The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1891-08-15
A Debt.Cursed People.

A DeDt.Curse0 People.
According to the returns of the
enumerators engaged on the mort
gage census, there are now 2,491 $3.50
homesteads under mortgage. In a
population of 100000 people
there are not more than 12,500,00C
families, so that, even if there is a
homestead to every five persons, two
homesteads in every ten are mort
gagged.
The number of freeholds is not
yet given, but at low estimate at
least four families in every ten live
in houses they do not own. This
leaves only 40 per cent, of the home
steads of the country held by a
free and unencumbered title.
The total Indebtedness, secured
by mortgage on homesteads, is esti-
mated from the census returns at
1865, 100000 which, at s per cent,
would amount to an interest tax oil
$205, 100000 year on the 2,491, 93C
heads of families involved, or of over
$S2 a year on each. At the average
rate of American wages for unskill-
ed labor, each one of these heads oil
families would be required to work
eighty-te o days in the year to pay
interest on the mortgage debt. The
money lenders, therefore, have a
force of nearly two and half mil
lion men working for them for SO
out of 365 days in the year under a
system having for the money lender
many advantages over African slav-
cry, as the chattel slave was fed and
clothed by his master and support
ed at his masters cost in sickness.
The profits on the labor of the chat
tel slave were frequently nothing at
all, and rarely, if ever, as much
as $50 net head.
Most of this burden is borne bv
the agricultural States. The prelim-
mary estimate of the Census Office
puts the average mortgage debt on
Iowa farms at 1928. The total
mortgage Indebtedness of other
Western States, as of Kansas and
Illinois, is greater than that of
Iowa.
This enormous load of debt in the
agricultural States is only part OF
the grand total on which interest
must be paid every year. 1t does
not include chattel mortgages,
county, State and municipal indebt-
edness or railroad debt. Nor does
it include the inflated capitalization
of corporations like the lead, wire
and sugar trusts, organized under
the high tariff to force from the peo-
pie the highest possible dividends
on enormously watered stock.
After thirty years of high tariff
taxation and Republican financial
policies the country has been forced
entirely away from the cash basis
to basis of interest bearing credits.
The people are in debt as they never
have been before in the history of
the country, and under the Republi-
can policy there is no hope of their
getting out of it. And this while
through the labor of the people that
general wealth of the country has
increased until now the average
wealth ofthe poorest farmer and of
any one OF the moderately wealthy
plutocrats is counted by millions.
If you feel very poor, that is always
this consolation for you-that you
can add your wealth to that of Car
negie, and take half 50 as to find
how well of the two of you together
are ION the average" You will then
be able to get all the satisfaction
there is to be had out of the increase
in the average per capita wealth of
the country. ST Louis Republic