Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1873-01-30

upou dogs. Five slxths OF our. Board
of Supervisors are farmers, and all, we
believe Are owners Of dogs, but are
men Of integrity and Of fine
practical sense, and will do what
they believe the interests Of the county
require. Let them have the authority
and they viii take care Of the interests
Of the people.
Z .----- -...--..-s-..-aa.
TsURr.-By reference to the proceed
ings of the Legislature, it will be seen
that after occupying the attention Of
that body fol, many weeks the law up
on the subject Of interest, when it wa
ready for its final passage in the Senate
was unexE ectedly de- ea.ea, and he whole
subject is now where it was at the be
ginning of the session. The ma ority
seem in favor of limiting the rate Of
interest to six per cent. The minority
appeared willing to compromise by ex-
eepting. some classes of paper from the
operation of this six per cent limitation.
The majority would not agree to the
compromise and as the result the en-
tire bill was defeated. The interests
of the people, and the prosperity of the
entire State, we are fully persuaded de-
mand that there shall be no usury
law.
For years writer's upon the subject of
Politicsl Economy have contended that
laws regulating the rate of interest were
injurious to the prosperity ola commun-
ity, and have advanced, among other
reasons for this opinion, the following;
That usriry laws Violate the right Of
property. If the Legislature can inter
fere with the market price Of money,
it can with equal. propriety interfere
with the market price of land, or wheat
or any other commodity.
The real price Of money can not be
fixed by law any more than can the
price of wheat, OF corn, or iron or any
other production. If the Legislature
should presume to pass law limiting
the price of wheat in Virginia to one
dollar per bushel, while it is worth more
in other states, what would be re-
suit? Our farmers would send their
wheat to other states, and those in Viz
ginia who would be compelled to buy
wheat, would pay much more than it
would really be worth For the far
mer who would sell in violation of law
would charge an increased price for
the risk he would rum
But looking at the ust,ry law in
another aspect, the State of Virginia
places herself in the position of en-
couraging dishonesty. When a man
borrows money at high rate of in
terest, in violation of law, he is equally
as guilty as the man who lends motley at
an unlawful rate, and yet the usury law
Furnishes the one and pays the other a
liberal reward for his dishonesty. But
the argument generally used is that an
agricultural people cannot pay high
rate of interest. We admit this, and
for this very reason, contend that the
Legislature should pass no law which
will diminish the amount of capital in
the State, and thus render it necessary
for the agricultural portion of the COM
munity to sacrifice their property be-
cause money cannot be borrowed. As
an illustration, several years ago, when
interest was limited to six per cent, a
large number of our farmers bought
fertilizers upon credit Of one year, and
paid twenty per cent advance upon the
cash prices. The very fact that interest
was limited to six per cent rendered it
impossible for them to get money to
purchase at cash prices. But if there
had been no limitation upon the rate of
interest, the probability is that they
could have borrowed money at a rea-
sonable rate and could have saved from
ten to twelve per cent, at least, upon
this single investment.
We are not in favor of high rate of
interest, but believe that the effort to
limit the rate will compel the farmer,
who must borrow money, to pay
an exhorbitant rate, because he
must pay not only for the use Of the
money but for the risk which the lender
runs in violating the usury laws.
Other states have abolished the usu
~ laws, and we find that even the Ag
ricultural sections of those states are
opposed. to their reenactment. Let
capital be free as are other commodi
ties, and we would find, that we would
suffer less from the stringency of the
money market and in short time all
parties would seeand realize the bene
fits of the change. The views ex-
pressed in this article, are in OPP
position to those of many Of our
citizens, for whose opinions we have the
highest respect, but nevertheless, we
le.ieve we are right, and for that rea-