The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1893-12-08
ABOUT FARM MORTGAGES.

Census Returns by Herbert Myrick.
'Nine-tenths of our farms are mort
gagged for all they are worth" This
statement has been made so often that
the general impression among all
classes of people is that it represents
the facts Nothing could be further
4 from the real truth. But not until the
census of farms, homes and mortgages
was taken in 1890, was it possible to
get at the truth on this subject These
returns are now sufficiently compiled
to warrant the following startling
statements:
Three-quarters of all the farms in the
United States are owned free of in
cum brance- Only fourth of the
total number of farms in the United
states are mortgaged Or. to express
it more specifically, out of every 100
American farms more than 20 are fully
paid for and less than so are mort
gagged.
The average mortgage represents
only one-third of the value of the farm
upon which it is secured.
The total amount of farm mortgages
in the whole country is hardly one
tenth the total value of all our farms.
In 1880, nearly one-fifth of the mort
gage Indebtedness rested on farms; but
in 1890. farm mortgages represented
only one-seventh of the country's total
Indebtedness on real estate.
Out of every hundred families on
American soil in 1890, AZ owned their
farms free of mortgage, 90 owned, but
with incumbrance, and 80 hired the
farms they lived on and worked.
Of those who cultivated their own
farms, 20 per cent owned without in
cumbrance and only so per cent. had
mortgages. OF the farms occupied by
tenants, less than 10 per cent were in
cum bered
Four-ifths of the amount of debts on
farms and homes was incurred for the
commendable purpose of buying and
improving the property, and like pro-
portion of the numbers of farms and
homes were mortgaged for the same
purpose.
The total real estate mortgage debt
that existed in the United States in
1850 is estimated at two and one-half
billions of dollars, equally divided be-
tween lots and acre tracts. In 1890 the
total amount of such incumbrance had
more than doubled, but only 81 per
cent of it was on acres and 66 per cent
on urban property.
The total mortgages on actual farms
were about S525, 900, 900 in 1850, and ten
years later was about 1875, 900, 600, an
increase of $3.50, 900, 900 in the decade.
During these ten years no less than
900 new farms We're created at the
west and south. If only one-half of
them carried the average sized mort
gage, this would readily account for
the increase in the total debt on farms
Mortgages on other acre tracts than
farms proper were in 1890 about ST.. !
1853, 600, 900, or an increase of Si3S, 0CO,- !
600 during the decade.
The mortgages on lots, that is, on
city and town property, amounted &c !
81, 250, 009, 600 at the ninth decade, but
in 1870 were estimated at nearly 81, OOO,- !
900, 900, or an increase of over 81, 7OO,- |
600, 600 during the seven years.
The total mortgage Indebtedness in !
June, 1890, is estimated to have been !
some $4,000 000,0 900 as against $780,
000, 900 in 1880, an increase of So. 500, O0O,-
900.
These figures look large, but show !
that the total Indebtedness on all the |
real estate in the United States is only |
about s92 per capita Add to this the .
per capita amount represented By the |
public debts of the United States !
(Si463), of states and territories(S3. 56). |
and of counties (S2.27)-a total of $50. 40, |
and it appears that the total public !
debt and all real estate mortgages in
the United States amount to only SIP ,
per capita.
In other words, in June, 1890, the
SUN of SIP from each man woman and
child in the United States would have
paid all the mortgages in the country
and also all the national. sta te and
county debts. In France the national
debt alone exceeds SIG per capita. En-
glands national debt is nearly 500
head, while the colonies are $500 for
each inha bitant. There are good rea.
sons for believing also that mortgages
in England, France. Germany and
Australia vastly exceed the American
average of s92 per capita.
The official figures for thirty-three
states, upon which the foregoing state.
ments are based, were prepared for the
American Agriculturist by George X.
Holmes, special agent in charge of the
division of farms, homes and mortgages
of the eleventh census, and are given
in full in the December issue of that
in connection with Mr.. My
ricks article. Another interesting fact
is that the number of families is prac-
tically one to a farm in most states, but
for twenty-five states these farm fam
lilies comprize 35 per cent. of the total
of families. In this group of
states only one-fourth of the farms
were occupied by tenants in 1880,
whereas now nearly one-third of the
farm families are tenants gain in
the wrong direction. The article con-
cludes with the following statement:
Certain it is that enough has been
set forth herein-most of it for the first
time-to demonstrate that the facts
about farm mortgages have been gross
" distorted and exaggerated. The in
lications now are that the final figures
will show that over two-thirds of our
four and a-half millions of farms are
owned free of debt and that all the
on actual farms in the whole
United States to-day do not exceed the
value of one years hay crop
''The whole truth will be known
when the census is completed, but
enough is now done to indicate that
The final result will differ from the
lbove conclusions in amount rather
han in proportion. a revulsion of pub
A