574 
AGRICULTURAL RELIEF 
The Crairman. Mr. Wallace reported that 2414 per cent of the 
farmers were in fact bankrupt. Mortgage indebtedness was reputed 
to be $13,000,000,000. Whether he carried a mortgage on his farm 
or if lie has money invested, he is entitled to a return on the valuation 
of his farm. 
Mr. Kercaam. I agree with that, Mr. Chairman, but I do not 
agree that it makes a man stay awake at night figuring out how he is 
roing to meet that interest charge. If he owns a farm, of course, it 
gives him right to it, and in my judgment he is entitled to a reasonable 
rate of interest as one of the factors in figuring what goes to make up 
a profit, but that is a mighty sight different than to go and meet that 
interest in good old hard cash at the end of the year. So far as I am 
concerned, I will take my property without any mortgage upon it. 
Mr. Apkins. You said yesterday, I believe, in reply to a question, 
that your being here was the result of a meeting of the board of 
directors that took action on this proposed legislation? 
Mr. SexavER. Yes. 
Mr. Apxins. How is your board of directors elected? 
Mr. SExaver. Our organization has 24 districts, and under the 
law the board must be elected by ballot of the entire territory. But 
in order that each of these districts may individually know the man 
that they are electing, we arrange that the various locals in that 
Jistrict—there are about 800 locals divided into 24 districts—meet 
sach of them in their own local, and at that local meeting they 
nominate or vote for examinations for a man for director. They 
have to vote by ballot; there is no viva voce method; they have got to 
vote by ballot. They elect a delegate to carry that vote to the 
district meeting. That delegate must carry the vote, if he is so 
instructed, as the individual farmer votes it. 
The individual farmers in that local can vote for 10 men if they 
want to, and that delegate must carry the votes as they are voted to 
the district meeting. At that district meeting these delegates carry- 
ing the votes for these locals, instructed or not, as their local wishes 
them to be—every vote on the nomination of a candidate for election 
as directed from that district. If there is a deadlock in the first or 
second vote, then he is instructed—then he can vote as he sees fit, 
because otherwise they might have a deadlock over a long period of 
time. Then whoever is nominated at that district meeting is then 
put on the official ballot, which is distributed at a later meeting of 
all locals, and on that official ballot the individual director is elected. 
Mr. Apkins. Now, then, your board would naturally be somewhat 
responsive to what they thought was the will of the fellows back on 
the farms, would they not? . 
Myr. Sexavuer. Our board is, I believe, very responsive to what is 
the will of the members on the farms, and they also, I believe, are 
students of the agricultural and dairy problems, and concieve 1t to 
be their duty to do the things which are most advantageous for their 
members, believing that if it is right they can sell it to their individual 
members back on the farm. ] 
Mr. Apxins. Then they would not have been very likely—this 
board—to have taken this action in favor of this legislation unless they 
thought it would have met the approval of the fellows back on the 
farms? 
Mr. SExAUER. That is right.