The Illinois Agricnlturol Associotion Record 



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Th« IllinoU Agricultural AMWciation RECORD is 



Kubliahod montnlT vxcvpt August by ths lUinois 

 gricultural Association ot 1501 W. Washington 

 Road, Mandota, 111. Editorial Officos. 608 So. 

 D*arbom St.. Chicago. 111. Entsrsd as socond 

 class matter at post office, Mendota. 111., Sept. 11, 

 1936. Acceptance for mailing at spscial rate oi 

 postage provided in Section 412, Act of Feb. 28, 

 1925, authorised Oct. 27, 1935. Address all com- 

 munications for publication to Editorial Offices. 

 Illinois Agricultural Association RECORD, 608 So. 

 Dearborn St.. Chicago. The indiWdual member- 

 ship fee of the Illinois Agricultural Association is 

 five dollars a year. Ths fee includes payment oi 

 fifty cents for subscriptioo to the Illinois Agricul- 

 tural Association RECORD. Postmaster: Send 

 notices on Form 3578 and undeliTerable copies 

 rstumed under Form 3579 to editorial offices, 608 

 So. Dearborn St.. Chicogo. 111. 



Director of Information, Creston Foster; Edit(». 

 Merrill C. Gregory, on leare of absence with the 

 United States Army; Director of Advsrtising. C. 

 M. Seagrores. 



Illinois Agricnltnral 

 Association 



Greatest State Farm Organization 

 in America 



OFFICERS 

 President. Earl C. Smift Detroit 



Vice-President. Talmage Deirees Greenville 

 Corporate Sec. Paul E. Mathias Hinsdale 

 Field Sec„ Geo. E. Metzger Chicago 



Treasurer. R. A. Cowles Bloomington 



Asst. Treas., A. R. Wright Vcana 



Comptroller, R. G. Ely Chicago 



General Counsel, Donald Kirkpatridc 



Chicago 



BOARD OF DIRECTORS 



(By Congressional Districts) 



Ist to 11th Harvey W. Adair. Chicago Hts. 



12th C. I. Elliott Streator 



13th Homer Curtiss. Stockton 



14th Otto Steiiey, Stronghurst 



ISth Ronald A. Holt. Galva 



16tl> Albert Hayes, Chillicothe 



17th Charles Lauritzen, Reddick 



18th W. A. Dennis, Paris 



19th Charles B. Shuman, Sullivan 



20th K. T. Smith, Greenfield 



2Ut F. E. Morris, Buffalo 



22nd Alvin O. Eckert, Belleville 



23rd Chester McCord. Newton 



24th Lyman Bunting, EUery 



2Sth August G. Eggerding, Red Bud 



DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS 



Otdry Moakeling Wilfred Show 



Fniit and V*^«tabl« MarkAliny L. L. Colvis 



Grain Marksting G«org« H. litnar 



L«gal Donald Eirkpatrick 



Liv* Stock Maikotiag S. F. RuiuU 



Offico C. E. loluuton 



Organization _ O. D. Brissonden 



Produce Marketing F. A. Gouglu 



Publicity Croiton Fester 



Research and T uxu Uuii. L. H. Simerl 



Rural School Relations John K. Cox 



Safety C. M. Seagraves 



Sales Service W. P. Sandferd 



Soil Improvement _ _ lohn R. Spencer 



Transportation-Claims G. W. Baxter 



Young People's Activities Ellsworth D. Lyon 



ASSOCIATED ORGANIZATIONS 



Country Life Ins. Co. Dave Mieher. Mgr. 



Farmers' Mutual Reinsur. Co J. H. Kelker, Mgr. 



111. Agr. Auditing Asso. C. E. Strand. Mgr. 



ni. Agr. Mutual Ins. Co A. E. Richardson. Mgr. 



ni. Agr. Service Co. Earl C. Smith. Pros. 



Donald Kirkpatrick. Sec. 



