The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1881-09-22
The Credit System.
From the Claiborne Guardian.

/ Now while the hard times ar
1 knocking at the doors of our people
it may not be an inappropriate tim,
to enquire what causes have contrib
uted most to bring about the presen
state of affairs, and what course viii
best enable the people to regain thei
prosperity and escape such disaster,
in the future. 1t is true that mos
people attribute their present pinch
ed financial condition to the shor
crops, but another and more patent
cause lies behind that. We believe
that there will be enough made this
year for the country to subsist upon
for another year. Most farmers will
make enough to do them and if they
could sell their cotton and use the
proceeds it would purchase at cash
prices what other supplies they
would be necessarily compelled to
have to subsist upon to make another
crop. But this the smallest number
OF our planters can do. The great
majority ofthemwill haveto turn over
their entire cotton crop to their mer-
chants to pay for the present years
supplies, and then many of them
will be largely in debt to the mer-
chant. If the farmers were out of
debt they could subsist for another
year upon what their lands have
produced this season. The stringen.
cy OF the times which is likely to
press hard upon the farmers another
year does not then arise so much
from the short crops as from the sys.
tenn of trade which has prevailed
since the war. We refer to the credit
system. The system of the farmer
devoting himself almost exclusively
to the production of cotton aud buy
ing his supplies from the merchant
on credit. This system is, we be-
live, at the bottom of the present
hard times, and if continued will
ultimately ruin both merchant and
farmer. The farmer can, in all or
binary years, produce his own meat
and bread cheaper than he can buy
it from his merchant. 1.-THE farmer
pursues the system of procuring his
neat and bread from the merchant
1t credit prices, and when we speak
,f credit prices we do not mean to |
'ensure the merchants, for they have |
o protect themselves, but as long as
he farmers persist in this system it |
'akes about all they can make in a |
rood crop year to pay the merchant
lis supply account. Often they do
t when the crop is good. This being
he case when the season is favora-
lie for the production, of course when
here is any considerable falling off
n the yield of cotton the planters
re left largely in debt to the mer-
liant. This state of affairs must
ontinne and will grow worse as
ong as tue credit system is followed
y our planters. flour farmers wish
0 prosper they must either raise
heir own meat and bread or con.
rive some way to get it without go
ng in debt for it, or else they will
ways be poor and times will not
1ake haste to grow soft and easy.
t would be better for the merchant
nd better for the farmer if the cred.
system were abolished. 1t might
ear hard upon the farmer for the
rst year, but after that they would
rosper and live easier than they
yer have done under the credit sys-
I'm. The sooner the planters adopt
le cash basis the sooner they will
egin to prosper. As long as they
dhere to the present ruinous credit
gstem they never will see any per.
lament prosperity.
Webster Tribune: .There have
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