The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-09-25
THE WEST STILL
 A BORROWER It is Not So Independent Of the East As It
 Claims.
THE FARM MORTGAGES
A Single Insurance Com pany Has $1OO, 900, 900
 Loaned.

It Is very we'll for the enthusiastic publicity departments of the trans portation company and the reporters of trade conditions in the West who are anxious to increase tie sales for the coming season, to pro. ,ss that there are absolutely no dark spots in all the country west of the Mississip- pi river. If we are to believe half the golden-hued stories slat como from that section. we mus. ccncede that 1t can be but short time until every man will be plu.ocIat and far beyond the need of borrowing money. The fact is. however, that these stories of Remarkable business prosperity, true though they may be in a general sense and though they correctly re port actual conditions so far as ma terial returns are concerned. leave untold a part of the situation.
 While the west is exceedingly pros- rerous, and while 1t unqdcstIonahly | has larger resources than at Idy time in it's history, 1t is. nevertheless, a heavy borrower A single insurance company has over $t00,000,00 loaned on western farm mortgages. Another insurance company has practically | $50, 900. 900 similarly invested. Thou sands of mortgage loans are recorded I in every western state outside those that are held by institutions like these. This means that there s a vast amount of indebtedness yet in tho west In addition to this class of loans 1t should be remembered that the banks with their tremendous de- posits are also loaning from 50 to 75 per cent. of the money in tfieir hands to the people of their respective com munities The interest on all this vast indebtedness Is being made cut of the earnings of the capital. While some of the indebtedness is being paid off, until 1t Is probable that the west owes to-day as much money as at any time in It's history
 The probabilities are, too, that it will continue to be a heavy borrow CT, for any section of country that grows and develops rapidly must utilize borrowed capital. It is very easy to make offhand generous asser- tions regarding the situation in the grain states of America; the proof is far less easy to obtain than in a l financial or industrial center where clearing houses and business associa- tons make the records complete and formal. But all the time the de- mand for capital continues and the fact that just who is doing the bor- rowing and just how much is the amount of the loan, does not lessen inc fact that the community Is using a great deal more capital than 1t owns It Is out of this situation that the investor who looks for securaities based on western real estate should find encouragement There is little Likelihood that a less demand for farm loans will be noted in 10 years from now than exists to-day. The location will probably be changed, