r 



r-TTi 



Typical of the ponets heard during the Mldwett Conference of Agrhulfure, Industry and 

 labor at Detatur In mid-January was this one on world trade. Lett to right: f . t. Lindsay, 

 editorial director of Decafur Newspapers, Inc.; G. R. Atkinson, Cincinnati, of the Inter- 

 national Brotherhood of Railway and Steamship Clerks, A.f. of L.; H. M. Busch, professor 

 of sociology. Western Reserve Universify, Cleveland; Dean H. R. Bowen, University of 

 Illinois College of Commerce; 4sher Hobson, head, department of agricultural economics. 

 University of Wisconsin, ond W. J. Parker, president, Manitoba Pool [levators, Winnipeg, 

 Canada. The conference was sponsored by the Macon County farm Bureau, Decatur As- 

 sociation of Commerce, labor groups and others. 



tioii is on the upgrade, FitzGerald said, 

 and Europe had a good crop year. 



One of the big problems facing the 

 United States is how to balance exports 

 with imports. He said that if the Eu- 

 ropean nations are to buy our goods, 

 they must have something to .sell Amer- 

 ica. This calls for an examination of 

 our tariff levels and import cjuotas. When 

 Western Europe buys more than it sells, 

 someone has to pay the difference. To- 

 day the American taxpayer is footing the 

 bill through the ECA, but that can't go 

 on forever. 



The .solution of this problem of world 

 trade will determine the prosperity of the 

 American farmer, business man and 

 worker. 



President Charles B. Shuman of the 

 Illinois Agricultural Association told the 

 conference in a discussion panel on world 

 peace that the United States can make 

 the greate.st contribution by demonstraf 



MERICA can't afford to abandon 

 the Marshall plan of aid to Eu- 

 rope according to the views pre 

 scnted at the Midwest Conference 

 of Agriculture, Industry and La- 

 bor held in Decatur in mid-January. 



It was admitted that much of the ECA 

 is a give-away program and the United 

 States won t be paid back for much of 

 it. but it's to America's best interests to 

 get Western Europe back on its feet. 

 Most of the countries do not have the 

 necessary dollar exchange to make re- 

 payment, and anyway it would be better 

 if America were paid back in strategic 

 raw materials such as petroleum, uranium, 

 copper, manganese and lead. 



Discussion at the conference also 

 pointed out that it was to America's best 

 interests to help raise living standards 

 abroad. By raising living standards, it 

 was argued, the>e European countries be- 

 come better customers for American 

 goods. 



The vital need of world trade to the 

 American farmer, laborer and business- 

 man was stressed repeatedly at the Deca- 

 tur conference. Agriculture with an ex- 

 panded production of 25 per cent over 

 prewar is especially in need of an out- 

 let for her produce beyond domestic 

 need'-. 



The ECA is taking a part of the .agri- 

 cultural output of the United States at 

 the present time anj the experts are won- 

 dering what will happen when the for- 

 eign relief program ends. 



One of the top officials of the ECA 

 told the conference that v^hile aiJ pro- 

 gram food amounted to only 10 per 

 cent of the total diet of Western Eu- 

 rope, it was a key U) per cent. Our 

 grain shipments make up two out of 

 every five loaves of bread consumed bv 

 the VC'estern European. Bread grains 



18 



U/joAlnf jAaifc Uiicd Jo 



FARM INCOME 



are exceedingly important to their living. 



Food trains from America like the 

 CARE and Christian Rural Overseas Pro- 

 gram are received with gratitude out of 

 all proportion to the amount of food 

 involved. Dennis A. FitzGerald, director 

 of the ECA's food and agricultural di- 

 vision, said. 



FitzGerald said the Marshall plan is 

 working and of this country's five billion 

 dollar authorized aid, four billion has 

 been allotted and 3 billion dollars worth 

 of goods was shipped by the end of 

 1948. 



Marshall plan aid has totalled only 

 live per cent of all European resources, 

 but he said it is like a much needed 

 sparkplug on a motor that has been mis- 

 tiring. 



European agricultural workers are pro- 

 ducing 'as much as can reasonably be 

 expected with the available resources," 

 FitzGerald said. Industrial workers are 

 keeping up their end about as well as 

 the farmers except for those areas where 

 Communist doctrines have taken hold. 



Of the four-billion dollar allotment, 

 1.9 billions went for industrial goods, 

 l.H billions for food and farm produce 

 and the remaiinlcr of 300 million dollars 

 for shipping expenses. 



Western European industrial produc- 



ing how well our form of government 

 works. 



In this connection. President Shuman 

 said that we must beware of "big gov- 

 eminent" as it leads the people away 

 from democracy. He cited as a trend 

 toward big government the agitation b) 

 some for high rigid price supports for 

 farm commodities. Such price supports 

 he said lead to rigid production control.s 

 and large numbers of government admin 

 istrators. Hassil Schenck, president of 

 the Indiana Farm Bureau, another speak- 

 er for agriculture at the conference, said 

 that we are headed for disaster unless 

 we can maintain a high national income 

 Such high income is needed to carry out 

 national debut. National income must 

 average more than twice that of the pre 

 war level, he said. 



Enactment of a national land use pol- 

 icy was advocated at the conference by 

 E. H. (Zack) Taylor, associate editor of 

 Country Gentleman. He also approved 

 recommendations for reorganization of 

 the Department of Agriculture made to 

 the Hoover committee by a task force 

 he.ided by Dean H. P. Rusk of the Uni- 

 \er-ity of Illinois College of Agriculture. 



Taylor said that soil conservation is 

 divided among too many different gov- 

 ernment .igencies. 



I. A. A. RECORD 



H ARM econon 

 1 Illinois Coll 

 taken a look int 

 the New '^'ear, 

 IS generally lavi 



llere, briefly, 

 I9i9 farm outki 



DEMAND fc, 

 t;ood through 1' 

 what weaker tha 



PRICES for I 

 v>.ill shift upwar 

 m^ to changes ii 



OPERATING 

 :;o up. 



PROFITS froi 

 noderately. 



LAND PRIC 

 because of the li 



LIVING CO.< 

 lower. 



Conservai 

 Off in Dc 



CONSERVATI 

 in cold cash 

 S4.17 to $U 

 willing to wait a 

 This has been : 

 uing study of co 

 Illinois farms n 

 soil economist ei 

 University of III 

 culture and the d 

 Service. 



Although retu 

 long-term net pn 

 to SI 0.63 an acre 

 conservation farn 

 ronser%ation farrr 



AFBF Dei 



Gerald Lee, a c 

 from Portland, 

 ployed as the di 

 partment of the 

 Federation. 



Golden A 



Mr. and Mrs. 

 their golden wed 

 has been organi 

 Wabash County 

 past nine years. 

 Farm Bureau atti 

 a bodv. 



1 



FEBRUARY. 19 



