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Second. To so fan and grade the seed barley that trash and weed seeds and inferior seeds may be eliminated before sowing. Third. The treatment of smut and stem diseases of grain by concerted effort throughout each neighborhood.

Fourth. To ascertain the viability of making germination tests and systematic seed surveys in every county through the children of the public schools.

Fifth. The publication and dissemination of timely barley posters and bulletins and various other publications.

Sixth. To encourage a permanent system of agriculture by a proper rotation and by the proper use of fertilizers.

The Committee has arranged and distributed throughout the year a Crop Improvement program for the use of farmers' clubs, granges, institutes, grain schools and conventions, which have been held and are now being held in every State.

The plans of the Wisconsin Experiment Association, of establishing a county order or branch in every county for the breeding of pedigreed varieties, have been introduced with success in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Michigan, which are the most important barley States, and are being rapidly perfected in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and other States.

The funds supplied by this Association have enabled the Committee to employ a scientific agronomist who has performed excellent service during the year. It is also our purpose to add a field agronomist who will go from county to county establishing seed

centers.

We respectfully request the Brewers' Convention to agree upon an "official" variety of barley for each State to adopt as its standard. In Wisconsin, we recommend pedigreed Oberbrucker, in Minnesota No. 105. Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota standards to be fixed by resolution after conference of the Committee with state agronomists.

The details of this work will be fully set forth in the exhibit of grains and in the illustrated report submitted by the Secretary.

MR. H. D. STUHR'S ADDRESS

Mr. President and Members of the United States Brewers' Association: My subject is:

WHY FEDERAL INSPECTION AND GRADING WILL BE AN INCENTIVE TO BETTER AND MORE PROFITABLE BARLEY RAISING AND MARKETING

I propose to show that the interests of the brewers and the farmers are mutual and identical in the standardization of barley.

Whether you buy your malt, or make it, your interest is the same. Remember that if only 20 per cent. of the barley that is grown is of choice malting quality, 80 per cent. of the malt will be of inferior quality.

BARLEY BUYING FROM FARMERS AT COUNTRY ELEVATORS

DONE BY SAMPLE

In the three principal Northwestern barley raising states the farmers sell their barley to the country elevators on grade values that are established arbitrarily by the buyers. These three states produced approximately one hundred million bushels of barley in 1912, most of which was graded as feed barley at the primary points, but was turned out as fine malting barley at the Terminal Barley Markets and the Transit Cleaning Houses.

HOW TO INTEREST THE FARMER

The farmer can only be induced to raise better grain by the certainty that he can sell it at a premium. Under the present irregular inspection and grading methods there is little or no inducement for him to improve the quality. Remember that barley above all other grains is the most unpleasant to raise, harvest and thrash, and is the most undesirable grain to market. Naturally, farmers are going to raise and market the kind of grain that is most easily produced and handled, and which will give them the best returns with the least possible trouble. They will not raise barley except for feeding purposes unless they can get a price for it that is above feed values. With the increased demand for live stock, and the consequent advance in prices, the use of barley for feed purposes will increase, and the barley farmer will be more and more independent of the maltster.

FINE GRAIN EXHIBITS AND THE ACTUAL MARKET DELIVERIES

I have seen many fine grain exhibits. I appreciate them to the fullest extent, for they are instructive and every time I see one I wish that there were more actual market deliveries like it; but so far as barley is concerned but a very small percentage marketed on each crop equalled the grades exhibited. I attribute this mainly to the irregular and loose inspection and grading system which is in effect. It would be an incentive to better and more profitable bar

ley raising if the farmers could get their barley honestly graded and prices based on such grading.

THE FARMERS WILL CONTINUE TO RAISE BARLEY, PROVIDED

You can rest assured farmers as a whole will continue to raise barley for malting purposes, provided there is any money in it, but if they can't get a higher grade and a better price for choice malting barley than other farmers are getting for much lower or strictly feed barley, and their choice barley is used to mix and blend to raise the lower at the expense of the higher grades, you need not look for any improvement. However, federal inspection. and grading will be a step in the right direction, and will do much towards accomplishing better and more profitable grain raising. Standardized grades will soon eliminate the general mixing and blending business, for the consumers will purchase subject to federal grade certification.

INSPECTION AND GRADING OF BARLEY IN LEADING MARKET 1912 CROP

I want to give you just a little brief information how the inspection and grading averaged up on the total barley receipts during the 1912 "bumper" crop season in one of the largest and very best terminal barley markets. The 1912 inspection and grading in percentage was as follows:

No. 1-None. No. 2-None. No. 3-181%. No. 465%. Rejected-123%. Feed-of 1%. Sample grade -23%. Chevalier and Bay Brewing-of 1%.

The 1913 crop season averages up no better. This certainly is a very poor showing for improved barley raising and marketing.

THE IRREGULAR GRADING SYSTEM

has created a prejudice in the minds of the farmers, many of whom believe that the brewers are responsible for existing conditions; whereas the brewers have done their utmost to promote crop improvement at their own expense. Of course, the legitimate supply and demand should and will regulate prices, provided the system of grading is fair, and the marketing conditions become normal. Under federal supervision the manipulation of the grades will be checked, and I am sure that the farmers will welcome federal in

spection and grading, and will gladly co-operate with the Government to make federal inspection effective. With this as an inducement the farmers will endeavor to raise barley according to the best grades, and they will soon have their own cleaning machinery, and will have cleaning devices installed with the thrashing machines which will automatically clean and separate all admixtures. The residue they can use as their own by-product instead of giving it to the mixers and blenders for nothing, and being docked for it in the price.

PENALIZED BARLEY DOCKAGE BEFORE PUTTING ON GRADE

Under federal inspection and grading all sound barley with an established test weight per bushel should be graded malting barley and grouped into commercial grades regardless of admixtures, subject, however, to legal penalized dockage for the admixtures before putting on the grade, the dockage to be legal compensation to the grain dealer for the cleaning and extra room required. Penalized dockage under Government regulation will be fair to the dealer and producer alike, and certainly will be a protection and will make it very profitable to the farmer who really wants to market reasonably clean and better barley as well as other grain.

THE PRACTICAL REMEDY TO OVERCOME PRESENT CONDITIONS

The real practical remedy is standardization of barley grades. Federal barley standards handled under Government supervision is the remedy, pure and simple, to overcome the present system of irregular inspection and grading, as well as the irregular expert mixing and blending. In order to overcome the allied opposition which is busy in every direction trying to block the enactment of grain standardization, it is absolutely necessary to enlist the active and effective assistance of the granges, various farmers' organizations, individual farmers and others. This can readily be done, and much has already been accomplished in this direction with the assistance of your Crop Improvement Committee. However, the work has only been begun, and will take considerably more time, effort and money to bring about the desired results. But it can be done, and now is the time to do it.

EXPORTS OF Barley and OatS FROM THE UNITED STATES, YEARS ENDING JUNE 30, 1912-1914, AND FOR THE MONTHS OF JULY, AUGUST, SEPTEMBER,

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The above is taken from Farmers' Bulletin 629, U. S. Department of Agriculture.

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