State Milk Control Hearing 



Milk Produi'ers Are United in Asliing For 



An Umpire in Fluid Milk MarkeUng 



\J^V HAT old platitude, "econom- 

 — ^ ically unsound, " was dusted 



^^ off and brought out of the 

 closet in Springfield recently when the 

 House sitting as a Committee of the 

 Whole gave an afternoon to a hearing 

 on the state milk marketing bill, H. R. 

 483. 



A University of Chicago professor, 

 Rawleigh Stone, hired by the milk 

 distributors "to make a survey of milk 

 marketing," pleased his sponsors when 

 he used the term in testifying against 

 the milk bill which is supported by 

 the milk producers of the state. Stone 

 found fault with the operations of 

 AAA milk marketing agreements at 

 other cities. Apparently his investiga- 

 tions did not include St. Louis and 

 the Quad-Cities in western Illinois 

 where AAA stabilization has resulted 

 in the most orderly marketing condi- 

 tions with reasonable prices to pro- 

 ducer and consumer, these cities ever 

 have experienced. 



Nor did the economist take a real- 

 istic view of the milk marketing situa- 

 tion in Illinois where considerable 

 ■'control" contrary to the laissez faire 

 doctrine of economic law is exercised 

 by big distributors and organized labor 

 in fixing prices, wages, and profits, but 

 where producers find it almost impos- 

 sible to use similar methods without 

 the help of the government. 



The hearing which filled the galleries 

 to overflowing with both producer and 

 distributor representatives from every 

 part of Illinois was probably the most 

 impressive in the state capitol this ses- 

 sion. And in recognition of the im- 

 portance of the measure, members of 

 both House and Senate were present 

 in numbers. They listened attentively 

 and later drew out of speakers per- 

 tinent facts about milk production and 

 marketing. 



Strange as it may seem, the adverse 

 report of the Milk Investigating Com- 

 mittee appointed by the lieutenant-gov- 

 ernor, which was widely heralded by 

 the Chicago Tribune who opposed the 

 bill from the beginning, was scarcely 

 mentioned. The committee made a 

 quick trip to a number of eastern 

 markets, and stopped at Madison, Wis- 

 consin and Indianapolis after returning 

 home. A Chicago Tribune reporter ac- 



AT THE MILE BILL HEARING 

 in the House at Springfield. Pres. Earl 

 Smith is on the stand, speaking ior the bill. 



companied the committee, apparently 

 helped to arrange its itinerary, and 

 filed stories against milk marketing 

 legislation all along the way. This 

 handling of the investigation gave it 

 the appearance of a publicity stunt and 

 angered milk producers. 



Earl C. Smith, president of the Illi- 

 nois Agricultural Association who was 

 the last speaker for the supporters of 

 the bill, reminded the leglislators that 

 no committee could possibly make an 

 authoritative and impartial investiga- 

 tion of so intricate a subject within a 

 few days. He suggested that they 

 could have secured more dependable 

 information by confining their efforts 

 to an impartial and exhaustive study 

 of the situation in Indiana where con- 

 ditions are similar to those in Illinois. 



Mr. Smith read telegrams received 

 from Governor M. Clifford Townsend 

 of Indiana and Director Witte of the 

 Wisconsin Department of Markets. 

 Commenting on the operation of the 

 milk marketing act in that state, after 

 which the Illinois bill is modeled. 

 Gov. Townsend said : 



"IN 1935 WE FOUND THAT SO 

 MUCH DESTRUCTIVE COMPETI- 

 TION EXISTED BETWEEN 

 GROUPS OF PRODUCERS AND 

 GROUPS OF DISTRIBUTORS 

 THAT THE ACTUAL DELIVERY 

 OF A SUFFICIENT QUANTITY 

 OF MILK HAVING PROPER 

 HEALTH STANDARDS WAS 



JEOPARDIZED. STABILIZED 



MARKETS UNDER OUR MILK 

 ACT HAVE ELIMINATED MILK 

 WARS WHICH HAD RESULTED 

 IN LOWER PRICES TO PRODUC- 

 ERS. PRODUCERS ARE RECEIV- 

 ING MORE FOR THEIR MILK 

 THAN THE AVERAGE OF 1930 

 TO 1935 AND CONSUMERS ARE 

 PAYING LESS. THIS IS TRUE 

 EVEN IF COST OF ADMINIS- 

 TRATION WAS CHARGED TO 

 EITHER CLASS. AREAS MAK- 

 ING APPLICATION ARE THE 

 ONLY ONES UNDER MILK OR- 

 DERS OF WHICH THERE ARE 

 20 NOW IN OPERATION CON- 

 TROLLING ABOUT 80 PER 

 CENT OF MARKET MILK OF 

 STATE. OTHER AREAS HAVE 

 BEEN STABILIZED VOLUNTAR- 

 ILY BECAUSE OF POSSIBILITY 

 OF THE ACT BEING APPLIED. 

 OUR ACT WAS RE ENACTED 

 IN 1937 AND 1939 BY SUBSTAN- 

 TIAL MAJORITIES IN BOTH 

 HOUSES. THE PROGRAM HAS 

 THE SUPPORT OF ALL AGRI- 

 CULTURAL ORGANIZATIONS 

 OF THE STATE AND I CONSID- 

 ER IT AN EXCELLENT PIECE 

 OF LEGISLATION COVERING A 

 BUSINESS ENDOWED WITH 

 PUBLIC INTEREST. MILK IS 

 SUBJECTED TO SEVERE REGU- 

 LATION IN THE INTERESTS OF 

 PUBLIC HEALTH AND I FEEL 

 ALL INTERESTS ARE ENTITLED 

 TO THE PROTECTION OF OUR 

 STATE WHICH HAS IMPOSED 

 SUCH REGULATION." 



W. L. Witte, director of markets 

 for Wisconsin telegraphed the Illinois 

 Agricultural Association following the 

 visit of the investigating committee as 

 follows : 



"MY IMPRESSION SEVERAL OF 

 COMMITTEE OPPOSED TO 

 CONTROL PRIOR TO CONFER- 

 ENCE. FARMERS DEFINITELY 

 HAVE BENEFITED BY CON- 

 TROL. MY QUALIFYING STATE- 

 MENTS NOT GIVEN CONSID- 

 ERATION IN REPORT AND 

 NEWSPAPER." t 



In his testimony. President Smith 

 called attention to the long and costly 

 effort made to eradicate bovine tuber- 

 culosis in Illinois. In the beginning 

 this work was unpopular in many sec- 

 tions, he said. Because the lAA sup- 

 ported the TB eradication campaign, 

 the Association lost members in the 

 heavily infected dairy areas and friends 

 in the General Assetnbly. "But where 

 do you find any opposition to TB 

 eradication today? ' he asked. Farmers 

 of Illinois went to heavy expense them- 



L A. A. RECORD 



