10 THE STORY OF THE U.F.O. 



An attempt is made in these pages to trace 

 the origin and development of the United 

 Farmers of Ontario. The need for such a 

 book has long been felt, for not only are there 

 many outside the movement who totally mis- 

 understand it, but even within there are those 

 whose views are founded on very meagre infor- 

 mation. 



In dealing with activities of the day it is 

 always difficult to present facts without some 

 indication of bias. Those who have undertaken 

 to present the history of the U.F.O. cannot hope 

 to have escaped this failing. Almost the only 

 written records to date are the minutes of the 

 various official meetings. Even these records 

 are brief, so that for much that is vital to the 

 story the memories of veteran leaders have had 

 to be drawn upon. For such information, and 

 for painstaking care in presenting it, the best 

 thanks of the editor and of all who read are due 

 to Mr. W. L. Smith, an untiring friend of the 

 farmer; Honorable E. C. Drury, Past-Master of 

 the Grange, first Secretary of the Canadian 

 Council of Agriculture, first President of the 

 U.F.O., and leader of the first Farmer Labor 

 Government in Ontario; to Mr. W. C. Good, 

 first President of the United Farmers Co-opera- 

 tive Co., Ltd.; Col. J. Z. Frazer, President of the 

 Farmers' Publishing Co. ; Mrs. G. A. Brodie, first 



