Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1872-02-20
LETTER from LOuIOun Go.
Correspondence Of the Alexandria Gaz

Correspondence OF the Alexandra Gazette.
LEEsBURG, Va. Feb. lit is curious to
note how the attempts made in the Legislature
to afford relief in any other way than BY an
honest cndcayor to pay ones debts act in OK
actly the opposite direction from which these
tinkers.with public and private credit intend.
A. B. and G. D. are very rich me1r they have
judgments and executions against certain hon.
est debtors. in whom they have confidence, and
to WHOM they. are willing TO extend rclef, by
waiting willie they arc secure, at least till after
the harvest. Some member rises and offers a
billto exhausta mans real estate before his
personally can be touched. Immediately there
rises before their, eyes the gaunt spectre OF a
chancary suit with it's. bills; answers, replica
tons, references reports, exceptions: reports
again. order Of sale, sale at one, two. three and
four years, exceptions to sale, order of resale,
aud all the glorious uncertainties created by
lawyers, whose business 1t Is to pry into all the
subpnnas, notices and returns thereon. W hat
does the creditor? Ofcourse, order sale un-
der his execution This is no fancy sketch,
but has happened twice since January |, 1872
SO that bastard rc7iet' means oppression.
Again, f, f. is large money lender his
confidence in private borrowers is gone ten per
cent has no charms for him: why? In the
language of this very man to me, Money lend
ing used 10 be business it is now vexatlcn.
| will invest in U. S. bonds or in any other Sc
curity than private borrowers. So the sup
ply is stopped at the fountain: and this ulan
and his kin and \. \. never loaned at more
than six per cent.
Again, alas again. c. H. said to me to-
day there are several men IN NY ne1ghborhood
nov worth S2OOO-honest hard working meu
49,, o1 RI II, n SIS
or 500, and would pay me back promptly.
Now am afraid to trust them; the homestead
stands 10 the way. and the poor man uIust sui
fer for this i'll advised attempt at relict. The
rich man can borrow money at six per cent:
the poor man must pay six more Tor the risk.
The greatest curse to the poor man Is he
who offers him any other relief than the utmost,
trcest remedy of the creditor upon the debtor s
property: every thing else is faIIaciouS, is de-
fusion and cheat. Creditors are not rapacous
sharks as | know; perhaps they are generally
too levlent: perhaps If they were exactlng at
the start many a man would have been saved,
who is now suffering from leniency.
Mary WeDners land IS acres. sold at 500,
precisely its assessed vaiue. | do not believe
there is farm of 100 acres and less in the
county of Loudoun that would not sell at It's
assessed value, and perhaps far beyond It, The
farms of 200 acres would probably come near
the valuation, and as you rise higher, say to
4UO or sou acres the valuation might exceed
their sale value.
| had occasion to look into the sales Of four
tracts on the Leesburg and Aldie turnpike;
they sold for $3.50, sl2l, 1858, and nothing
above their assessed value, and 1888 above
their assessed value 10 1855 These farms were
46, 227. 40, and $50 acres respectively. The
Monroe tract, 700 and odd acres, sold for
double what it is now assessed at Lands won't
run away, and earthquakes don't knock the
bottoms out of them in this region. Washing
ton and Alexandria are growing, aud lands
must be good investments, ALIoUIs.