The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1917-08-10
A GREAT GATHER
ING OF FARMERS

The greatest gathering of the
farmer clans" that ever took place in
the history of the Corn Belt will con-
vene when the gavel thumps for the
"house to come to order" at Sedalia
on August 2Sth-the opening of the
day of the big State Convention of the
Missouri Farmers Association which
holds its first annual convention at
the above place on August % and 20.
| From time out of mind we have read
of the big conventions of business men,
bankers, lawyers, doctors and what
not; so, too, we have heard times with
out number of agricultural meet
ings" where not bakers dozen of
real farmers were in attendance-but
this is the first time that hundreds of
Farm Club members will come to-
gether of their own volition to discuss
the great problems of modern agri-
culture and to throw down the gaunt-
let of battle to the spectators and
flood hogs" who have for so many
weary years put their own price up
on the things produced by the farmers
sweat and toll.
And will it not be Sight for the
gods ?"-this awakening Of the sleep
ing Hercules of American Agricul-
ture who possesses the dormant
strength to become the mightiest eco
nomic Titan within the Nation? In
days gone by, the Grange sought to
give battle to the influences which op-
press the farmer and which have
| robbed farm life of so much of its
| joy and profit. But it gave up the
struggle and has consented ever since
to remain merely a splendid social
force. Then in turn the Farmers AL
lance and the "Wheel" tackled this
great problem, only to finally disinte-
CRATE through misguided leadership.
But now a new force has appeared on
the scene and beyond the shadow of a
doubt it is being led by the longest
headed farmers in Missouri-men who
expect to profit by the mistakes of
other farm organizations-men who
are tackling the farmers problems
with cool heads and steady hands, VINO
expect to play the game as the "other
fellows" play it and whose slogan is,
production, Cost andProfit" for the
things produced by the farmer. Will
they win? Time alone can tell. But
certain it is that the great Farm Club
movement which is now sweeping
Missouri and which has already placed
fighting farm club in over 1000
school districts is "on the way"-and
to say the least, it is Something new
under the sum-" This movement, by
the way, should not be confused with
the clubs recently organized by the
College of Agriculture. On the con-
trary, it is a movement "of, for and by
farmers" and in many counties the or
ganization already numbers more than
1000 members.
The Executive Committee of the
Missouri Farmers Association here
by extend an invitation to every
farmer in the State who owns an au-
tomobile to plan right now to take a
'1ittle vacation trip" to Sedalia on
August % and 20. Surely every
thinking farmer will want to see the
Farm Club leaders of Missouri in ac-
ton in the greatest and most signi-
cant farmers convention ever held in
the country. So pile the family in
the automobile and hike for Sedalia
when the time comes-or if you can't
bring your family, bring a few neigh
bors-for you are certain to have an
interesting time. For further infor-
nation address the Missouri Farmers
Assn, Columbia, Mo.
.