The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1890-04-29

DOl - Ii OIChUiCLO olO GbdJ LllyAN
gage Indebtedness is rapidly increas
ing and tuat farmers are not getting
out of Debt" From his investiga-
tions he deduces the following facts:
81. That one-half of the farms Of
Michigan are mortgaged and are pay
ing a double tax.
90. THAI by reason Of this mort
gage Indebtedness and double taxation
business of all kinds is seriously af-
fected.
90. the men who loan money do
not bear their just proportion Of pun
lie expenses in return for the protec-
ton given them, while the majority
escape taxation"
In the year 1887, there We're 1867
mortgages f~oreclosed, and of that
number only I3l were redeemed. In
one of the leading agricultural cou
ties of the State (St. Joseph), l SIN
reliably informed there were in the
year 1888 366 foreclosures of farm
mortgages, one for each day in the
year. Less than four weeks ago,
according to a Michigan p4pe~, Il OF
the finest properties in South Michi-
gan, loca,ed in the town Of Three
Rivers, thirty-four acres of land and
buildings that cost $4,000 cash was
sold for only about $4,000. This,
briefly stated, is the condition Of a
people who possess peculiarly favor
able facilities for the prosecution of
diversified farming. But it may be
said that it is a Western State, one Of
the younger in the great family of
States, and is, therefore, not a cri-
terion. We might grant the excep.
ton, but it applies as we'll to the
great States of Kansas and Nebraska.
| quote from the Alliance Motor, pub
Iished at Broken Bow, Nebraska, and
dated April II, 1890:
"The denial that the State is not
heavily covered with mortgages, is
met with the following table, com
piled from the official record of Saline
county, one of the wealthiest coun-
ties in the State.
Real estate mortgages unsatisfed on
record.
FaRas iof:. s1, s7S, ;ss8 g g
Total amount real estate mort'ges 49, 1877, 351 46
Bonded debt, cities and schools" 97,739 Is
Bank loans and tscOuEts.......... 1~,418,954 Al
Chattle mortgages eeId by private par
ties (banks not inGlvded) unre.e-
ased, fled since January 1, 1882. 332,5S4 A
S4,O36, 646 SO
T. {, assessors value of property against this il
debtedness is, viz:
Lands. 81 234,958 90
Personally. oO0,2 + 90
......-. $~2,468,997 90
So that in this single county the
assessed value of the property is ST..
567,549.96 less than the recorded in
debtedness of that county.
Let US come then to 4 State possess
ing pre- eminently advantages superior
to any State in the Union for the
successful and profitable prosecution
of that "diversiication which is
essential to our agricultural saliva
ton" I refer to that beautiful garden
spot in the broad field of American
agriculture, the State of New Jersey.
Diversified farming, 1 presume, no
one will deny should be most profit
able where it has easy access to ready
markets or to great centers Of popula-
ton. MOI only have the farmers Of
New Jersey advanced to the front
rank in all the appliances and most
improved systems of agriculture, but
the whole State is, or should be, the
kitchen garden of d population in
towns and cities within and immedi-
atety on it's borders, if not less than
four and three. quarter millions Of PEG
pie. The County of Salem has splendid
facilities for reaching markets. 1t is
adapted to truck growing. The board
of agriculture of that county made
an official report to the Governor of
the State only a few weeks since, in
response to inquiries p~ropounded by
him to the various boards, in which
it was stated that the lands of that
county had decreased in value 40 per
cent.
I quote from MI. T. E. Wilson, an
able statistician and editor of the
Weekly World. He says: "The
wealth of the State of New Jersey
more than doubled in ten years. The
individual wealth very nearly doubled.
Betwenn 1850 and 1860 the total
value of the farms increased $780,
Ol2,827, or SO per cent. The individ-
ual value of each farm increased ST..
42O, or % per cent. Over 35 per
cent. of the increase in wealth was
divided among the farmers and went
into their pockets for the increase
value of the land alone. Between
1860 and 1880 the total increase in
the value of the farms was only $40.
645,495, or 5 per cent. each, or one-
quarter of l per cent. yearly, which is
not the natural rate of Eunearnad in