The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1892-02-09
LEGISLATIVE BLUNDERS.

This year of all Jesrs is the wrong
time for interfering with the borrowing
power of the Mississippi planters and
merchants, and yet that is what the
Legislature of that State is proposing
to do by its 1.-TWO Year Redemption
Law" which gives the land owner two
years in which to redeem from any sale
OF his land under trust deed or mortgage.
This, OF course, cannot affect any mort
cages now in existence, hut would ope-
rate upon any new mortgages that might
be made. The object sought by the
movers of this bill undoubtedly is to
benefit the land owners, but it would
have the contrary effect because 1t
would largely destroy the basis of credit.
Credit, assistance, advances are what
the planter is now anxiously looking
for to make his coming crop. The low
price of cotton has left the planter with
a shortage, not surplus, of money;
merchants are close-run and cautious;
ruin stares in the face those who cannot
work their land. In short, the one
thing which the citizens possess in
abundance is land. Limit their ability
to pledge or sell the only thing which
they have for sale, and their ruin is
completed
1t ought to be plain that II the mer-
chant or lender knows that in no event
can he take the land for two years after
the debt is due, during which time value
will run down and taxes and interest
run up, he il he lends at all, must lend
very much less than heretofore when he
COLD hartn the land sold at the end Of
the season If the 1eht were not paid.
Accordingly farmer who heretofore
was able to borrow 81, 600, would, II he
wore able to get anything, under this
law, get only $500, or thereabout. OF
course those planters who are able to
get advances on security of the crop only
may not suffer; but they, too, will have
an asset, the land, which is unavailable
should they need 1t. Merchants this
year are very generally refusing to adj
vance without security in addition TO
the expected crop, and in fact every
! planter needs all the credit his land will
| give.
The country merchants will be sim
ilarly damaged by this law. They are
large borrowers from banks and mer-
chants in the cities. They are expected
to settle in the fall. They advance to
the small country farmer, owing 40, so
or 100 acres, securing themselves and
their creditors by mortgage on the
crop and the land This business must
stop under this law; for how can the
local merchant borrow for 90 days or six
months, and lend for the same time ana
two years more?
Another hardship which this new law
! would put upon the land owner is, that
whereas the mortgage creditor hereto
fore was willing to give the debtor a
chance, in case of default, by waiting
upon him for some time, under the pro-
posed law the creditor would institute
foreclosure Immediately upon default
being made, knowing that the debtor
would have two years anyway. In this
way the debtor would have his debt in
creased by trustees fees, sheriff's fees
and court costs, etc., even when he ex.
poets to redeem.
1t is the greatest fallacy in the world
to suppose that men who lend money
on land wish to get the land. 1t is the
last they want, and the slightest investi'
CATION into methods of the mortgage
companies, merchants and lenders or
real estate as to their way Of doing bust
ness, will show that they ever foreclose
a mortgage. Now this law practically
forces them to foreclose the mortgage
debt promptly when it becomes due.
Moreover, 1t is a mistake to suppose
that this law would injure the money
lender. There is vast territory out
side of Mississippi where money il
wanted, and where fair laws exist fo
Its protection. Nothing moves quicker
than money when in danger, but lane
can't move. The capitalist can ge
along without the land, and cannot b.
forced to lend but the land owner il
just new absolutely forced to get assist
ance, or be ruined.
To carry tho argument to its fulles
limit, suppose the Legislature shoult
pass law prohibiting the land owne
from mortgaging his land. Would an.
one deny that that would be yer,
great hardship to the land owners O
Mississippi? This law would to certail
extent do that, because 1t renders hin
less able to use his lands at their full
value as basis for borrowing.
The Mississippi Legislature would d
better if they could pass laws enabling
land owners to get more credit, instea'
of stopping credit, when so badl,
needed. This law, intended to give re
lief, would bring widespread distress
for 1t is as bad as If it provided that
starving man possessing cents nigh
only buy half nickels worth of brea
with his last nickel.-Memphis Appeal
Avalanche.
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Make a note of the man who sit
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