Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1897-07-24
SOUTH DAKOTA FARMERS
HAVE BEEN PAYING DEBTS
fifty Million Paid in Four Years
Out Of the Profits From
the Farm.
FIGURES FOR THE PESSlMlsTs
Ueadwood's Streets Are Not For the
Salvation Army---Crusbed 10
Death by II Falling Tree
AT Piedmont.

Sioux Fails, July I'D. l.. Mckinney,
jne Of the best known . agents in
The state, is authority for the state
ncnt that the people Of South Dakota
IN the last fOu years have paid of $780,
)UO, 90 Dt their obligations. He says it
IS not u de- mat anything like the bulk
Jf this sum is enforced liquidation
through mortgage foreclosure, but Is a
payment Of debts out OF earnings or
profits. Mr.. Mckinney has carefully
studied the question and has made his
statement after u thorough survey OF
he whole situation. He says that the
Oln companies In the state arc anxious
% place twice As much money rs they
.1n loan. the tendency in this state now
Jcing to get ont Of debt end IL possible
- keep out.
Mark Russell - this city, who repre-
cents . loan company which has over a
million dollars loaned upon South Ia
Sotl farms cOITo6ul atgs Mr.. Mckinney.
Mr.. Russell says that his company is
anxious 70 loan about $4,000 more per
year thar 1t can place upon farm Sc
curity In South Dakota. About all the
business we have lone in the last year"
aid Mr.. Russell, lis to renew in part
I'd loans and TO accept the cash for
those maturing. 1t is not true that the
rdrmlls are paying up through en-
'prccd liquidation. The company which
f, represent has over 800 loans in South
Dakota and we have had but fifty fore
closures in ali the seven years during
which W. have done a loan business IN
this state. In Hutchinson county,
where We have made liberal loans we
nave had but " foreclosures. 1t l. my
observation that 80 per cent OF al farm
cams which nave mitured In the last
Two years in his state a " been paid
n full or In part. And they have been
paid, not with borrowed money, but oui
If earnings and profits. Not long ~
became dissatisfied wiCh the business
We were doing IN McCook county and
went out 90 investigate, thinking that
perhaps our agent was not getting his
share Of the business. / went to tho
focords ana found that twice as many
mortgages had been paid In the las
eighteen months n had been filed. The
same situation prevails over The state
IN Hutchinson county / had a loan ma
turing for 81, 500. l hoped, Of course, "a
ct a renewal for. at least a part Of it.
a few days before Il became due, how
,vcr, the borrower showed up With ev-
ary cent Of the cash and would not nc
,cpt a continuance at any rate Of inter
est. All but $500 OF the o he mad
saved from his profits on his farm. The
5000 he had borrowed from his brother,
also a farmer. In hat county | have
since learned that something over 400
mortgages have been paid Off since the
st Of last January"
The improved condition of South pa
sofa farmers Is in part due to he de-
vclopment Of the creamery Industry.
Five years ago there was sea ccly a
.reamery in the state. Today there are
over $50 ana 10y the LIST OF Janu Try the
lumber will have increased c1sily to
200. l.. y. Hunter, the creamery expert,
says that the farmers Of South Dakota
are now receiving n quarter Of million
dollars per month IN payment FOR milk
and that by the middle Of next summer
HE amount win have increased TO a
bird Of n million. It Is such things n
this which are solving the financial
problem for the South Dakota farmer,