The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1917-01-30
ELEVATOR SURVEY.


ates can perform real service for
the farmers by securing a fair ana
preiudiced survey of marketing
conditions in North Dakota. Prof.
James f. Boyle OF the Agricultural
college, in an article published in
The Quarterly Journal of the Cniver'
sity of North Dakota, points out some
defects in the present system that
are interesting now that attention IS
focused upon the problem of distribu'
ton, one of the most vital issues that
confronts the state today.
He finds that while most of the
farmers elevators are called coop
erative," probably only half of them
. are based upon strict cooperative
principles.
sa Prof. iEoyle states that the eleva'
tors are weak in the matter Of bond
! ing their managers. We Quote his
own words y =
d. MANY farmers elevators employ a
focal farmer for manager and then
refuse to place him under any kind
of surety bond, on the ground that
they know him to be honest in ad-
vance. The pay of good manager
is often inadequate. The compensa-
/ ton ranges from SIS to $175 a month.
An almost universal weakness in the
farmers elevators is the financial re-
serve or surplus. Very few maintain
any reserve fund whatsoever. Many
are heavily mortgaged and provide no
sinking fund. Indeed, some with a
heavy mortgage soon maturing and
with foreclosure staring them in the
face, declare big dividends and let
the crash come. An increasing num-
her are adopting the government
bookkeeping system. Perhaps the
most vital need at the present time is
q uniform accounting. system. AS Is
q VIGIL huOWu Jul SCdtO uduhiH6 oSPsAA~
ment maintains a careful audit Of all
state banks through a force OF bank
examiners. Our railroad commission
has supervision over grain elevators,
their storage tickets covering depos-
its of grain, and other matters per-
tanning to the elevator business, but
thus far the state has made no ade-
quate provision for financial exam
ination of the elevator. Line elevat-
ors are audited from the central
house in a thorough manner. But
thus far the farmers elevators have
neither state system nor self
developed system of auditing. This
stands today as their unsolved prob
lem.
'The farmers produce grain from
fields which, year by year, show a
marked increase in foul weeds. Vel
low mustard, kinghead, cookie and
wild oats are the cOmmonest kinds
Elevators now dock the grain GER
tain number of pounds per bushel,
thus allowing for the foreign matter
found in it.
But with the increase in the cost
Of feed stuffs, there has come to be
a great market value for the screen
ings,' consisting chiefly of the weed
seeds screened out of the wheat and
other grains. This situation has caus'
ed the farmer no little concern over
the dockage and screenings ques-
ton. There are now four ways Of
meeting this problem. u) The local
elevator cleans the grain, giving the
farmer the screenings and charging
him one cent a bushel and in some
cases two cents a bushel for the
work. But this can be done only in
slack seasons, for during the wheat
movement, the elevator is swamped
with its own business. The farmer
receiving his screenings returns them
to the farm and grinds them for
stock feed.
re the screenings are not ground,
= ~. z