ILLINOIS AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION RECORD 



To advance the purpose for which the Farm Bureau was organized 

 namely, to promote, protect and represent the business, economic, social 

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

 to develop agriculture. 



AUGUST 

 VOL 17 



1939 

 NO. 8 



Illinois Agricultural Association 



CreatesI State 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. Metzger Chicago 



Treasurer, R. A. CowLES Bloomington 



Ass't Treasurer, A. R. WRIGHT Varna 



BOARD OF DIRECTORS 

 (By Congressional District) 



1st to nth Arthur States, Elwood 



12th E. E. Houghtby, Shabbona 



13th Leo M. Knox, Morrison 



1 4th Otto Steffey, Stronghurst 



15th M. Ray Ihrig, Golden 



I6th Albert Hayes, Chillicothe 



17th C. M. Smith, Eureka 



18th W. A. Dennis, Paris 



19th Eugene Curtis, Champaign 



■20th K. T. Smith. Greenfield 



21st 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 



Field Service Cap Mast 



Finance R. A. G)wles 



Fruit and Vegetable Marketing H. W. Day 



Grain Marketing Harrison Fahrnkopf 



Legal and General Counsel Donald Kirkpatrick 



Live Stock Marketing Sam F. Russell 



Office C. E. Johnston 



Organization G. E. Metzger 



Pr^uce Marketing F. A. Gougler 



Publicity George Thiem 



Safety C. M. Seagraves 



Soil Improvement ..John R. Soencer 



Taxation and Statistics T. C. Watson 



Transportation-Claims Division G. W. Baxter 



Young Peoples Activities Frank Gingrich 



ASSOCIATED ORGANIZATIONS 



Country' Life Insurance Co Dave Mieher. Sales 



Manager; Howard Reeder, Home Office Mgr. 

 Farmers' Mutual Reinsurance Co. T. H. Kelker. Mgr. 



Illinois Agr. Auditing Ass'n C. E. Strand, Mgr. 



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



Illinois Agr. Service Co Donald Kirkpatrick. Secv. 



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



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



III. Grain Corporation Frank Haines. Mer. 



III. Livestock Marketing Ass'n Ssim Russell, Mgr. 



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



III. Producers' Creameries. J. B. Count'ss Sales Mgr. 



Frank A. Gougler, Procurement Mgr, 



The Illinois Agricultural Association RECORD is 

 published monthlv by the Illinois At*ric»iltural Ass*^- 

 ciation at 1501 West Washinrton Road. Mendota. III. 

 Editorial Offices. 608 So. Dearborn St.. Chicaoo. III. 

 Entered as second class matter at post office. Mendota. 

 Illinois September 11. 19}6. Acceptance for mailini> 

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

 Feb. 28. 1925. authorized Oct. 27. 1955. Address all 

 communications for publication to Editorial Off-ces. lUir>ois 

 Aericultural 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 55''8 and undeliverable copies 

 returned under Form .5579 to editorial offices. 6C8 S. 

 Dearborn St., Chicago. III. 



Editor and Advertis-n" Director. E. G. Thiem: Assistant 

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



This Month 



By Earl C. Smith 



^N THIS issue will be found a report of legislation affecting farmers' 

 /w interests considered by the 6lst Illinois General Assembly, together 

 y^l with the voting records of legislators on several important meas- 

 ures. 1 commend the careful reading and study of this report to all mem- 

 bers. It is my firm belief that the degree of interest farmers show in the 

 attitude and voting records of their representatives in the legislature and 

 Congress will largely determine the influence their or- 

 ganization will wield in legislative halls in years to 

 come. 



Farmers must never forget that they have an in- 

 direct, if not direct, interest in almost every bill con- 

 sidered at Springfield and Washington. Agriculture 

 is affected one way or another by practically all mat- 

 ters of public policy. A well-known statesman has 

 said, "Every time a law is passed the national income 

 is redivided." Farmers bear directly and indirectly, a substantial portion of 

 the cost of government, including Federal as well as state and local. Taxes 

 are reflected in everything the farmer buys. The prices he receives for 

 his products are greatly affected by costs of processing and distribution. 

 Taxes and labor policies have increased these costs. Agriculture, there- 

 fore, has a very direct interest in all governmental matters concerning rev- 

 enue. The vast majority of other legislation which on the surface may 

 concern labor, business or industry, indirectly influences price levels of 

 farm products, the farmer's cost of doing business and his standard of 

 living. 



Although defeated in their efforts to secure the passage of the milk 

 licensing and bonding bill sponsored by the organized milk producers of 

 Illinois, farmers made a creditable showing on agricultural bills passed and 

 bad ones defeated in the regular 1939 session of the General Assembly. 

 The milk control bill was badly misrepresented to the consumer by some- 

 metropolitan newspapers. Here was a reasonable measure to safeguard 

 fluid milk producers against insolvent distributors and fraud ; a bill pro- 

 viding for an impartial board to determine what portion of the consumer's 

 milk dollar farmers should receive for their milk, including compensation 

 for meeting the rigid sanitary recjuirements of city health authorities. 

 Farmers asked that they be given a fair price, justified by higher costs, 

 in protecting the city consumer with a clean and healthful milk supply. 

 In the face of these reasonable provisions, it seems difficult for any legis- 

 lator to defend a vote against this measure. 



A serious problem that should concern every statesman, as well as 

 every farmer, is the constant inroads being made by taxes, organized labor, 

 and transportation and distributors' cost into the farmers' net income. 

 The present spread in producer and consumer milk prices on the Chicago 

 market is a current examnle. The attitude of the milk wagon drivers' 

 , , (Continued on page 4) 



AUGUST, 1939 



-•^ 



