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Show BEAR RIVER VALLEY LEADER, THURSDAY, JANUARY 24, 1929 Address of "Farmer" Brown at Meeting of Farm Bureau Address delivered by C. S. Brown of Ariona, director of the American Farm Bureau federation, and widely sections known in agricultural United the States, in the throughout L. D. S. chapel January 15: It is a pleasure to be here and to breathe the holy atmosphere in your nice reception room, with the pictures and beautiful coloring of the whole scheme of things. It seems to me inducive and conducive to receptivity. I was a little fearful of sitting in one of these comfortable chairs, because this man who drives me around keeps me awake all night, and I was afraid I might fall asleep. I was in Eden yesterday, the first time in my life I have ever been in Eden. I have always been- told by my Sunday school teachers that an apple had been the cause of the great disturbance in that Paradise. But when 1 got in Eden 1 learned it wasn't apple, it was a pear. I don't know who left this stamp here but it reminds me of a story I think I had better tell. It is just il- lustrative of how we should understand the principles of organization, what we call the basic underlying principles. And I will say in beginning this litle story that in my visit into Utah, I have found the most receptive minds that I have found anywhere. The only criticism I have determined so far is that your membership isn't big enough, and I will venture this explanation, that the reason the fellows on the outside are not on the inside is because htey don't understand the underlying principles. And this situation sometimes reminds me of a fellow who went to the insane asylum and fell into the hands of a very able physician, who was able to cure him of his mental dilemma and told him that in two weeks time he could go home, but suggested that he better write a letter to his wife and tell her in two weeks duration he could come home. With pencil and paper in hand and a spirit of gladness on his countenance, he sat down and wrote a very deliberate and constructive letter to hsi wife. And when the communication was finihsed, he took a two cent stamp, licked it and was just going to place it on the letter when it fell from his fingers and lit on a cockroach. He stooped over to pick it up and it started to go. He watched it go across the floor and start up the wall. Then he picked up the letter and said, "Two weeks, Hell! I'll be here twenty years." He was not as crazy as he looked. He just didn't understand the underlying principles. I was particularly gratified to hear your president enumerate some of the industries that you are engaged in, and I would like to have heard, more of those comparisons. I would like to hear what your troubles are, what are the most vexatiousp roblems, what stands between you and your high hopes of prospertiy. And in my humble, clumsy way today, I want to call your attention to a few paragraphs of my own experiences, not only as a farmer in general, but in my own business as a producer of various crops which, perhaps, are not grown in this locality. I am a grower of head lettuce, cotton, engaged in the dairy, fruit, alfalfa, and we have some little citrus fruits, but not so much for the commercial market. By the way, two weeks ago I was picking oranges there were ripe and green oranges and blossoms on the same tree. So that if you find me with cold feet in this country you will know why. In our lettuce industry we are just harvesting the first crop. We have to ice that lettuce and send it across the continent to sell it. The cotton crop has to be sent across the continent, and sometimes across the ocean, to market it. Our dairy products are consumed locally, and part of the hay is consumed locally, and part is shipped away. We send hay to California, Canada, Texas, Louisiana, and we haves ent hay as far as Georgia. We speak of supply and demand, and we are told in our economics class about the law of supply and demand, and we are generally informed that the market is a golden calf before which we should bow down, and conclude that no man who is so learned to be a producer, should not put up his hand to steady the ark, or he would be smitten dead. But let me tell you that inevitable law to which producers are willing to bow is subject to at least partial control. And when you boys are studying that part of your economics course that deals with supply and demand, just remember this that unless you take into consideration these two factors first, supply and demand, your agricultural machine is apt to go into reverse gear and run you back into destruction. If you know the contemplated supply and the time of demand, you can in- fluence that market very, very materially. But if you leave it to chance or fate or just happen-sthere can be an apparent surplus that is not a real o SUMMONS In' the District Court of Box Elder County, State of Utah. John A. quieting plaintiff's title to sen, Anna S. Jeppesen; also all other persons unknown claiming any right, title, estate, lien, or interest in the real property described in the complaint adverse to plaintiffs ownership or any cloud upon plaintiffs title