The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-03-13
Wore Money Not Necded.

-f''' annuity wv
A subscriber in Western Stntc sends us
the following communication. which IL n
fair sample Of many similar communica-
tlons received by VA from the West and
Southwest during the past few weeks.
In your daily OF Feb % under the hcai oi what ;.
Really Wn''d.' y'u 'ay Mcrc uorr, is absolutely
licn'' everywhere 1t can now le Mrri 'or i.nr pcr
cent lcr annum ever, dn, In TIE year Thu. ma, nc
trur u the Hast. but u igu. 90 the West Tnrrc are
hnlr, 's ~ men IN in. county wIo would sl.A, paw
ten per cont. and uyc -ccuti'y fone n. the nntu
borrowed hut money cannot Nr obtained %, any nfcc
ON takers ASK twenty yer and ut 'ha: ,ae can
not supply haif TIE demand secured n,tcs are wor,i
/ hht hrN ar seventy nvc cents the dollar Houses
Lands. uf other property -o ~ forced ,ic will not bring
hiy cents an the dollar because ilotc j. no money ia,
West needs money. ami must have it,"
our correspondent evidently has no.,
/ stopped to consider the force If our cxprcs.
sion. " mere money We meant by IT only
grc"nbacks. bank notes. and coin. which
serve as Il circulating medium. II is COM
mon, indeed. t. spcal; of men rs having
such and such amounts of money. when. in
Fact. they may not have more than few
dollar, in actual cash. the bulk of their pos
sessions being land. houses. cattle. mor-
chandise, and securities of various kinds.
IL was to guard against this inexact use
OF the word that We wrote "mcrc money!"
ana 81 that KIND of money we stu insist the
country has abundance
Upon our correspondents own showing
what hc and his ncigllhurs really need is
not an addition to the cuuntry's stock of
coin and paper money. but the ability
to sell their property at high prices lie
says. for example, that hundreds III mon in
his county would gladly pay ten per cent.
lriNN StgIlif
borrowed, but money cannot be- obtained.
Then why not sell the property offered "a
security, and avoid paying the ten per cent.
interest Undoubtedly, it j. because nobody
will buy at any such valuation The so,tl-
rity Is not worth what its owner thinks
1t ls, and those to whom he applies for
loan politely refuse by SAYING they
have no money. Besides. they know that
the borrower will in all probability fail to
pay his debt at maturity, that they will
nave to sue him, and that after long and
tedious litigation they will he saddlcd with
property which they do not want. Let a
man. however, Offer wheat or corn. or any
other Kind IF merchandise which has a ro.ru-
lar market value, and We are confiden, that
there will be no trouble in borrowing not
only one-fourth. but thrcc-fourths of that
value from any commission dealer 10 whom
1t may be consigned.
This explanation % the matter is con-
flrned bv the further remark which our
friend makes: "Onr bankers ask twenty
per cent. and at that rate cannot supplv
half the demand" High interest notorious.
ly means bad security. The rate %, Interest
III all the great Western cities is from c.-ht
10 ten per cent. per annum. and there is mo-
complaint of scarcity oi money. II the
rate rises TO twenty per cent. in the country,
il Il, "a we have said. because the security
l. oNervaiu"d, and because the borrowers
ability 10 pay Is doubted.
Our friend goes On t. say. Secured notes
are worth but fifty To scycnty-ive cents ON
the dollar Houses. lands. or ut her propertv
sold at forced sale will not bring liitv cents
on the dollar Here is proof of the OYER
valuation byproporty owners Of their prop
erty. They set one price upon il, ana pur-
chasers SGT quite another. Evidently their
need j. not that the cuuntry should Ice sun
piled with more circulating medium. hut
that by some unexplained method they
should get mora of TINT medium for what
they have to sell. This. however. is beyond
the power of human legislation. Prices are
fixed by demand and supply, and Congress
has no control over them
The real situation of our friend and his
noiglIbor- j. apparently this Thcy are bur
drncd with real estate which they bought a
long while ago on credit at high prices. and
now that their notes are past due. they find
that they cannot sell 50 as t. save them
selves. They try t. get an extension Of
TIM" either from their original creditors or
from some new creditor, but their credit is
bad and their property is in danger of being
SOLD for less than the amount IF their debts
W" sympathizc with them in their distress
bat We ,r" no way to help them. The bulb
bic Of speculation has burst. and can.
not bo patched together again Many Of
our merchants and real estate spectators
here at the East are in the same condition.
and the only thing they can do Is TO take
the benefit OF the Bankrupt act and
begin over again. II is hard luck, We
know, but 1t IS luck to which every
man who runs in debt renders him
self liable. Neither coming silver dollars
nor printing more grccnbacks will bring
back the frenzy which eliminated in 1873. |
and until Il new frenzy begins 20 rage, which
Will probably be in about ten years, womust
expect the era of low prices and consequent
distress Of debtors to continue.