The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-09-25

should be to take up and handle, both for
local and foreign consumption the en-
tire American product, curtail the sup
ply when advisable, and fix a uniform
price upon wheat of say not less than
seventy-flve cents bushel at the near
est realroad or shipping point, regardless
Of whether it is in Eastern Oregon or
Western Nebraska and issue to the own
ers thereof, at the beginning (Or until gold
or other evidences of value are obtained
as later provided for) the associations
receipt, redeemable subsequently in mon
ey. All freights would be paid by the as
ISOLATION from the point of production to
the point of foreign shipment, and as
this, together with the expenses of the
company in maintaining agencies, inspec-
tors, etc.. would amount to say twenty
five cents more per bushel it would at
once fix the price, both for local and for
eign consumption, at one dollar per bu-
shell And the same thing can be done
with cotton; pay the raiser fifteen cents
per pound at the nearest station, and sell
to the world at twenty. 1t is true that the
world, or rather the worlds traders,
might rebel at such step. but they will
have the alternative of starving, and they
can exercise it if they prefer. The pro-
Queer has starved long enough. The con-
sumers in many places pay nearly as
much now for -four, as consequence of
millers' combination as they would have
to pay when wheat would be worth one
dollar bushel
AS most of the wheat and cotton-rais-
ers are mortgaged debtors and more or
less at the mercy of those at present in
terested in maintaining low-priced prod
ucts and high-priced money, it will be
necessary for this association to form a
wheat and cotton raiserS' banking aSSo-
citation as an auxiliary department to the
Produce Exchange, for the purpose of pre-
venting retaliatOry or ruinous fOreclos-
ures. To carry out this idea, a central
bank, or head Office, might be established
in Chicago, st. Louis, San Francisco or
any other center of commerce, with as
many branches in each of the States and
Territories as may be necessary to fully
accomplish the aims and purposes of the
organization in the matter of receiving
deposits, making loans and effecting ex
change The capital stock of the concern
might be placed at a figure large enough
to enable each wheat and cctton-raiser
in the United States to take at least one
share, say of the par value of $500, pay
able in one or more installments, thus
giving it cash capital to begin with
greater than that of any other single
bank. For the purpose of encouraging de-
poSits on the part of wage-earnerS and all
others who would profit by the increased
price of products, a system of debenture
bonds, secured by first mortgage upon
productive farm land, could be issued in
convenient denominations to the deposit
Ors, instead of unsecured certificates of
of rt tiY,oo
To Illustrate: John Brown owns 100
acres of improved land in the San Joaquin
Valley, reasonably worth, we will say, $40
per acre. or $4,000. 1t has mortgage
upon it now for 81 900, drawing ten per
cent. If that mortgage is held by bank,
while the depositor, whose money was us
the mortgage will stand in the name of
the bank, while the deposition, whose
money was used to make the loan, will
have the unsecured bank certificate for
his 1000 Now let us see how it would
stand with the wheat and cotton-raisers
bank. John Brown comes in and Dor
rows 1,500 and issues a first mortgage
to the bank to secure the redemp-
ton of fifteen first mortgage bonds
of tn value of 500 each, drawing
eight per cent interest, and numbered
consecutively from one to fifteen and so
recorded in the mortgage, to be redeem
ed in series OF one, two, three, four and
five years. These bonds are each separ-
ate lien upon the land, and no cancella-
ton of the mortgage can be effected until
each one Of them has been duly satisfied
no matter who the holder may be, unless
it be the maker of them.
Now comes Mr. John Smith, factory
employee in San Francisco, who wants to
deposit 800 for one, two, three, four or
five years and earn the usual deposit
rate of six per cent. The bank places it's
guarantee Endorsement on the back of one
Of the bonds (say one issued by John
Brown on his mortgage), collects from
John Smith in advance the two per cent
per aunum difference between the deposit
rate and the mortgage bond rate, debts
itself with the discount received, and
sends John Smith home with bond that
will be cashed at its face value at any of
the branches of the company, and in all
respects better secured than any bank
certificate ever issued in America. This
bond, by reason of its absolute certainty
: redemption and ready convertibility
! any city of teh United States, would
perform all the functions of money in eff
fecting exchanges that a treasury note
would.
With such security as this afforded the
depositors, can there be any doubt about
what the amount Of deposits would be-?
And with SJch vast sum of yoopov Of