111. Co-op Locker Service Dano Cryder. Pros. 



m. F. Bur. Serum Assn... .S. F. Russell. Sec.-Mgr. 



ni. Farm Supply Co C. H. Becker. Mgr. 



ni. Fruit Growers' Exchange L. L. Colvis. Mgr. 



ni. Grain Corporation. Frank Haines. Mgr. 



ni. Livestock Mktg. Assn..Jl. W. Trautmann. Mgr. 



ni. Milk Producers' Assn. Wilfred Shaw. Mgr. 



ni. Producers' Creameries T. B. Counties. Mgr. 



ni. Wool Mktg. Assn S. F. Russell. Sec.-Mgr. 



To advance the purpose for which the Form Bureau was 

 organized, namely, to promote, protect and represent the 

 business, economic, social and educational interests of the 

 farmers of Illinois and the Nation, and to develop agriculture. 



APRIL, 1945 



VOLUME 23 - NUMBER 4 



lAA OPPOSES CONVENTION CALL NOW 



THE Illinois Agricultural Association is 

 opposed to the calling of a conven- 

 tion for revision of our state con- 

 stitution at the present time. 



The apportionment and revenue arti- 

 cles of the present constitution are gen- 

 erally recognized as most in need of 

 change. Separately and together they 

 constitute the most serious conflict of 

 viewpoints between Chicago and down- 

 state voters. 



Until some reasonably satisfactory 

 solution of these two problems has been 

 reached, the Association does not be- 

 lieve that the other provisions of our con- 

 stitution, some admittedly in need of 

 some change, will receive the careful, 

 calm and impartial consideration which 

 should be devoted to changes in our basic 

 law. 



In opposing the calling of a constitu- 

 tional convention at this time, the Asso- 

 ciation disagrees with those who are op- 

 posed to any change in the provisions 

 of the present constitution. 



Favors Reapportionment 



For several years, the Association has 

 been on record as favoring a change in 

 the reapportionment article which would 

 give the Chicago metropolitan area full 

 representation on a population basis in 

 one House of the General Assembly and 

 would limit fhe representation from that 

 area in the other House. 



Such a provision would enable both 

 Chicago and downstate with their diverse 

 problems to prevent any unfair advantage 

 by either. 



The Association favors an amendment 

 of the revenue article which would per- 

 mit the General Assembly to classify 

 property for taxation and modernize our 

 tax system. 



The Association believes that the first 

 step in , securing needed changes in our 

 state constitution is the adoption of a 

 change in the amendment process com- 

 monly known as a Gateway Amendment. 



Experience has shown the need for 



liberalization of the amending process. 

 Under the present constitution, the Gen- 

 eral Assembly may submit amendments 

 to only one article at the same session 

 and the favorable vote of a majority of 

 those voting at the election is necessary 

 for the adoption of the proposed amend- 

 ment. No amendment submitted in re- 

 cent years has been adopted although the 

 Gateway Amendment submitted in 1932 

 received the favorable vote of 80 per cent 

 of those voting upon the proposal. The 

 proposed amendments have been defeated 

 by the people who voted in the general 

 election but failed to vote on the amend- 

 ment. 



Supports Gateway Amendment 



The Association favors a Gateway 

 Amendment which would permit the 

 General Assembly to submit amendments 

 of not more than three articles at the 

 same session and would provide that the 

 ceiving the favorable vote of two-thirds 

 of those voting upon the proposed 

 amendment should be adopted upon re- 

 amendment. Such a proposal would not 

 make amendment of the constitution easy 

 but it would make it possible. With such 

 an amendment, the most urgent prob- 

 lems could be worked out. 



The Illinois Agricultural Association 

 does not believe that a constitutional con- 

 vention at this time would be productive 

 of any constructive results. A large num- 

 ber of proposals upon which there arc 

 serious differences of opinion would be 

 submitted to the convention. In working 

 out these differences, compromises nec- 

 essarily would be made. In order to 

 make certain that one compromise pro- 

 posal would not be adopted and another 

 rejected, the convention probably would 

 submit its report as a single proposal. 

 The cumulative opposition to the numer- 

 ous controversial (questions would defeat 

 the entire proposal. 



Cites 1918 Conventioa 



This was demonstrated by the con- 

 (Continued on page 23) 



APRIL. 1945 



