Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-03-10
Looker-On In Iona


| DAVIS ago the writer visited Il town
where farmers elevator company is
having hard sledding." Common re-
port has it they have gone In the
hole" some $4,000 during the past year
! And when one heard the numerous
stories atioat concerning their meth
DDS of doing business the wonder Is
I they are not worse off. TO Illustrate
They have the usual ironclad agree
ment that If any of the members OF the
society sell to any outside dealer, the
usual percentage shall be handed over
to the funds of the society. THIS Is
the way 1t worked with this assocla-'
ton Two days after the organization
was formed, one of the directors was
offered Al cents for oats, the paying
price at the Farmers Elevator COM
pany being 80 cents He sold to the
outsider, hauled all of his oats there
and arranged with the outside dealer
to pay the Farmers Elevator COM
panv the usual rake-off due the latter
concern This the outside dealer did
not refuse to pay he only asked the
Farmers company to sue and collect
it, 1t has not yet been paid in.
In another town the manager of
farmers elevator told the writer his
experience The very first week of
his work as manager, one of the direc-
tors drove on the scales with Il load
of damp, discolored oats. for which the
manager offered "a cents. Mr. Direc-
tor Immediately told Mr.. Manager he
didn't know his business. that the 9th
er grain dealer had offered him 80
cents, and that he didn't propose to
have any man beat him out of 6 cents
q bushel. Hot words followed, in sub
stance that the director would have the
manager fired at the next board meet
ing, and the manager advising the di-
rector to go to that place where all
oats are kiln dried immediately. The
next day the director hauled in more
of the same kind of oats and sold them
to the Farmers Elevator company for
- cents, admitted he knew the other
dealer was trying to make him dissat-
isiied with his farmers society, and
that the other would only buy one
load at 80 cents. Also admitted that
he was trying ito work" the manager,
as he had previous one. Said he
bulldozed the other manager into pay
ing him the same price for black oats
as white ones. altho there was mar
ket price difference of 3 cents And
this manager told the writer that from
that time on the staunchest supporter
he had in the whole board of directors
was this director that tried ito work
him.
And day or so after this scribe
met a travelling man that regularly
visits the creamery companies, inde-
pendent and cooperative. He says the
reason SO many of the latter go
broke is" they hire cheap men and
every director and stockholder thinks
he is boss, and attempts to run things.
He told of a company that had 500
a month manager. made money and
declared dividends. Another creamery
wanted him at 1925 per month and
they let him go. Then they hired
butter maker at 500 per month and the
directors took a hand in the manage
ment. In two years the creamery was
closed, and the cream of that locality
was sold to big creamery hundred
miles away.
Soon after the writer had a talk in
another town with grain dealer that
bucks" the Farmers Elevator Com
pany Of his town. He laughs and tells
how 'he makes 'em sick" When he
knows that one Of the co-ops will not
sell him under any consideration, he
makes a regular business of offering
a cent or two more for grain than the
farmer is getting at the cooperative
society. When he sizes up a man right
who will not live up to his agreement
to hand over to the society the regular
rake-off for selling to an outsider, then
he contracts for all his crop and lets
them fight it out" This dealer is posi-
tive he can bust" any cooperative
grain dealers association in three
years. Says they hire men to run their
business because they are "cheap men,
and that's the kind of opposition he
likes.
Der of this cooperative society says
now there's market for grain, some
thing they never had till they started
their society. And that if this cooper
ative society makes only running ex-
penses, its a big thing for the farmers
and the town. 1t suggests also a lack
of harmony" in the grain bushes,
as we'll as politics in some counties In
Iowa.
40 Mn1~A