LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 



NOT WORTH A HAT 



I was very pleased to read the article 

 pertaining to Charles E. Carrier, (Macon 

 county organization director), and his pic- 

 ture looks natural and not so much older 

 than it did 20 years ago. It was just at 

 that time that Charley was doing some 

 clean-up work in our Bureau County Farm 

 Bureau membership drive that I met Mr. 

 Carrier and I "carried" him around to see 

 the laggards in our township whom we 

 ordinary "fellers" could not get to "jine 

 in" with us. 



After spending the morning calling on 

 some of the fellows we came back to our 

 house for dinner. Then we went to see 

 one of our neighbors who was always so 

 outspoken against the Farm Bureau, that 

 I said to Mr. Carrier, "Now if you get that 

 fellow to join the Farm Bureau I will buy 

 you a new hat," and Charley said, "I could 

 use a new hat all right." After quite a 

 lengthy conversation we went on our way 

 and I said, "Well, you didn't get him." 

 And Charley said, " I could have, but he 

 wasn't worth it." 



My father was a minister and I had heard 

 him say, "If you scare folks into church, 

 you have to keep them scared so they will 

 stick." And I thought it was the same 

 way about getting a certain type of men into 

 Farm Bureau membership and keep them 

 there and be satisfied. If you just have 

 to "talk" them into the Farm Bureau, then 

 the Farm Bureau is better off without them. 



The man in question is still opposed to 

 the Farm Bureau but I do not think he 

 realizes the benefits that he, as a success- 

 ful farmer has gotten from other folks do- 

 ing the Farm Bureau work during all these 

 years and what it has meant to them. As 

 for me, I have been a member all these 

 years, in fact I am one of the charter mem- 

 bers of the Bureau County Farm Bureau. 

 Frank Smuckei 

 Bureau County 



70-YEAR-OLD BEU 



TREASURED BELL 



Perhaps some of the farm dinner bells 

 have been junked, broken, or lost. 



Ours, however, is highly treasured, still 

 in use, and hanging where it has hung for 

 .over fifty years. 



I admit it is not as effective in calling 

 our men from their modern machinery — 

 tractors, etc., as it was years ago when 

 they were in the fields plugging away with 

 the old team of mares. 



Ours has saved me many steps in calling 

 the men to the house or telephone when 

 they were working about the place. 



Mrs. F. E. Lambrich 

 Wayne count>' 



Letters to the Editor are wel- 

 comed from readers on any subject 

 related to agriculture. Writers 

 should sign letters with name and 

 address. Names may be withheld 

 if desired. Address Letters to the 

 Editor, Illinois Agricultural Asso- 

 ciation Record, 608 South Dear- 

 born, Chicago 5, ///. 



I read an item in the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association Record about old dinner bells. 

 I am enclosing a picture of an old dinner bell 

 which has been in our family for almost 70 

 years. This picture was taken in July 1946; 

 we use the bell every day and it always brings 

 back loving memories every time I hear it ring. 

 Mrs. Clyde E. Terry 

 * Menard county 



THE SWEET OLD DAYS 



To the question in the November Record 

 "Where's the Dinner Bell" allow me to 

 hazard an answer: The dinner bell has 

 gone into the junk pile in the old tool 

 shed back of the barn where it is keeping 

 company with the old clock that once stood 

 with stately mien on the shelf in the kitch- 

 en and ticked away to the accompaniment of 

 the old teakettle on the good old wood 

 cook stove. 



If you rummage about while out there 

 looking for the old dinner bell, you may 

 find a few other articles reminiscent of 

 those sweet old days when farmers worked 

 hard with their hands and had an apprecia- 

 tion of values, which they have lost. What 

 with radar or radio or something to sum- 

 mon them to dinner and an electric con- 

 traption to tell time, which has no per- 

 sonality whatever, no individual beauty 

 whatever (they make 'em by the million 

 on some production line) no beautiful 



filigree or hand carving, heavens, no, people 

 don't know what hand carving is any 

 more — just a block of wood hollowed out 

 and a round clock works dumped in and 

 screwed down. 



They're making 10 a minute now and 

 hope to step it up to lO'/i a minute in one 

 factory. Where is the chance for person- 

 ality now or individual beauty.' Even in a 

 clock! Gone is the friendly tick, gone is 

 the friendly clock face embellished by beau- 

 tiful wood working and carving. Only a 

 monotonous hum now and that stops when 

 the current goes off! 



So the old dinner bell will lie there with 

 its lovely old memories until a sane world 

 returns, until people regain their sense of 

 balance and values, until farmers decide that 

 to till 100 acres well and get a good return 

 for it is better, cheaper and easier, more 

 sane, than to till ^double that acreage and 

 waste one-third. When farmers learn to 

 stav on their farms and work close to home 

 instead of roaming over the countryside 

 looking for more land to turn over, because 

 they turned over the lower 40 before break- 

 fast and what will they do between now and 

 lunch time. 



Yep, the old dinner bell will have the 

 last laugh. 



Alden S. Baker 

 White County 



NOTE OF DOOM 



A few lines from me, may change your 

 viewpoint about the future. As I see it now 

 after 19)7 there will be a change all over 

 the entire earth. All the people on earth 

 will go back to the farm. All cities will be 

 destroyed by earthquakes, etc. It is written in 

 stone in the pramids of Egypt and I can prove 

 it by the Bible (Old Testament). The year 

 1956 will be it. 



Gustav A. Magucord 

 Calhoun cx>unty 



THE LINCOLN CALENDAR 



1 received my calendar for 1947 and I 

 want to thank you for same. It is really a 

 masterpiece in art ! Is it possible to get an- 

 other.' I covet a set of those Lincoln pic- 

 tures for each of my two sons. 



Kindly drop me a card if extra calendars 



can be had and state price. A calendar like 



that should hang in every rural schoolhouse. 



Rev. Peter Beecken 



Kane County 



Illinois farm adviiers chatting with H. M. are: Edwin Boy, Sangamon county, W. F. 

 Nicholas, Wabitar City, la., newiy-olectad Coolldge, Livingston county, E. A. Blerbaum, 

 President of the National Association of Union county, and T. W. May, Madison 

 Agricultural Organization of County Agents, county. They an shown during the asso- 

 ciation's recent meeting In Chicago. 





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L A. A. RECORD 