thereto, defendants. Summons: The State of Utah to the Said Defendants: You are hereby summoned to appear within twenty days after service of this summons upon you if served within the county in which this action is brought, otherwise within thirty days after service and defend the above entitled action; and in case of your failure so to do judgment will be rendered against you according to the demand of the complaint which has been filed with the clerk of this court This action is brought to recover a enfuss, plaintiff, vs. Joseph B. Jeppe-th- e land described in said complaint Lewi Jones, plaintiffs attorney. P. O. Address: 1st Natl Bank Bid?.. Brigham, Utah. surplus. plus. It is just an imaginary sur Now here is a little, crude illustra tion of how our system of marketing makes it appear to be a surplus when in reality there is no surplus. First let me give you the key word from a lecture that I heard Mr. Herbert Hoo ver deliver at one time. He was standing by a blackboard, and was lecturing on the depressing effect of a surplus. And he classified the surplus into two classes or groups, namely, controllable and uncontrollable surplus. And he drew a line on the blackboard and on each side of this straight line. Men and women, if you have a surplus, or if you do not have a surplus you know the effect of a surplus, and let me now make mention of the fact of that early philosopher, who used this crude illustration: "If you raise nine bags of beans in a community, and that community consumes nine bags,, every bag will be sold at a profit. But if that community raises ten bags of beans and only consumes nine, there is only one surplus bag and you don't know which bag it is. Therefore, they are all surplus and they are all sold at a loss. That one surplus bag drew the price down until they were all sold at a loss. That, never the less, is what it is in my business. In 1925 we had bales of cotton. In 1926 we had 18,000,000 bales, 5,000,000 too many. And because we had five million too many we sold the entire crop at a loss. Now we were perfectly willing to sacrifice the surplus the 5,000,000 bales but we sacrificed everything. The mdidle man borrowed government money and bought the crop, not the 5,000,000 bales, but the And he bought them from 18,000,000. 9 to 11 cents a pound, and held them for five short months, and sold them for 17 cents a pound. Now, my friends, let's get back to Herbert Hoovers' illustration, the controllable and uncontrollable surplus. He showed by organized and intelligent manipulation in marketing, that we could move this line. Let's put the U there and have uncontrollable.' This is, generally speaking, about in Now what if the boys should feed the middle, but he said, "With intel- - the calf like you do the market? He; ligent application, orderly marketing, would have a stomach like that, organized effort that we could move wouldnt he? And not only that, but this line a long ways over nito the 'he would stop feeding it, for it would line of minimum uncontrollable sur- get sick and the boy would lose the plus. If we only moved it an inch. calf, and lose the energy he put into so much the better. it But he is told to feed the calf in Here is one phase that I want to an orderly way. Now you ask yourcall to your attention and show what selves, "Am I feeding the market in appears to be a surplus when it is an orderly way?" Maybe you say, marketed. We will call that a pulley, "I am not raising lettuce." Do you and this a pulley, and around these raise onions in this country? Voice two pulleys runs a conveyor belt. from the audience: "Yes, sir." t Here is the producer, and over here aiany umes in jjian i nave oeenis the consumer, and in order for the asKea, "wnai nas me utan farm cuproducer to get his crop to market he reau done? Why should I pay five has to send it on the conveyor belt. there are some real reaAnd the conveyor belt is only able to dollars; sons, gentlemen, why you should afcarry a load an inch deep. And the filiate yourself with the Utah Farm consuming public is only able to take Bureau. Let me tell you something that fast And if you send it any that has been in this faster, the man at the other end says, lind, and the accomplished we have that good "You are sending it too rapidly. I to the farms of Utah, so that have to make payments and if you brought if you are ever asked "What has the send it in just half quantities, from state farm bureau done?" you will be what you have been sending, I shall able to give an intelligent answer. be able to take it." And over here Your state bureau is' a branch of the at the producers' end, the producer Farm Bureau Federation of this nagoes and borrows money to raise the tion, which was able to get a tariff I don't suppose you borrow on onions. I was there at Washingproduce. money to produce here in Box Elder, ton when it was investigated and but we do in our country, because we made a law. If you are asked have to pay taxes and take care of our what the state farm bureau has again done, bills as they come along. Mr. Pro- let me this: Some fellow may say, say ducer gets in a hurry and he puts a "I raise sheep instead of onions." whole load cn this conveyor belt, a You can tell that man that the