Page Ttvelve 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



March, 1931 



Auditing Association -^ . > . 

 Adds Five New Members 



Annual Report Shows Steady Prog- 

 ress with 54 New Members 



r}:y:^[-Vr-^ During 1930 



NEW co-operatives added to the 

 membership roll of the Illinois 

 Agricultural Co-operatives Association 

 since the first of the year are as follows: 

 Farmers Co-operative Company of Col- 

 fax, Iroquois Servce Company, Wat- 

 seka; Farmers Co-operative Exchange, 

 Stockton; Illinois Farm Bureau Serum 

 Association, and the Monroe Service 

 Company, Waterloo. 



These new members bring the total 

 membership of the auditing association 



up to 290. Con- 

 tracts from addi- 

 tional co-operatives 

 now being organ- 

 ized are expected 

 within the next 

 few weeks. 



Delegates at the 

 recent annual 

 meeting of the As- 

 sociation on Jan. 

 28 in Springfield 

 voted unanimously 

 to reorganize un- 

 der the 1923 Co-operative Act of 

 Illinois and to change the name from 

 the Illinois Agricultural Co-opera- 

 tives Association to the Illinois Agri- 

 cultural Auditing Association. Incor- 

 poration papers will be filed shortly. 

 Officers Elected 

 Directors elected were A. J. Gill- 

 fillan, Watseka, president; Jesse L. 

 Beery, Cerro Gordo, vice-president; 

 Henry H. Parke, Genoa; Albert 

 Heckle, Quincy; and Byron DeBord, 

 Princeville. George E. Metzger and 

 Robert A. Cowles were chosen secre- 

 tary and treasurer respectively. 



Action was taken to place all mem- 

 bership contracts on a one-year con- 

 tinuous contract under which any 



Fred RinKliniii 



(Continued from page 6) 

 them of the Association's wishes that 

 this measure be passed. 



The fact that the butter market has 

 been demoralized in the last few months 

 is due in part to the recent ruling of 

 the Internal Revenue Bureau. If this 

 ruling is allowed to stand it will mean 

 that producers of butterfat throughout 

 the United States will be subjected to 

 the unrestricted competition of cheap, 

 imported vegetable oils from foreign 

 lands. It is estimated that the market 

 for millions of pounds of butter will 

 be taken away by butter substitutes 

 made largely from and colored by im- 

 ported oils. - 



member will have the privilege of can- 

 celling the contract on due notice, as 

 provided in the by-laws, at the end of 

 the yar . - y ' ' ,',;, ■ ; ' . ;".' — ' - ' .; ' ■ • ' - ' "^,.;';" . " 



It was voted to refund that portion 

 of the capital reserve amounting to 

 approximately $1,800 (collected in 

 1924 and 1925) to member companies 

 which have continued in good stand- 

 ing since that time. Hereafter the As- 

 sociation will refund each year the 

 reserve collected in the fifth preceding 

 year. ,y, yiy--'.^ .r,:^"--'..':;';:':;- ■ 



E. E. Crabtree, banker of Jackson- 

 ville, who was the principal speaker, 

 emphasized the need for adequate 

 audits in operating a business efficient- 

 ly and in establishing credit with 

 banks. Co-operatives must adopt the 

 same business practices as successful 

 private enterprises if they are to suc- 

 ceed, he said. He pointed to the fact 

 that adequate capital funds are neces- 

 sary to operate a co-operative success- 

 fully. He told the delegates that 

 financial audits arc the best means for 

 keeping directors informed about the 

 business of the enterprise they are di- 

 recting. 



54 New Members 



In his annual report to the delegates. 

 Manager Fred Ringham stated that the 

 business investments of agriculture in 

 Illinois continued to grow during 1930 

 in spite of the depression". Fifty-four' 

 new members came into the organiza- 

 tion during the year, the largest ac- 

 quisition of any year since the first 

 membership campaign was conducted. 



No promotional or field organization 

 service was maintained, although a 

 double-spread advertisement was pub- 

 lished in the April, 1930, issue of the 

 Illinois Agricultural Association REC- 

 ORD. This advertisement was helpfvil 

 in explaining to the Farm Bureau mem- 

 bers and) managers and directors of 

 lUinois co-operatives the auditing ser- 

 vice available through the Association. 



Among the Membership 



The membership of the Illinois Agri- 

 cultural Co-operatives Association as 

 of December 31, 1930, was made up of 

 76 farmers' elevators, 69 County Farm 

 Bureaus, five County Home Bureaus, 

 25 live stock associations, 30 dairy and 

 produce associations, 47 co-operative oil 

 companies, 14 mutual insurance com- 

 panies, five seed companies, six mercan- 

 tile companies, and eight miscellaneous 

 organizations — all hold membership on 

 a co-operative basis. Charges for the 

 auditing service are at cost, although 

 a small percentage is added to each bill 

 for reserve, which eventually will be 

 returned to the members. 



The cost analysis of 292 audits billed 

 in 1930 reveal a total service charge of 

 $32,61 J. 64. Approximately $20,000 



of this charge was for accountants' sal- 

 aries, nearly $4,500 for traveling and 

 field expense, and a little over $8,000 

 for office expense. To this amount was 

 added $3,217.07 for capital reserve, 

 making the total charge $3 5,832.71. 



Total assets of the Association at the 

 end of the year were listed at $21,- 

 609.20, total net worth $21,337.83. 

 Net income for the year was $2,435.20. 



Oil Companies Plan ^ ' — 

 To Open About Apr. 1 



The Monroe Service Company, one 

 of the newer members of the Illinois 

 Farm Supply Company, is erecting 

 bulk station equipment and will hz 

 ready to handle petroleum products 

 within the next few weeks. At the 

 initial organization meeting Albert C. 

 Kolmer was elected president, F. G. 

 Oexner, secretary, and W. L. Meyer, 

 treasurer. These men will serve along 

 with Geo. Niebruegge, Wm. F. 

 Schwarze, Hy Rosenberg, Jr., and El- 

 mer Stumpf as directors until a' per- 

 manent board is elected. 



More than $15,000 was raised 

 through the sale of preferred stock to 

 furnish capital for necessary equipment 

 and supplies. All of the stock was sold 

 by volunteer solicitors and much of it 

 came in as a result of an effective pub- 

 licity campaign directed from the 

 Farm Bureau office. 



Whiteside county raised more than 

 $2 5,000 at two meetings held within a 

 period of 10 days. No farm to farm 

 solicitation was necessary. More than 

 150 who came out to the initial or- 

 ganization meeting pledged over $11,- 

 500. At a meeting the following week 

 additional subscriptions increased the 

 capital stock outstanding to more than 

 $25,000. 



The Whiteside Service Company is 

 expected to be in operation shortly after 

 April 1. • ■ . : - 



Urge Uniform Banking Laws 



Uniform banking laws for all the 

 states were recommended by many 

 prominent bankers who appeared re- 

 cently before the sub-committee of the 

 Senate Banking and Currency Commit- 

 tee. 



Melvin C. Traylor of Chicago stated 

 that he would like to see a uniform law 

 developed with minimum capitalization 

 as one of its features. He opposed the 

 idea of all banks beloneing to a national 

 system and considered it unnecessary 

 for all banks to belong to the federal 

 reserve system. Mr. Traylor would per- 

 mit branch banking within the state, 

 but for the first five years would limit 

 it to the county. 



