41 



■ 





things. We've got "to begin experi- 

 menting in our packaging." 



Talmage Defrees, vice-president of 

 the lAA, and vice-president of the 

 Fruit Exchange, declared that perhaps 

 there is not enough stress placed on 

 just what a cooperative is. "A co- 

 operative is you at work through your 

 selected men. The cooperative is in- 

 terested in selling your products at the 

 best price and returning the proceeds 

 to you. There is no one taking a hand- 

 out from these proceeds before they 

 come back to you. The reserve that the 

 Fruit Exchange has built up is yours. 

 It is up to you to decide how it shall 

 be used." 



George E. Metzger, lAA field secre- 

 tary, warned growers that cooperatives 

 face stiff competition in the coming 

 change from war to peacetime condi- 

 tions. There will undoubtedly be many 

 changes in marketing, he added. Co- 

 operatives must be ready to meet the 

 challenge. He also declared that this is 

 a good time to capitalize cooperatives. 

 "Then after your cooperative has set 

 up the machinery, it is up to the mem- 

 bership to furnish the volume that will 

 make it possible for the cooperative to 

 do the best job." 



Stewart Chandler, entomologist, 

 State Natural History Survey, outlined 

 the insect prospects for the coming 

 year. He said that peaches are in a 

 more favorable position than apples. 

 The coddling moth, he reported, is 

 coming in strong and advised growers 

 to hit the first brood as hard as pos- 

 sible. 



Roger B. Corbett, secretary of the 

 American Farm Bureau Federation, 

 principal speaker of the annual meet- 

 ing, gave an address packed full of 

 facts relating to the future economic 

 outlook with particular reference to 

 agriculture. 



Corbett declared that he believed that 

 history would repeat itself after this 

 war and we would be faced with con- 

 ditions similar to those following 

 World War I. He pointed out that 

 while most postwar planning was con- 

 cerned with the adjustment period im- 

 mediately following the cessation of 

 war, the real period of stress would 

 come some years after the Allied vic- 

 tory. It was 11 years after World War 

 I, he said, that we had the depression 

 of 1929. 



Corbett also pointed out that the de- 

 pression of the '70s came some years 

 after the Civil War. The most im- 

 portant thing to agriculture, he said^ is 

 a stable price level. One of the favor- 

 able factors in the agricultural outlook, 

 he declared, was the reduction that has 

 occurred in farm debt. 



"We are hearing," Corbett said, 

 "that in order to have prosperity, labor 



must be fully employed. I believe that 

 we should have full employment, but 

 even if we have that it does not fol- 

 low that we will have a prosperous 

 agriculture. In 1927, 1928 and in the 

 first part of 1929 we had full employ- 

 ment, but agriculture lagged behind. 

 Maybe that's why the depression came 

 in 1929." 



Corbett also stressed the need for a 

 balance between agriculture, industry 

 and labor. We cannot have industry 

 and labor curtailing their production 

 after the war while agriculture con- 

 tinues to produce to a maximum, he as- 

 serted. There must be a balance. 



Agriculture's only postwar protec- 

 tion, Corbett said, is the Steagall 

 amendment. This promises govern- 

 ment supported prices of 90 per cent 

 of parity for a period of two years, 

 starting from the first January after 

 hostilities cease. The Steagall amend- 

 ment covers about 115 commodities. 

 However, Corbett pointed out that if 

 farm prices dropped to 90 per cent of 

 parity it would mean a reduction of 

 one-third in the total national farm 

 income. 



"We must tighten our belts and get 

 ready for adjustments in agriculture, ' 

 Corbett concluded. 



Another featured speaker at the 

 Fruit Exchange annual meeting was Dr. 

 Chester F. Lay, new president of South- 

 ern Illinois Normal University. He 

 welcomed fruit growers to the campus 

 and gave them a brief outline of the 

 work the university is carrying on and 

 its plans for the future. "We are just 

 a part of the American tradition of 

 trying to train our young boys and 

 girls so that they can take over when 

 we desire and when we must step 

 aside." 



Directors re-elected at the annual 

 meeting included: President Eckert, 

 Belleville ; Vice-President Defrees, 

 Greenville, and Secretary-Treasurer F. 

 G. Anderson, Anna. 



Fruit growers trade orchard reports be- 

 tween sessions a1 their annual meeting on 

 the campus oi Southern Illinoia Normal 

 University. 



Those attending the Illinois Fruit Growers 



annual meeting enjoyed a free dinner in 



the university cafeteria. 



Dr. Chester F. Lay, new president of 

 Southern Illinois Normal University, left, 

 and Miss Helen Shuman, center, admin- 



istrative assistant to the president, were 

 luncheon guests oi Mr. and Mrs. A. O. 

 Eckert at the annual meeting. 



MAY. 1945 



