The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-07-09
MORTGAGES IN KANSAS.
Some Very Startling Revelations
Made by the State Farmers
Alliance.
Scarcely One Farm In Ten Is Free
From Heavy Incum-
brance.
Gloomy Statistics That Tell Of q Sad
State Uf Anairs-Republican
Revolt.

TOPEKA, Kan, July s.-The discomfort
ing instead of diminishing. To Ascertain
the cause of this feeling to certainty the
state officials of the Farmers Alliance
caused to be asked a series of questions OF
the secretaries of sub-Alliances, of which
there are about twenty-five hundred. The
principal questjons were: How many mem
bers apr1enters? How many have unmort-
RS41d farms? How many have mortgaged
7 farms? The answers reveal a gloomy state
of affairs, from which no relief can be OBJ
tanned except by political change. The
mortgage Indebtedness is found to be on
farms alone $146, 1858. 1874. This indebt-
edness is on some forty-fve thousand farms.
The majority of these mortgagors have
defaulted their interest, and foreclosures
are sure to follow. The remaining ones
will get through only after great hardship.
Another startling fact, for new state, is
revealed. According to the reports received
by the alliance officers, there are q, 700
renters, large proportion of whom lost
their homes through foreclosure suits, hay
ing been unable TO pay interest on loans
made when they were the owners of the
land. This was caused first by successive
years Of bad crops, and finally by the low
prices last year when large crops had re-
warded their efforts.
1850 have farms unincumbered. and the
majority of these are the victims of chattel
mortgages at high rates of interest," which
means they are If possible in worse condi-
ton than those who have their farms mort
gagged. There are 27O,OOO farms in Kansas,
according to Judge PETER, most careful
SO the alliance would account
for but 1900. The evil reaches beyond
that organization. The Farmers Mutual
Benefit Association, while not nearly so
large, will show about 1900 farmers in
relatively the same condition. and the
agricultural section of the union labor
party similar state of affairs, making
au aggregate of 10000. These oreaniza-
lions are the only ones that have made
any effort to gather statistics, and nothing
but guess work remains as to the condition
of the democratic and republican farmers
until the grand aggregate can be obtained
from the United States statistics now being
compiled.
This condition has been the cause of the
resulting in the peoples
party recently organized here. The situa-
ton is intensified by the fact that the re-
publican leaders without exception have
apparently been feeding at well-flled
trough until they are in good financial con-
dltlon, while the masses have come to look |
upon dollar as something sacred almost
and too precious for the common people to
gaze upon, much less to own.
The alliances official organ to-day, in
giving the statistics above, says: "We an
ticipate great howl about running the
credit of the state, but we submit in all
candor that the people may fully under
stand how near We are to the verge of abso-
lutte bankruptcy. In some sections we have
serious doubts if the property could be sold
for enough to cover the mortgages" The
fight against the republicans is now on, as
they are charged with this state of affairs.
The alliance is directing its efforts prin-
cipally against Senator ingalls, and incident
ally against the state administration. The
belief ia that any change will improve the
conditions of the producing classes.