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Farm Bureau Position Reaffirmed 



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REAFFIRMATION of the Farm Bu- 

 reau's position in advocating reten- 

 tion of the present parity formula was 

 made by President Earl C. Smith of the 

 Illinois Agricultural Association at the 

 regular fall meeting of Farm Bureau lead- 

 ers held in mid-September at Springfield. 

 "Let's not agree to some popular for- 

 mula in a hurry which might result in 

 the loss of all the gains we have made," 

 Smith counseled. 



In discussing the Agricultural Adjust- 

 ment Act, Smith cautioned that "we 

 must be careful as Farm Bureau leaders. 

 Farm Bureau members and as thinking 

 farm people that differentiate between 

 misadministration and the law itself. If 

 there are some things that ought to go 

 Out, let's take them out. W there are 

 some limitations that should go in, let's 

 put them in, but let's not do away with 

 the only law farmers have on the books 

 which brings a balance between supply 

 and demand. If changes are to be made, 

 we want the friends of agriculture to 

 make them after full consideration of all 

 the facts." 



The lAA president reviewed the resolu- 

 tion adopted at the Baltimore conven- 

 tion of the AFBF in 1940 which called 

 for the formation of an independent, bi- 

 partisan board within the Department of 

 Agriculture for administration of the 

 AAA, Soil Conservation Service, etc., to 

 be responsible for all plans, policies, and 

 regulations necessary for the administra- 

 tion of these laws. 



On the problem of reconversion, Smith 

 said there were indications that postwar 

 readjustments would be greater than 

 many realize. He cited the reversal of 

 position in the statements of high gov- 

 ernment officials during the year. In 

 the early part of the year, he said, farm- 

 ers were told that they need not worry 

 about surpluses, but now these same offi- 

 cials are saying publicly that they are fear- 

 ful of surpluses. 



Smith declared that if farmers are will- 

 ing to produce a surplus of basic farm 

 crops for the protection of the nation, 

 then it becomes a national responsibility 

 to see that these surpluses are controlled 

 in such a manner as not to depress mar- 

 ket prices. 



"We need a national understanding 

 on the imperative need for controlling 

 farm surpluses and we need to have such 

 an understanding made part of our na- 

 tional policy so that it does not become 

 a question for political debate every four 

 years," Smith said. 



The lAA president also asserted that 



the major farm problem is in selling the 

 nation on the tremendous buying power 

 of the farmer. Economists agree, he 

 said, that farmers as a class are the best 

 buyers of the products of the factories 

 and mills of the United States. The level 

 of values placed on farm products there- 

 fore determines the buying capacity of 

 farmers. 



Other topics discussed by Smith in- 

 cluded farm credit, disposal of surplus 

 war land and property, and the duty of 

 citizens seeing to it that they are properly 

 registered, and that they vote in the gen- 

 eral election Nov. 27. 



Rex Peddicord, Membei Of 

 lAA Board. Dies Suddenly 



Rex E. Peddicord, 57, member of the 

 board of directors of the Illinois Agri- 

 cultural Association representing the 12th 

 Congressional district, died suddenly in 

 his home near Marseilles the morning of 

 September 6. 



Mr. Peddicord was the newest mem- 

 ber of the board of directors, having been 

 elected to that office at the Association's 

 Annual Meeting in November 1943, and 

 was a member of the Business Service 

 Committee of the board. 



Although serving his first year on the 

 board, his splendid qualities and devo- 

 tion to agriculture were recognized by all 

 of his associates. His long and valued 

 service in La Salle County admirably 

 fitted him for official service in the state 

 organization, and his counsel will be 

 greatly missed. 



A charter member of the La Salle 

 County Farm Bureau, Mr. Peddicord 

 served as a director or a member of the 



executive committee for 18 years, hav- 

 ing held the offices of treasurer and vice- 

 president during part of that period. 



Mr. Peddicord was a leader in the 

 many programs and activities of the Farm 

 Bureau and was particularly interested in 

 young people. For many years he served 

 as a member of the La Salle Courity 4-H 

 Club committee and was its chairman up 

 to the time he was elected to the lAA 

 board. He served on almost every Farm 

 Bureau committee in his county in some 

 years, including lAA Insurance, Public 

 Relations, Finance and Business, Legis- 

 lation, Grain Marketing and Organiza- 

 tion. He was also president of the La 

 Salle County Co-Op Refrigerated Serv- 

 ice and was a member of the board of 

 directors of La Salle County Breeding 

 Cooperative, Inc. 



This long list of Farm Bureau and 

 community activities and projects in 

 which Mr. Peddicord was a leader does 

 not begin to tell the full story of the de- 

 votion and faith he had in the efforts of 

 organized farmers to make the rural com- 

 munity an even better place in which to 

 live. 



Mr. Peddicord and his two married 

 sons, Kenneth and Clinton, operated 400 

 acres of land 41/^ miles northeast of Mar- 

 seilles. He was a member of the Mar- 

 seilles Rotary Club, Marseilles Masonic 

 Lodge, and trustee of the Marseilles Con- 

 gregational Church. 



He is survived by his wife, Ethel, two 

 sons, a daughter, Mrs. Collins Davidson 

 of Geneva, 111., and four grandchildren, 

 Kenneth Lee Peddicord, Janet Peddi- 

 cord, Kenton Collins Davidson and 

 Robert Bruce Davidson. 



Eight members of the lAA board of 

 directors, including the president and 

 vice-president, attended funeral services 

 and acted as honorary pallbearers. 



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New Assistant Extension 

 Editor Hired at U. of I. 



Appointment of James Robert Walk- 

 er, extension editor of the University 

 of Idaho, Moscow, as assistant exten- 

 sion editor of the College of Agricul- 

 ture, U. of I., has been announced by 

 Dean H. P. Rusk. 



Dr. G. L. Jordan, acting extension 

 editor since F. J. Keilholz went on a 

 year's leave of absence to join the staff 

 of Country Gentleman, has been hand- 

 ling editorial duties of the extension 

 editor's office with the assistance of 

 Miss Jessie Heathman, who edits home 

 economics department affairs. 



Walker received his bachelor of 

 science and master of science degrees 

 from the University of Idaho and took 

 undergraduate work in agriculture and 

 journalism and graduate work in edu- 

 cation and journalism. ^ 



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