Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-06-24
BANQUET ENDS
CRAINDEALERS
MEETING HERE
Mortgaged Grain and Handling
Charge Lead in COnven-
ton Discussions.

With a banquet at the Meadow Lark
Country GLIB, the Northwest Grain
Dealers association Friday night clos
| ed what was termed one of the best
and easily the best attended of the
conventions that have been held since
its organizations. The final day of the
sessions was devoted largely to the
consideration of trade questions cen
tering about the problem of handling
charges, the status of payments on
mortgaged grain, and the use of ele-
vator receipts.
p. F. Brown of Lewistown was re-
elected president of the organization.
Other officers elected were: w. G..
Kirkpatrick. vice president, j. E. Pat
ton, A. j. Maly. II. B. Lake and Ben
Fisher of Great Falls. l.. l.. Dean
of Conrad, and j. H.. Mclean of Beck
EFT. directors for three year terms;
j. e. Patton. Ben Fisher and A. j..
Maly of Great Falls, members of the
executive committee.
Wrong Use of Grain Receipts
In the afternoon session, discussion
centered about the statement of J. NJ.
Davis. chief of the division of standards
, and markets of Montana, that elevator
receipts had been wrongfully used by
elevator men in the past and that such
use placed the elevator man liable un-
der penal statute. He said that the
department had found that these re
ceipts had been used as collateral for
debts and in other ways.
THE use of the elevator receipts
for other thar actual grain transactions
is prohibited not only in Montana but
in other states" said Mr.. Davis.
Those who make such use of them
place themselves liable
There was sharp discussion follow
ing the statement of Mr.. Davis. Hypo-
thetical eases of the use of the re-
ceipts were placed before Mr.. Davis
and some of the elevator men took
issue with him in his Interpretation of
the law. The elevator men held that
these receipts can rightly be used in
making sales of grain where delivery
is not desired Immediately. Mr.. Davis
held that This could not be lone unless
the grain was actually handled in the
transaction.
The question was referred to the
executive committee of the association
with instructions to take the ques-
ton up with attornyes for legal advice.
Also to be investigated from The
legal angle is the question of payments
made by the elevator on mortgaged
grain. This problem again came be
fore the convention Friday afternoon
after it had been discussed the pre-
vious day. Several of the elevator men
told of their method of handling grain
against which there are mortgages.
The suggestion was made that the as
ISOLATION sponsor a law requiring those
taking mortgages on grain or crops to
~>A.f,- III r.n,H a. e 49, aa,,t
in order to obtain protection for such
mortgages. A report was given on the
working of a law in North Dakota re-
quiring the county clerk to prepare
weekly statements of crop mortgages
for the dealers in the county upon
payment of a small fee.
In the morning, Mr.. Davis spoke in
formally on the objects and purposes
of the state department of standards
and markets and offered cooperation
with the grain dealers in their work.
No Personal Bonds
He spoke of the question of hand
ling charges and announced that the
matters placed before him by the assoc
citation committee would be referred
to Chester Davis. commissioner of ag-
riculture. The handling charges TO rule
this season will be announced July 1.
he said.
No personal bonds will accepted
from grain dealers this y'.r by the
state department he announced. The
department will demand surety bonds
of all dealers. The ruling. as an
nounced by Mr.. Davis, brought consid-
cradle opposition from the grain deal
ers. who said it worked an injustice
upon the dealer who was unable TO
place the needed security to obtain the
bonds.
Mr.. Davis argument was that the
personal bonds were often entered into
by farmers and others on behalf of the
elevator man and risks that were un-
reasonable were. entered into by such
persons in protecting the dealers. He
also mentioned the greater ease with
which surety bonds are collected by
the department. This will be the first
year that the rule for surety bonds
will be enforced entirely. he said, last
year some personal bonds having been
accepted.
Following Mr.. Davis talk he was
asked a long series of questions relat-
ing to department plans by the gram
dealers.