The Mankato free press., 1921-12-23
NeD Members Going
Into the Grain Gro.Uers
Signing. Properties In Watonwan
County; Debate An Inter-
esting Feature
[special to The Free Press ]

st. Paul, December 1.-two rec
ords were shattered by the United
States Grain Growers, Inc., last week
Most important to the northwest was
the signing of contract covering
the A. r. voos properties in Waton-
wan county, twenty nine farms ant
8,340 acres. In point Of acreage, this
is the largest contract yct negotiated
by the farmers company. The previ-
Gus contract In this respect was thai
on the Tilney farms-twelve tracts
and 200 acres-in the same county
Both contracts were obtained by ]
F. Reed, in charge Of the membership
work in Watonwan county.
Nationally, all records were broken
by the number of new members OBJ
tanned last week. According to re-
ports from Chicago. z,474 farmers
joined the movement during the six
day period previous to Saturday. The
organizations total membership. al
present is 52,034, with S19 elevators
up. Iowa led the membership work
last week with 735 contracts.
Five Hundred Eighty three In MINI.
In Minnesota, where the state or
ganization campaign is in its sixth
week, 5S3 members have been OBJ
tanned, 233 OF these having been sign
ed up last week. Twenty Minnesota
elevators have joined the movement.
J. S. Jones, in charge, Is spending
most of his time at present arranging
for sending solicitors into territory
not entered as yet. I'VE are making
steady progress in Minnesota" says
Mr.. Jones, "and We are selling the
proposition purely on its merits. "No
farmer is joining the United States
Grain Growers without knowing all
about the plan.
The Traverse county farm bureau
last week passed resolutions giving
the state campaign and the plan as a
whole unqualified endorsement.
January II "Dead Line"
in the annual conventions-local
congressional and national-that the
Grain Growers will hold early in 1922
must join before January II, 1t is an
nounced. On that date, books of the
company will be closed preparatory
to holding the first annual meeting at
Chicago on March 20, 1922. At that
meeting, delegates representing the
membership will elect directors and
determine basis policies of the COM
pany for the coming year.
Farmers Want Price Probe.
Farmers of the country, particularly
in Minnesota, have been quick 20 sec
ond a demand by G. H. Gustafson,
Grain Growers, president for an i'm
mediate federal investigation or the
grain trade in order to reveal the
real reasons for present low prices
Agricultural editors generally have
taken up Mr., Gustafson's movement
and are stressing its importance in
current issues. Presidents of county
farm bureaus In Minnesota are re-
questing complete information from
state headquarters mere so that the
project can be discussed at annual
meetings that are to be held before
the end of the month. Mr. Gustafson
is seeking to force the passage
through congress of a senate resolu-
ton which will authorize the Federal
Trade commission to conduct the in
vestigation demanded.
Cooperative Plan Favored. :
A debate relative to the respec-
tive merits Of the cooperative ideas
as against the present system for mar
keting grain was the feature OF the
annual meeting Of the South Dakota
Farmers Grain Dealers association
held last week at Huron, A. D. Mid
dleton Of Iowa; who favored the far
mers' movement, appeared to have
more favorably impressed the grain
dealers, than did B. F. Benson Of the
Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce.