trucks, the Illi- 

 nois Agricultural Association recognizes as desirable and 

 necessary. Rate regulation of the heavy line trucks may also 

 be wise. But rate regulation of small truckers, particularly 

 farm trucks, laws to control "back hauling," setting up new 

 truck regulatory commissions, taxing and licensing by cities, 

 counties and other taxing districts through which "outside" 

 trucks pass, are all examples of unnecessary interference 

 which farmers generally oppose. 



The cost of getting farm products to market is a big 

 item in agriculture. It may make the difference between a 

 small profit and a loss. Because the railroads are facing 

 constantly increasing costs through higher wages, increased 

 taxes, loss of volume, and other causes, is no reason why 

 truck rates should be raised by regulation, thus forcing 

 farmers and other shippers to pay higher trucking charges 

 than are necessary. The cure is to bring down the cost of 

 short haul rail shipments to the level of truck costs, not the 

 other way 'round. The public should be given the benefit 

 of newer and cheaper methods of hauling freight. 



Any interference with legitimate and honest trucking 

 except to protect the pavements and for public safety will 

 be opposed by organized farmers. Competition they believe 

 will provide far more effective regulation of prices and 

 service than laws and government agencies. 



A Better Marketing System 



C*^w HE sharp drop in butter and condensery milk 

 ^~-^ prices, to be expected when consumer purchasing 

 ^^ power shrinks, is pounding away at the founda- 

 tions of fluid milk prices around the organized markets. 

 The Chicago butter price has fallen from 39 cents in 

 November to 26 cents a pound today. Condensery milk 

 prices are down to $1.20. The spread between these prices 

 and the Class I price on some markets is disproportionately 

 large. The handwriting on the wall is plain. 



The chief reason for the decline in dairy prices, says 

 Dr. R. W. Bartlett, dairy economist of the University of 

 Illinois, is the decline in factory payrolls. Last September 

 the payroll level stood at 100 per cent of the '23-'25 aver- 

 age. 'Today it is around 73 per cent. 



In periods like this the high cost of distribution falls 

 on the farmer and his price level with crushing force. This 

 is particularly true in the fluid milk business. The farmer 

 gets approximately 4.8 cents out of the quart of milk that 

 costs the housewife 13 cents at the doorstep. Obviously 

 when the wage earner or unemployed workman can buy that 

 quart of milk at the store for nine cents he will use more. 



Low cost distribution through milk depots and stores 

 is an accomplished fact on many markets and it is rapidly 

 extending to others. That will be all to the good. More 

 milk will be bought by the lower income groups and the 

 producer will get a larger share of the consumer's dollar. 

 It may be necessary for producers themselves to take a hand 

 in cutting distribution costs such as dairymen are doing 

 successfully at Danville. Lowering the price to the con- 

 sumer in periods of unemployment and distress, while 

 maintaining reasonable prices to the producer is "a sound 

 approach to a better marketing system. 



L A. A. RECORD 



