The Illinois Igrieultural 



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. 



SEPTEMBER 1939 



VOLUME 17 . NUMBER 9 



D^ 



I URING recent 

 weeks farmers 

 have heard both in 

 and out of Con- 

 gress that the Agri- 

 cultural Adjustment 

 Act and commodity 

 loans have failed, 

 that agriculture 

 must look else- 

 where for a solu- 

 tion to the farm 

 problem. Opponents of the AAA point 

 to decreasing farm prices as proof of 

 their statement. It seems appropriate 

 that we take stock of the situation and 

 properly evaluate the AAA and its 

 results. 



That price levels of basic farm com- 

 modities are entirely too low is an 

 undisputed fact. But in appraising the 

 AAA is it not proper to consider what 

 farm prices would have been were it 

 not for this legislation? In large part. 



^Uu MantU 



By Earl C. Smith 



those who oppose the AAA and claim 

 it and the commodity loan program 

 a failure because of present surpluses 

 and low prices, are the same people 

 who at the time of its enactment, 

 branded the Act as introducing an 

 economy of scarcity that would raise 

 prices to such a point as to reduce con- 

 sumption. 



That charge has been proved a fal- 

 lacy. The more recent assertion that 

 the AAA is a failure will be proved 

 just as wrong if farmers continue to 

 support acreage adjustment and surplus 

 control as they have this year. Let's 

 stop a moment and look at the facts. 

 In a split decision the Supreme Court 

 in January, 1936, declared the taxing 

 provision in the old Triple A Act in- 

 valid which had the effect of killing 

 the acreage adjustment program. That 

 year the corn belt was hit by another 

 severe drouth which followed the 

 drouth and short crop year of 1934. 



Illinois Agricultural Association 



Greatest State Farm Organization in America 



OFFICERS 



President, £arl C. Smith Detroit 



Vice-President, Talmage DEpREES-Smithboro 



Corporate Sec'y, Paul E. Mathias Chicago 



Field Sec'y, Geo. E. Metzger Chicago 



Treasurer, R. A. COWLES Bloomington 



Ass't Treat., A. R. Wright Varna 



BOARD OF DIRECTORS 

 (By Congressional District) 



1st to Uth Arthur States, Elwood 



12th E. E. Houghtby, Shabbona 



13th Leo M. Knox, Morrison 



I4th Otto Steffejr, Stronghurst 



15th M. Ray Ihrig, Golden 



16th. 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 



23rd 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. Cowles 



Fruit and Vegetable Marketing H. W. Day 



Grain Marketing. J4arrison Fahmkopf 



General Counsel _ Donald Kirkpatrick 



Live Stock Marketing Sam F. Russell 



Office C. E. Johnston 



Organization. G. E. Metzger 



Produce Marketing _ F. A. Gougler 



Publicity George Thiem 



Safety _ C. M. Seagraves 



Soil Improvement John R. Spencer 



Taxation and Statistics J. C. Watson 



Transportation-Qaims. G. W. Baxter 



Young Peoples Activities Frank Gingrich 



ASSOCIATED ORGANIZATIONS 



Country Life Ins. Co J)ave Mieher, Sales 



Mgr., Howard Reeder, Home Office Mgr. 

 Farmers' Mut. Reinsur. Co... J. H. Kelker, Mgr. 

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



The corn crop reached a near record 

 low at 1,507,089,000 bushels, only 

 slightly higher than the disastrous short 

 crop of 1934. Corn prices naturally 

 sky-rocketed because there was a na- 

 tion-wide deficit. The following year 

 of 1937 there was no adjustment pro- 

 gram. Farmers expanded their acreage 

 and produced a bumper crop of 2,651,- 

 284,000 bushels. Early in '37 your or- 

 ganization, the American Farm Bureau 

 Federation, realized what would hap- 

 pen to prices if production again was 

 allowed to run rampant. The Pope- 

 McGill bill, sponsored by the AFBF, 

 was presented to Congress in May, "i'', 

 but got scant attention. The prices 

 of corn and cotton were up, farmers 

 were satisfied, the legislators said, so 

 why not "leave well enough alone." 



Farmers need not be reminded what 



happened early in the fall of '37. The 



bottom fell out of the cotton market. 



Members of Congress from the South 



(Continued on page 4) 



III. Agr. Mut. Ins. Co.. .A. E. Richardson, Mgr. 



111. Agr. Service Co Earl Smith, Pres. 



Donald Kirkpatrick, Sec'y 



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



III. Fruit Growers Exch H. W. Day, Mgr. 



III. Grain Corporation Frank Haines, Mgr. 



111. Livestock Mark't. Ass'n..Sam Russell, Mgr. 



111. Milk Prods.' Assn Wilfred Shaw, Mgr. 



111. Producers' Creameries 



_...J. B. Countiss, Sales Mgr. 



Frank A. Gougler, Procurement Mgr. 



The Illinois Agriculturil Association RECORD 

 is published monthly by the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association at 1501 West Washington Road, Men- 

 dota, 111. Editorial Offices, 608 So. Dearborn St.. 

 Chicago, 111. 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. 2^. 19J5. Address all communica- 

 tions for publication to Editorial Offices, Illinois 

 Agricultural Association RECORD, 608 So. Dear- 

 born St., Chicago. The individual membership 

 fee of the Illinois Agricultural Association is five 

 dollars a year. The fee includes payment of fifty 

 cents for subKription to the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association RECORD. Postmaster : Send notices 

 on Form 3578 and undeliverable copies returned 

 under Form 3579 to editorial offices, 608 S. Dear- 

 born St., Chicago, 111. 



Editor and Advertising Director. E. G. Thiem ; 

 Assistant Director and Ass't. Editor. Lawrence A. 

 Potter. 



SEPTEMBER, 1939 



