The herald., 1898-10-14
The Late Bankers Convention

The bankers convention met in this city
last month, says the San Francisco Real
Estate Circular of Thomas Magee & Sons
Many subjects connected with banks and
banking were discussed, but no reference
was made-and such reference should un-
doubtedly have been made-to the fact that
money In the interior Is far too high The
rates charged there vary from to 10 per
cent. Nothing was and much should have
been said about the wisdom Of lending
money cheaper and lending 1t more safely
by the latter meaning that smaller mar
gins should be lent upon market values No
one said anything about this fact, either,
and there was vital need of much being said
thereon; that Is to say, that no matter
Wnat Is nominated on the board-no matter
how high rate of interest a mortgage calls
Tor, only reasonable rate will secure gen.
eral repayment of the money. A high in
terest rate means risk of foreclosure and
that, especially on country lands every
well-managed bank wishes to avoid. Land
acquired under foreclosure Is nearly always
an elephant on banks hands. In relation
to rates OF interest on agricultural lands It
may be said with the utmost truth that no
matter what Is raised on them they can
not give their cultivators living and pay
per cent. Indeed crops need to be- good
and prices remunerative for them to do
that much. Where as low a rate as that Is
given, 1t Is as rule city savings banks that
3 per cent year more. The farmer or fruit
raiser borrowing at high rates cannot be
prosperous and when those two classes
DO not succeed, we cannot expect
country lands to be generally sal
able or immigration to increase. Be-
tween high prices for country lands on
the one hand and high prices for money on
the other 1t is no wonder that the state does
not go ahead fast. The prices of country
lands have been very greatly reduced with
In seven years. but they are still too high.
The Fire Underwriters
The twenty-ninth annual meeting of the
Fire Underwriters association of the north
west was held in Chicago last week. The
secretary reported a constantly increasing
membership, the present number being l5O.
The papers read were interesting, and the
discussions lively. While the question of
rates Is not absorbing in the west as 1t is in
New York, vet It is always one or the i'm
portant questions which can never be
crowded out Mr. Beddall, manager OF the
Royal insurance company, prepared a
carefully studied paper for the Milwaukee
meeting. His subject was 1.-THE Foreign
Fire Insurance Company and It's Business
Methods" 1t appears that Holland is the
country that offers the best suggestion for
the settlement OF the serious rate Difficult
ties in New York and other large cities.
1t Is the practice there for risks to be taken
by the lowest bidder-the bids being made
publicly at certain hours on the Bourse.
This method, II adopted here, would dis
pose of the scandals and expense OF the
present method and would be free from the
public odium of trusts. combines and agree
ments which are now the only alternative
of disastrous rebating. Mr. Beddall closed
by saying: IF Ananias had adopted This
method Of disposing of his property he
might have been alive today; had he been
in the insurance business he would surely
have died sooner"