Nevada County picayune., 1891-10-22
WZrT TT PAYp


 day. let us calmly and dispas- sionately consider it from business standpoint, to see if it will pay.
 The sub-Treasury bill as introduc- ed in the last Congress proposes to establish warehouses in every county raising $500 .O00 worth of the follow ing products .-cotton, wheat, oats corn and tobacco a manager to be appointed to each warehouse ata sal ary of not less than Sl ,000 nor more than & 300 per year, this manager to have complete control, and decide upon the market price of the produce. Upon the edict of this manager the farmer to receive so per cent. of the value of products placed in ware house, in treasury notes thereon, the manager to also give him receipt for every deposit of produce, show ing it's amount, grade or quality, val ue at date of deposit, and amount advanced upon it, with rate of inter est at one per cent. per annum, and with insurance, weighing, warehous- ing, chasing, and other charges de- ducted. These receipts are to be negotiable by indorsement. Pro- duce deposited may be redeemed at any time by return of the receipt and money advanced on interest, and the payment of all warehousing charges. The money returned IS to be destroyed by the Secretary Of the Treasury. If there is no re- demption of deposit within twelve months, a sale is to be ordered for the reimbursement of the Govern ment.
 Now, let us consider the matter. But few counties in Arkansas raise $500 ,000 worth of the products named so then warehouses would only be in the reach of q few, and crops under mortgage could not be ware housed so that the most sorely op- pressed farmer could receive no ben efits from It. Like other official ap- pointees, the manager of such ware house would get the place through political influence, and for party ser vice, and would have but little ex- pert knowledge of the duties to be performed. as there are nine distinct classes of cotton, and nearly as many grades also in the other pro- ducts, and hence would vary in his valuations of produce, making many mistakes and blunders. If preju- diced or dishonest man, his unlim- ited power in making valuations of produce, would afford him opportun- ity to reward his political friends in giving them high prices, and of pun ishing his enemies hy naming very low price-and there would be no appeal from his decision. This i'm possibility of having a just and uni form basis for the 80 per cent. ad- vance in warehouses, would from the beginning throw fatal doubt up- on the value both of the treasury notes and of the certificates of de- posit, giving them at once a depre- ciated and uncertain value. Farm CTS are misled into fayoring the scheme, because they are promised a loan of 80 per cent. of the full value of their product, at the seemingly low rate of one per cent. interest, when ih reality they would be forced to pay much more. Statistics prove that the cost of warehousing, insur- ance and other expenses of such crops amount to between eight and nine per cent. Then these expenses with the one per cent. interest asked make the rate run up to nine or ten per cent. Tins is plain. And in case produce is not redeemed in one year forced sale is to be made by the government What chance for spectators Then is it not much better for the farmer to sell his pro- duce straight out getting it's full value at once, and loaning out at n- terest the twenty per cent. value the government would hold in the ware houses, rather than pay about ten per cent, interest upon the whole? We are persuaded it is.
 Suppose the sub-Treasury hcrcsy had been in vogue last year, and the L. $. warehouses had taken in one half of the cotton crop at 9c during the months of October and Noyem. Der last; this was about the average price paid, we believe, durin" those