Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1903-10-01
MONEY TO MOVE CROPS
Annual Call Upon Wall Street
For a Settlement.
THE TREASURY TO TEE RESCUE.
When Western Banks Demand Nom
ey They Have Loaned to New York
Banks Money Will BE Tight, and
There May BE q Panic Affecting
Other Interests Besides Wall Street.

Some western newspapers are much
exercised about where the money is to
come from "to move the crops" They
fear in view of the panicky condition
Of the stock market that the New York
banks will have all they can do to take
care of their Wall street customers.
One would think. to hear these Repub-
lican organs playing the same old tune,
that the New York bankers and Wall
street furnished every dollar to pay for
each bale of cotton, each bushel Of
wheat and what corn the farmers dis
posed of. Not dollar of their own
money necessary to move the crops is
furnished from that source. The money
which is paid to the farmers for their
crops comes from the western banks
and is the deposits of the farmers and
the business men of the west.
During the spring and summer
months the surplus Of the western
banks is kept on deposit With their cor
respondents in New York and the other
money centers. and they receive the
going interest on their daily balances.
The New York banks loan this western
money to the Wall street operators on
call or short time on Stock Exchange
securities. When the crop moving time
comes the western banks begin to with
draw their balances from New York to
supply the local demand of the crop
buyers. That brings about the annual
old chestnut of Wall street furnishing
the money to move the crops. In fact,
the western banks are only calling for
their own money. not a dollar of which
the Wall street banks can refuse.
In ordinary years this money move
ment makes the rate of interest in
New York advance in the fall as an in
ducement to people who have unem-
ployed funds to loan it on stock secur-
tiles and replace the western money,
and in few months the flow Of funds
is again to the financial centers through
the ordinary channels of trade-the
farmer selling his grain and paying his
bills to the retail merchant, who pays
the wholesaler and the latter the manu-
facturer. When speculation is ram
pant, as it has been this year, the de-
mand for money is greater and the re-
call of the money in the west makes it
more difficult for the banks to finance
the Wall street demand. When Octo-
Der arrives it may therefore be expect
ed that money will be dear in New
York and the spectators will have to
pay high rates. There is more than
enough money to supply all the de-
mands Of business, but not enough to
furnish the millions tied up in loans on
stock collateral in Wall street.
In former times the southern and
western banks were borrowers Of extra
funds in New York to reloan to their
customers who were buyers of cotton,
wheat and other cereals, but that time
has gone never to return except to q
very small extent, and then only II the
New York banks have more money on
hand than they can use to advantage
in loans in their own locality. So when
the pinch comes and the cry goes up
that the New York banks must have
money to move the crops" and the
secretary of the treasury is called upon
to aid them the cry is really for money
to move the Wall street crop of undi-
gested securities that the trust pro-
moters have been 90 assiduously cul-
tivating. In the stress last fall every
dollar that could by any Interpretation
Of the law be diverted from the United
States treasury was loaned or deposit