100 



and take them on to Chicago, Indianapolis or Buffalo at one rate. That is 

 nothing more than just and' right and it means a whole lot to the producer. 



Another great big problem that they will have to figure out is the dis- 

 tribution of livestock to market. For instance, we have great big runs 

 stuff will go off fifty cents or a dollar a hundred. There is no reason on 

 earth why the same hog is worth two dollars and a half less today than it 

 was yesterday. That is out of all reason. It ought to be worth just as 

 much. A hog may sell for two dollars and' a half less today than it did 

 yesterday and yet the bacon and the pork out of that hog won't sell over the 

 counter for one cent's difference. 



If we can get control of this flow of stock to the market we will do away 

 with these things. You go to the market on a big run and every man there 

 will tell you if he had known this he would not have been there. That is 

 true, they would not have been there, because nobody wants to bring on 

 himself the penalty for helping bring on the big run. If the people knew 

 how to distribute this stuff to the market they would be very glad to do so. 



When we get our commission houses over the country the national 

 supervision board having a view of this whole situation and there is a 

 man loading, for instance, forty or fifty miles out, some others are loading 

 out in the country a hundred miles away, or a hundred and fifty miles away, 

 you can get word to those people to hold back or divert to other markets in 

 order to get this stock in more uniformly. 



The packers are with us. I think the packers would very much prefer 

 to have the stuff come in uniformly. They say the fluctuation, dropping 

 fifty cents or a dollar a day is their only relief, because when the stuff comes 

 in a great run so that they can't handle it, it costs them more to take care 

 of it. They have to have a big body of men there to handle the big runs and 

 they are not all needed on light runs. If they can get a uniform flow to the 

 market they will be a great deal better satisfied, and can give us fairer 

 prices for the stuff, whereas they can't under the present system. 



OPPOSITION FROM THE EXCHANGES. 



The exchanges are making a big fight on our plan because it cuts into 

 the business of the commission men. Right here let me make clear just what 

 the difference is between the exchange and stockyard company. I find there 

 are a great many people that have been going to market a good many years 

 do not quite understand where the exchange leaves off and the stockyards 

 begin. The stockyards company is a corporation that owns the stockyards, 

 owns the exchange building, owns all the hog and sheep houses and cattle 

 pens; and also supply and control the price of feed. The exchange is a kind 

 of lodge or club, or whatever you might see fit to call it, composed of the 

 commission men and traders doing business at the yards. They do not 

 own anything in regard to the yards. They do not have anything to do with 

 the price of hay or the price of corn, or anything of that kind. They are 

 simply agents. The stockyards company and the exchange are entirely sep- 

 arate and distinct. The stockyards company is very favorable to the terminal 

 associations, as we call them, to the organization of these farmers or pro- 

 ducers' commission associations. They treat us just as well as they do the 

 "old line" commission people, but the stockyards exchange, composed of 

 these commission agents, is putting up a strong fight against us. They are 

 putting out all kinds of propaganda. The National Livestock Exchange, 

 which is composed of these various exchanges all over the United States, is 

 making a strong fight, because they do not want the farmers to get a foothold 

 on these markets, and they are using all kinds of propaganda to prevent it. 



One of their favorite arguments is that it is too expensive, that we are 

 going to have a national board drawing down about fifteen thousand dollars 

 a year apiece and that we are going to have a board of directors in each 

 of these terminal markets drawing ten thousand dollars a year apiece. Then 

 we are going to have high priced salesmen, office help and all these things 

 to handle it, and it will amount to about one million dollars. Now, just a 

 little bit about that million dollar proposition. 



