The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1890-07-04
THE Farm,
Why the Mortgage Takes the Farm.

$3,2OO. He had S1,7O0 cash aud
borrowed $1,000 at eight per cent. He
thought he had bargain of at least
$500, in the farm. He moved on to it,
and no and his family secure home.
The farm was out of repair. but they
managed for the first few years to pay
the interest, which together with taxes
and insurance amounted to about $3.50
which by the way was pretty fair
rent for the farm.
By the time the farm was put in re-
pair the hard times of 1873 came, and
as result the interest was not all paid
for year or two. This crippled him
some, but being full of hope and
energy, by hard work and the strictest
kind of economy the pack interest was
paid up.
But just when he got his interest all
paid up, and things began to brighten,
having a nice lot of huge hogs with
which he expected to reduce that
$1,000 indebtedness to $1,000, hog.
cholera killed his hogs; and again
things began to look blue. This was
followed by the hard times of 1879,
and as a result interest again fell be-
hind. But with hope and energy
he worked on paying up interest as
fast as he could yet each year it took
more bushels of grain-more labor-to
pay his interest. And as the farm had
materially deprecated in value, the
friend from whom the money was Dor
rowed began to think it was about time
to get it, or he might be compelled to
take the farm for his pay; SO in 1888
another loan was secured, by paying
good round commission to loan agent
for securing the same, and the first
mortgage was paid OFT.
Now as to the facts 10 this case, this
poor farmer thought he owned at least
half the farm he lived on, yet he paid
on the mortgage about as much rent as
the farm was worth. Having run just
twenty years he had paid the mortgage
50, 400, besides some compound inter
est, taxes and insurance which all
together amounted to at least $4,000 !;
and still he owed the original 81 500.
Since then prices of farms and farm
products have been going down, so that
it has been impossible to keep up any
thing more than repairs, taxes and
interest. And to day that man owes
that mortgage, and unless times change
very soon, the mortgage will take the
farm, and this poor farmer and his
good wife will be turned out, and in
their old age be left homeless, notwith-
standing his honest efforts to save his
home.
Why this unequal distribution Of
profit? Why must capital have all the
rent when only owning half the farm?
We know another farmer who in
1870 bought farm in this same comfy,
of 1872 acres for $4,000, paying one.half
down and giving his notes and mort
gage for the balance at ten per cent,
and after tusseling and working for
six years he sold out below cost
During this time he paid yearly rent
in the shape OF interest and taxes, Of
$3.50, all the farm would rent for, not
withstanding he owned-or thought be
owned-half the farm. Is it any won
der the mortgage takes the farm?
This. it is true, was some years ago
but if you come down to the present
the case is still worse, and many farm
mortgaged within the past five years al
what was supposed to be one.third tc
one half its valre, has been sold under
foreclosure, seldom paying enough tc
cover all the interest and cost. But we
are told by those good christian money.
lenders that we took on too big load
of debt during the past three or -four
years, and while the dollars seem to be
worth more now, as the pay.days come
along, there is but one honest & y way
out of the situation and that is to pay
out.
Now, right here is where the shoe
pinches the "dollars" do not only seem
10 be worth more but they are wort1
more. AT least it often requires twice
and three times the amount of labor OF
produce to secure one of these dollars
as it did some years ago. Now, We
would like to ask these same christian
gentlemen who are so earnestly preach
ing honesty, whether it is rigth and
just for the farmer and the other pro-
ductive industries to stand all this de-