The Yale expositor., 1896-08-28
THE M0RTGAGED FARM
Payment of Debts in DECEASED Cur
rency Means Practically
Reputation.
ANEg RASKAF FARMER ANSWERED
fallacy Of What is Considered tho
Strongest Free Trade
Argument.

The following letter is one of many
that are daily received by the Times
Herald. 1t is supposed to contain the
strongest free silver argument that can
be addressed to the farmer, and it is
used by the free silver orators with inn
mense assurance of its success:
Lincoln, Neb., Aug. 3.-To the Editor:
NV land Is encountered by a mortgage Of
$1,000 payable In lawful money November
SS must p%y ns qe ord M9 thc
bushels Of wheat next year II there is no
change In our financial system. this wheat.
at 30 cents per bushe, will pay half the
debt. When the value OF silver dollar
is reduced to so cepts by free coinage a
bushel OF wheat. without any change In
Its value. will be worth 5O-cent dollar.
With free coinage Of silver ] shall, there
fore. be able to pay the entire debt with
the 1000 bushels OF wheat. The burden OF
paying debt OF $1,000 has doubled since
borrowed the money. l have obeyed the
laws OF my country under the gold standard
and shall obey them under silver standard.
The opponents of free coinage of silver are
appealing to the laborers. the creditors and
sonai interests. If should fail to look out
for my own interests who VIII do SO for
me? Is there any reason why | should not
vote for the free and unlimited coinage Of
silver? Very respectfully, j. w. Binger.
The answer is not far to seek.
When this farmer borrowed the money
it was the equivalent of $1,000 in gold.
1t was the same as if he had received it
all in gold $50 pieces. He could have
had il that way if he so desired. Per-
hans he did. for many such loans have
been made. When he expended it he got
$1,000 in gold equivalent. He probably
improved his farm to that extent or
bought stock or machinery. In whatever
I. 4 ,,nln,. ha M
suuandered it, he got value received.
The borrowing and lending was bust
ness transaction and the borrower used
the money to promote his business in
terests
At no time since that mortgage was
executed, for few mortgages run over
five years without renewal, would a
thousand bushels of wheat have paid it.
Suppose we had borrowed the money
from a neighboring farmer more pros
perous than he. That neighbor would
probably have to carry something like
two thousand bushels Of wheat to town,
sell il for a thousand dollars, get the
money and hand it over to his
friend. There have been in the
past thousands of such transac-
tons. In fact, in every farming
community there are few farmers,
more thrifty and of better business quail
ifications than the others, who always
have money to lend out of their savings.
They get the money from the products
of their farms, but they are not loaning
those products. They are loaning the
money. and since 1879 it has been gold
or it's equivalent. Why should they
not have the same kind of money in re-
Is il any wonder that the advocates of
unlimited free coinage are charged with
dishonesty and that silver is called dis
honest money, when by the passage of
law n thousand 50-cent dollars will be
sufficient to discharge a debt of a thou
sand 1OO-cent dollars? Such a law
amounts to the reputation of one-half
the debt obligations of all the debtors in
the United States.
When Mr. Bingcr in the above letter
saws. 'The burden of paying debt OF
$1,000 has doubled since | borrowed the
nancy" he must remember If he is stat
| ing what is true, that the burden" is not
| alone upon him, but upon every other
business man who has borrowed money
| Merchants and manufacturers feel the
| same stress of the hard times as the
| farmers do. 1t Is not because they Dor
rowed gold and have to repay gold that
| the burden is greater, but that theil
| earnings and assets have not turned out
ms they hoped and expected Compet
| ton and overproduction have affected
/ the whole world. but reputation is moi
! the proper cure for IT.
Honesty is the best policy-as policy
merely, without reference to its mora
| quality-for nations as well as for indi