THE FARMERS UNION 241 



In 1918, the Farmers' Union Co-operative Insurance Company of 

 Nebraska was organized. At the end of 1927, after a little more than nine 

 years of operation, this company had about 6,000 policy holders and 

 $33,840,323 worth of insurance in force on all kinds of farm property. 51 



Remarkable success was scored also in the organization of livestock- 

 shipping associations; and here, more notably than in other commodities, 

 great strides were made on the terminal market. The Nebraska Union 

 tried in 1917 to purchase a membership on the Omaha Livestock Ex- 

 change, but its application was turned down on the grounds that the 

 Union, contrary to exchange rules, paid patronage dividends. The only 

 thing left to do was to form a cooperative firm independent of the ex- 

 change, and on April 2, 1917, such an organization was established. By 

 the third month it was on a paying basis, although when an attempt was 

 made to incorporate the firm in 1920, the farmers failed to respond to the 

 proposal to buy stock. Originally, the practice of the cooperative exchange 

 was to pay patronage dividends to Union members only, but this soon 

 was modified to include non-Union members. A plan was finally devised 

 whereby those who did not belong to the Union gained membership in 

 cooperatives by paying an annual fee of one dollar. This policy prevailed 

 from August, 1922, to February, 1924, despite some confusion over the 

 role that these "dollar members" were to play in the management of the 

 firm. 52 



As the business of the Omaha cooperative exchange grew, the Nebraska 

 Union entered into arrangements in 1924 with the Iowa and South Dakota 

 Unions to operate the firm jointly. Later, the Colorado and Montana 

 Unions entered into similar arrangements ; but the Nebraska Union main- 

 tained the dominant voice in the business policy of the exchange and in 

 effect controlled it. 53 



A similar agency was established in South St. Joseph by September, 

 1917. Like the Omaha firm, it at first paid dividends only to those who 

 were actually Union members, but this policy was modified to provide 

 payment to such members of shipping associations as might send their 



51. Ibid., p. 12. 



52. C. G. Randall, Cooperative Marketing of Livestock in the United States by 

 Terminal Associations, U. S. Dept. Agri., Technical Bulletin 57 (Washington, 1928), 

 pp. 46-48. 



53. Ibid. 



