The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1913-03-06

the commission in behalf Of the PEG
pie of the state not only in connection
with the rambling and transportation
of freight and passengers but also in
the handling Of the grain trade. They
are not expert grain growers. One
of the members of the commission is
farmer and an expert grain grower
but l am not. We are anxious and
DESTROYS of promulgating the highest
degree of efficiency, I must sal, in
the grain trade, for the benefit of the
people engaged in the growing of grain
The state of orth Dakota, up to the
present time, has been largely a grain
state.
will take up a few items that have
occurred to ME and make few sug-
gestions: The question of car distri-
button. One of the duties Of the COM
mission is to see that all shippers OF
freight, whether they are shippers OF
grain Or shippers of coal, or shippers
of agricultural implements, have suf.
ficient opportunity to handle their
products by reason of a sufficient sup
ply of cars. A great many of the du-
ties that fall upon the commission are
along those lines. There is hardly a
day goes by in the fall of the year
when traffic is heavy that the COM
mission does not receive a half dozen
to dozen complaints regarding the
car situation in certain locations We
are always able to relieve a situation
Of that kind. j do not think an in
stance has arisen in the last four
years that the railroad commission has
not been able to relieve situation
and want to say whenever any of
you gentlement have diffilulty in get
ting cars for the shipment of your
grain, wire our SECRETARY at Bismarck
the stature of your wants and We will
see that you get attestios.
There is quite a good deal of legisla-
ton pending which will be is import
ance to the farmers elevators if pass
ed. question seriously whether
much of them willb passed. For in
stance, there was one bill that pro-
vided for the license of the track buy
err. That bill has been killed, under
stand and I think it is unfortunate.
There is also before teh legislature
a bill regarding Accounting. Your
president spoke Of the matter of uni
form accounting, a subject that is one
of the prime objects Of your organiza-
ton, that uniform system of account
ing be adopted. The bill now pending
provides that upon petition of Is per
cent of the stockholders of any Farm
ers Elevator house the railroad COM
mission shall send an expert account
ant to the company requiring him to
make an investigation Of their books
and explain proper methods of book
keeping and accounting 50 htye can
tell where they are at. You would be
surprised that a great many elevators
do not know where they are at.
think this bill provides for fees to be
paid for his services. would be glad
to see this expense be borne by the
railroad commission at the expense OF
the state. / would consider it part OF
the duties Of our Office to have an ex-
pert accountant there that we can send
out whenever the occasion arises to
check up the books of the elevator
and, in a friendly way, advise them
how to straigbten out their affairs.
l was asked today for an opinion on
the question of terminal elevators.
Now, | am going to say right here,
do not propose to get mixed up in
any quarrel between the different
kinds of Farmers Elevators. I did not
know until just the other day that
there are two kinds. 1t seems there
is a good kind and bad kind. l do
not know which kind it is that advo-
Gates terminal elevators and I do not
care. The grain dealers of Superior,
Wis, would like to get in close touch
with the people of North Dakota and
help us market our grain and they are
very anxious to see an elevator estab-
lished at Superior for the protection
of North Dakota grain. The advan-
tages as I see them in terminal ele-
vator are these: That grain raised in
North Dakota could be marketed in
Superior without contamination with
grain from other states. We do not
get the benefit in grade whirh we
should be given.
J. II. Worst, president of the Agricul.
tural College, Fargo, N. d., next ad-