Amerfoot deep, and it sags down in the ican Farm Bureau was the biggest middle like that. And I want to tell factor that a tariff on wool, and got you, the prices of your commodities in a thousand ways this farm bureau are just as low as that belt is over- has brought you many, many returns. weight. Now just one little illustration The warehouse and the ability to finance that warehouse should be in here. I wish to just state, four years this end, and not in the other. And it ago we went down to New York should be owned by the producer who when I say we, I mean some farm does the work, pays the bills, and leaders, and interviewed the Indusowns the produce, and not in the trial Farm Bureau, which is a mighty hands of the man who owns the office influential organization dealing with and a typewriter, and does his busi- agricultural, financial problems. We ness over the telegraph wires. We laid our problem before them, and claim that there is nothing disloyal or they said to us, "You farmers have no problems. Just go home and slop in that. I wonder if I dare make a compari- the hogs, and everything will be all son in the matter of calves. Do you right." And we didn't know but what have any calf clubs here? Voice from that was the truth. All they knew the audience: "We have one here." was that we were sick. Haven't you I wonder if I would dare draw a com- been sick and the doctor hasn't been parison? The boys who enter that able to diagnose your case, and you You know when club are told how to feed. They weigh go to a specialist? the calf and they weigh the feed. And the doctors cant tell what is wrong as that calf grows in pounds they in - with us they say we have the flu, crease his consumage in weight. And' because they do not know. Here is a they get the maximum growth andittle statement from Walt Mason, the maximum size in the minimum and it fits you and I: time. They get the value out of feed. There are blacksmiths making They get the value out of the calf. watches, hits, are butchers makingwashare doctors making Ofbourihbones and our slats. diw-0- L bunch of people didn't un- didnt our case because they Sere ! itii w ' we Hprstand it. But when diagnose "Let's thev sadi. And so they spent a tew lars. which doesn i ni the case. can't help agriculture by legisaltion " another guess, and just let them take in a moment I want to give you another diagram. First, let me give you a paragraph of my own experience and I think I can. 1 tola you i am a producer of head lettuce. We have to ice the crate jce fte iced it, and "u flfter have after it crosses Califor runs like that. Ana when it rja itArizona it goes up and crosses hits """3. A 1 our Arizona and New Mexico, and moves years to diagnose on across the continent. The differhey ence between this catAnd yet the beg place and this, is . th $30,00 a car. Just keep that in mind, saui we d dn't have any v""-i"- . discrimination that Ana wnen uie. '""- - - -that we am $30.00 a car. The Mexico Arizona and New proved to themselves pay in that we ice charge, there is 60 heads of lethave problems, and of the vitainess tuce in the crate, four dozen in a thoroughly convinced unless they are crate is a marvelous thing. If we of ouproblems. And our manner settled in a satisfactory can get them big enough, so that we whole social structure will topple can only get four dozen ni a crate, we enough over. Those men were brave think that we have accomplished wonreand honest enough to submit that ders. Somebody in Eden told me that glad if you would they raised three dozen to the crate. port, and I would beJordan of Chicago read what Virgil be glad However, they only produced that has to say about it. I wouldwould enit for read would it, if you (Continued on page 3) underable you to more thoroughly the condition stand the precarious commonagriculturists of this great an unin showed, He in. wealth are what is being mistakable manner, done for farm relief, and what should be. He mentions taxation. He showed by his figures where a great bulK of the taxes comes from. You know, the last time I gave these figures, I said they referred back to 1913. These that he is using in this illustration go back only to the close of the war. Family maintenance since the war has increased C8. There is another item that I forgot just what it was, but the figures are 72. These are all pertaining to the farmer. The taxes on the farm sinrp the war have increased 158, and the farmers' commodities! that he has to sell to turn imo cas-to pay these ever ascending increases Now here is anhave increased other little picture on the same question. It is in the way of a graph. Right now is the time to fill Starting from the same point, his bins to capacity. The costs run up at about that angle, his your Coal we sell you has his quality taxes run almost vertical, and heat units per maximum the increased had to along pay ability there. Now it goes without saying ton. that you can see where the danger lies. The men who made this picture say that unless the thing is equalized and agriculture stabilized, that we will be following the trail of Rome, Phone 36 Tremonton, Utah Greece, Babylon, and Assyria. 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