Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1886-06-19
Refunding For Farmers.

Refunding For Farmers.
Cleveland Leader: In view of the
extremely low price of agricultural
products the owner of Il farm who puts
a new mortgage on it for any ordinary
purpose is very rash. He may have
good reasons to believe that OUTLAWS in
barns, machinery, or other improve
meHts would be Il great convenience
and considerably increase the produc-
tive capacity of his farm, but the hard
paying more than a small interest on
their cost, and that unless the money
which he might invest in buildings,
stock, or tools added to the yield of
his land enough TO return Il fair rate
per cent upon the sum SO expended it
would only increase the difficulty of
making both ends meet. Already the
farmers of the United States are bur-
dened with a %lamentably heavy load Of
debt and their interest payments are
out of proportion to their present pos
sibilitics for making money. In many
parts of the west and southwest they
are still paying 8 and 10 per cent on
old mortgages amply secured. and all
over the country the rates of interest
on farm debts are, IN many instances,
higher than those paid by ether bor-
rowers who give no better security. A
western banker has well said that the
most profitable business connected with
agriculture was the loaning of money
to farmers. and obst ryation in almost
any section will show that the village
money lender is very apt to get rich
while the farmers whom he accommo-
! dates do not. AT IA time when money
is vainly seeking investment in all IL
nancial centers at extremely low rates
of interest and several issues OF bonds
paving 3 per cent or less are being
eagerly purchased, it is II great pity
that such a state of things should exist.
The query is prompted whether it is
not feasible for farmers to follow the
example of states, municipalities. and
the United States government and re-
fund a large part of their Indebtedness
with great advantage to their financial
condition. There are various reasons
why the law of supply and demand
has been so unsatisfactory in low
ering rates upon farm mort
cages. In many cases the
trouble has been mainly inertia IN the
part of the farmer. If he were to Dor
row,money on a new mortgage he
would doubtless make a diligent effort
to get it as cheaply as possible; but he
goes on paying the old rate of interest
upon a mortgage given when the scale
of prices was higher all around. and
sees no way of tightening the burden
of interest charges. with wheat at
sevcnty-fivc cents a bushel; which prop
erly belongs to the time when his grain
sold at twice that price. Another
cause of the high rates is that an in
suranGe company, savings bank or
other financial institution having large
Gums TO loan finds it difficult to invest
money in farm mortgages with out
scattering its loans SO much that the
expense and trouble of looking after
them is too great to be willingly in
Cured. The task Of bringing TO-
gether the buyer and seller. so to
speak, has been too difficult, and if it
is possible for farmers to tighten their
interest burdens they can best do so by
combining t. make it easier for the Dor
rover to deal with the capitalist who
has cheap money to lend. If the thrift,
ty, progressive farmers Of a western
township or county. who are paying
high int srest or mortgages. should or,
ganize enough TO appoint one OF the
most wideawake and trustworthy OF
their number to act for them all, and
send him TO one of the money-centers
he might. by giving II company OF
capitalist all the mortgages of the Sec
ton represented, and thereby making
it easy to watch the investment, per-
haps refund hundreds of thousands OF
dollars at a rate from 2 to 4 rcr cent.
less than his ncighbors now pay. 1t
would at least be gratifying to have the
experiment tried on a large scale. II
il should succeed the result would be
the saving every year of millions OF
dollars to the farmers OF the United