The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1929-10-24
DEMAND MERGER OF.
ALL CO-OPERATIYES.
Northwest Farmers Elevator
Group Leaders Want One
Unified Organization
COMMITTEE IS NAMED
Plans Will Be Perfected at a
Meeting to Be Held in
Chicago Next Week

Minneapolis, Oct. 15-Fundamen.
tai changes in the setup of the Ma
tional Farmers Grain Corporation
$20000,O00 cooperative backed by
the federal farm board, will be de.
manded by northwest farmers ele-
vator leaders, when directors meet
in Chicago next week to complete
the organization.
The elevator group, representing
225,000 farmers in four northwest
states, is far from satisfied with the
plan of organization already draft
ed, and has taken steps to force
consideration of changes, it devel-
oped today.
Directors of state organizations
meeting at Breckenridge Saturday
instructed their representatives on
the board of directors to insist on
changes in the plan.
Two demands in particular are
set forth by the elevator group, it
became known today. Both are
fundamental to the entire scheme
They propose
That the new grain corpora
ton be complete, unified as
ISOLATION into which all grain
co-operatives are merged. The
present plan is that all wheat
pools, sales agencies and ele-
vator associations retain their
identities, work independently
each in their field, and that the
corporation merely be sales
agency through which their
grain is marketed. The elevator
men contend the merger must
be completed, wiping out all
co-operatives as such by con-
solidation.
That representation on the
board of directors should be
changed so number of directors
will be arranged according to
volume of grain handled They
contend that if that is literally
carried out, elevator associa-
tions will have 10 or II direct
ors out of 16, instead of the six
provided in the present plan.
An Associated Press dispatch
from Washington today said the
directors of the grain corporation
will meet in Chicago October Is
to complete the organization.
Students of the plan admit the
grain corporations fate may well
be at stake in consideration of
these proposals. They may be the
rock on which the program splits
It is generally agreed the corpora
ton will be only a shadow of what
its sponsors hope for, if the farm
ers' elevators are not party to it.
The elevators have the storage ia
cilities at primary points, essential
in any marketing program. The
corporation needs their facilities
and needs the cooperation of the
hundreds of thousands of farmers
selling their grain through these
elevators.
When the farm boards plan was
brought up at a meeting in Chicago
in July, with three sets of grain
co-operatives represented, it was
evident from the start it would be
difficult to get the three groups
lined UP on common plan, The
Farmers Union, representing cen
trail sales agencies, was friendly,
wheat pools were interested and
ready to yield to the plan, but the
attitude of farmers elevator leaders
was in doubt. The question from
the start was whether the grain
corporation should be a real merger
of all co-operatives or only sales
agencies, and the clearing house
sales agency plan won the decision
A committee of 16 representing
all the groups was named to form
the organization, and they desig-
mated a subcommittee of three to
draft articles of Incorporation. This
has been done, the plan has the
approval of the farm board, and
the assumption has been in some
circles that the prelimfnaries were
over and the corporation could be
formed.
But anticipating meeting of
the committee of 16 next week to
approve the program finally, direc-
tors of Minnesota, North and
South Dakota and Montana net at
Breckenridge without previous an.
nouncement of the time and place
of meeting and talked over the
question. A. L. Berg, president of