The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1894-05-18
BEAN SOUP ATKINSON,

He Labors Uunder tho HAliucInation That
Real Estate Mortgages Arc signs OF
Edward Atkinson. Z suld-bug sta
tisticiah, writes for the May Forum an
article on farm, mortgage statistics
which have read with Erea. deal of
interest He ATTEMPTS to show that
the Wore mortgages the more prosper
ity. l never before saw such juggling
with figures Whether Mr.. Atkinson
is SO stupid a. this paper makes him
appear Certainly doubt. 1t reads
like the argument of an attorney for
the defense who triumphant}y clesrs His
client of the. crime cf larceny while the
stolen roihs jingle in his own pocket.
For instance, he gives 81, 500. 600, 900 as
the amount of real estate mortgages in
force in this country in 1880. and &c.
600, 600. 900 in 1890. On the face of
things multiplication Of. the mortgage
Indebtedness Of the nation by four in
the space Of yeh years, as shown by
the census statistics, looks like any
thing but an evidence of thrift and
prosperity ON the part Of The people.
Here are t&s figures on which he
reaehes the opposite condition:
Mortgages in for, e January llSs, i,5 10 o3looo
Executed since 40, DC, DO
Iotal ,;.s.'.:... ..-.......... Az ooO oOO,p ~
In terre Sanaary !, 1890 .......... 5000 900 900
Paid. :, 5uO. 900, 90
So, he says, ''one-half the mortgage
debt incurred had already been paid. -
The people of the whole country are in
the case of an individual Who owed
81, SEQ in 1850 and had kept on borrow
ing and paying ever since, but always
borrowing more than he paid until ten
years later he owed $4,000. Exceed
ingly thrifty and prosperous indeed!
To renew the mortgage two or three
times during the ten years, doubling it
each time is what the people hare done;
and because the, old mortgage has to
be marked paid" or satisfied when the
new one is issued, this writer has the
infinite assumption to argue that we
have been paying off our mortgages at
a great rate. Nor should it be forgot
ten that even foreclosure counts as a
payment
Mr.. E.kinson's reasoning runs some
! what after this fashion: Our real es.
tate was encountered with a debt OF
Cl,COV,UVV,OVUl ia AcCU. DN lOJO UUiS ueUt
had become s8, 900, 900, o0o The latter
sum looks big, but as we have paid ST.
500, 900, 600 during the ten years it don't
| amount to much.
AS long as the people can add the in
| terest to the principal and borrow
more lnoney, they will get along, no
matter how fast the principal multi
plies; but if pay day ever comes md
the money lenders rcfase extensions,
then there will be more farms to rent.
AID speaking of rented farms Mr..
Atkinson is equally logical and con.
vincing when he attempts te shew that
though the number II rented farms is
rapidly Increasing in this country, i,
aoesn't mean anything like the estab
lishment of permanent relations OF
landlord and tenant, such as exist in
Great Britain, nor the concentration OF
land in fewer hands To show that ar
Increase in the amount Of hired land
doesn't mean the growth of landlord
and-tenent system is something of a
task, but Mr.. Atkinson is edual to it
He saws the farm. ale still largely
owned by men in the same vicinity who
have moved to town and rented them
OF course that is no "landlord-and-ten.
ant" system! He doesn't suggest either,
in this connection. that whereas the
family WHO ftfrnerly worked their farm
enjoyed all its products and the pro
ceeds, the one which is working it now
has to give half to the farmer who ha!
retired to town. The trinity he wof
ships is rent. interest, ard Profits-tht
triune god Of DIFF modern economic sys
tem-the Moloch that is devouring the
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