The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1891-07-29
FARM MORTGAGE FACTS.
ERRONEOUS STATEMENTS OF
FREE-TRADERS REFUTED.

Dem ocratic qualification I'm Ohio-The
Prospect for Mckinley Victory Ex-
oeedingly Go id-Pointed Political Com
ment-Conyincing Tariff Pictures.
Three years ago, in the heat of the
presidential campaign, Aug. Z, 1888, Mr..
Frank WilkeSon wrote, and the New
York Times pub ished, an estimate of
the mortgage indebtedness of ten States
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wis
'consin, Mnnesota, Iowa, Nebraska,
Kansas, and Missouri. These States
contained in 1850, 1850, 533 farms; in
1885, say 1000, OOO "These farms are
mortgaged, as closely as can be ascer-
tanned, +" said this precious estimatician,
"for about 50, 500, OU0,0OO. For the sake
OF preserving impartiality of statement,
say they are mOrtgaged for 81, roo, 00u,
600. At the lowest estimate one-half of
these farms are mortgaged. Say that
the interest which these mortgages bear
is per cent then the annual interest
that must b. paid on these mortgages
amounts to SlS9, 00O.0 The farmers
who till the encountered acres annually
produce to the aggregate value of S502,-
49, Out of this sum they have TO
pay $3.50, 600, 900 as interest on their
mortgages. The average amount OF
money which they earn by working lour-
teen hours per day for 376 (sic) days III
the year is 1913. They earn outside of
the interest money which they pay So
cents per day. The price OF every ar
tic.e which they consume is enhanced
by the protective tariff L unheSitat-
ingly assert that the farm mortgages of
the West have been created direct y by
the operations Of the protective tariff.
This lie had a tremendous run in the
campaign of 1883. 1t was heard from
every stump and was in every news
paper. The enlightened free-trade fab
ricator-by which we mean the paper in
which it appeared-and its evening du-
pick, the New York EUening Post, used
it Just enough TO give it credence and
currency. They knew it was fraud.
But once set aloat, the unenlightened
free trader gulped ii complete, 1876 days
in IA year" and all, and 1t was heard
from the rising of the sun on presum-
ably mortgaged farm on the Atlantic TO
the going down of the same on the like
on the Pacific.
Mr.. Frank WilleSon guessed. The
census and other inquiries enable US to
give facts. AS usual, facts knock the
free trade tabricator Michigan, Illinois
and Iowa have 595, 100 of The 1850, 533
over one third in 1880 They hold fully
one-fourth to day Mr.. A. ii. Heath,
Labor Commissioner, made careful
inquiry into mortgage indebtedness in
. 1SSS, and he reached the conclusion that
the total mortgage indebtedness would
come TO sos, 900, 900. In Iowa the Fed
eral Census Bureau published a return
three months ago, and the "total exist
ing real estate mortgage Indebtedness
OF Iowa" on farms was found To be
S14S, Sl4, 615. The Bureau of Labor Sta
tiSticS in Illinois has just made "a report,
and finds the farm mortgages in that
State S123, 733, 09S This is total of
1897, 547, 743 for three States holding
from one third to one fourth Of the
farms included in Mr.. Frank Wilkeson's
estimate.
The ten States he picked have not by
these facts II, $50, 600, 900 farm mort
Cages, or half his wild guess, and they
have not probably over $1,000, coo, 900.
Mr.. WiikeSon took over one-third the
product TO pay interest. In Illinois IL is
found that the annual product is GO per
cent of the principal, or nine times the
annual interest. The Iowa farmer pays
off his mortgage on the average in five
years; the Illinois farmer in three years.
An officer of the Farmers Alliance re-
Gently talked OF 1900, 900 mortgages
found by the census on farms and
homestcads. " This is the total number
recorded in the last ten years On the
Iowa average there are to-day only half
this total, on the Illinois one-third. In
Iowa fourth Of the mortgages are
on town lots. The proportion for the
county is probably lower Taking 4, $780,
900 as the total number, if they are paid
off as fast as in Iowa, and dcducting
one-fourth, as on town lots, and there
are left 1875. 600 separate mortgages on
farms for the entire country, on the
Iowa basis. On the Illinois basis there
are not over 1850, 900 mortgages stand
ing to-day on the, about 5000, 900 farms
in the country.
Mr.. Wilkeson placed the ownership Of
these mortgages in the East The
American Wool Reporter, Jan. ~, 1889,
published a list Of all the mortgage fore
closures i'm seventy Iowa counties, and
out of 542 only eighty-four were held by
investment companies, call of the re-
naming being mainly by local capital
lists Mr.. Nilkeson saw in his figures
change of "Western farmers from free
holders into tenants" The mortgages
in Michigan are 37I6 per cent. of the
value, and Illinois, at forced SALE less
than half Taking all farms, mortgages
are SO per acre in Illinois, and one. fifth
the value in Michigan.
"For the sake Of preserving impartial
fly of statement" we will not say Mr.
Wilkeson is deliberate falsifier but we
do say that great and wonderful esti-
maticians like him are almost invariably
ee-traders. -Phtlddelphid Press.