The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1878-01-31
TOPICS FOB FARMERS.
The MORTGAGE Skeleton.-The Kans

The Mortgage Skeleton.-The Kansas
Farmer contains some good advice to
farmers, as follows: Before you mort
gage the homestead, think twice. The.
speculation contemplated may seem
tempting; it may promise an almost
certain large return, but go slow on
placing your homestead, which shelters
the wife and little ones, in the hands of
another for the hope of gaining few
extra dollars in trade, or the purchase
of more land. Watch the friend and
neighbor who has done this thing, ex-
pecting to meet the principal and inter
est with the returns of certain crops that
did not Weld as he counted on; see him
with his haggard, care-worn face, fore
ing faint smile to meet your friendly
salutation. If you could look through
tie walls and watch the sleepless man as
he vainly tries to shut out the trouble
of an overdue mortgage; if you could
see the worry and anxious study, after
the speculations failed upon which the
mortgage had been based; if you could
see the troubles these visions of home
less little ones bring; if you could
thoroughly realize that not one time in
twenty are these mortgages anything
else than a curse to a man, day and
night, you would let the new machinery,
the adjoining one hundred and sixty
| acres, the new improvements remain
until they could be paid for without a
mortgage. 1t all looks bright and fair
before the mortgage is made, and it
seems almost impossible to see single
reason against placing the mortgage on
the farm, when it is SO slight compared
| with the value of the farm. The future
returns are to. be counted on with so
much certainty, and then the one, two,
and three years time, whatever it may
be, for its payment, looks to be a long
way off, so far indeed, that there is a
confidence that the amount can be made
up, it is thought, from a half a dozen
| sources.
| After the loan is made, time rushes
along with increased speed, and there
arises difficulties in securing even an.
nual interest, and taxes that were not
contemplated. As the time draws neaI
for the payment of the principal, every
thing seems to conspire to make the
payment impossible. Everybody want,
who owes, the bottom falls out of the
1
and everything else he has to sell. In
stead of paying the principal, renewa
is asked for, and property is often sac
ri6ced to meet even the interest, beside:
untold loss IF time and strength is give1
to worry,
This is not all that GENES with {
mortgage. Neighbors and friends begi1
to shake their heads wisely, like owls
and talk over the affairs and credit ano
character of the mortgaged man, aut
although his integrity and honesty ma,
be without blemish, his failure to pa,
brings him under a cloud, and his ever.
act is Liable to misconstruction. Inn
provements which were to advance tn
interests of the neighborhood become, il
the changed and altered circumstance
of the man, foolish and dishonest specu
lations, in the light of his failure. Ae
quaintances who would have applaude'
had he succeeded, sneer with contemp
at a failure that may have almos
reached the door of success. The smal
mortgage of $500 or 81 600 has ofte1
been, at the end of five years, with it
accumulated interest, taxes, and cOnse
quent losses, the load which has sun
the farm and the farmer, and so broke
him in health, enterprise, and spiri
that he went to his premature grave
poor man, giving to his family only tn
inheritance of broken, embittered life
What is true of mortgages on farms
equally so in all other business calling
with this difference, that the number 0
failures and mortgaged men are largel
! increased. All over the land this ours
,, | and dreaded skeleton of debt finds
place in three-fourths of all our home
!, We say to our readers, who are largel
, farmers, if there is no mortgage on til
homestead, keep it free.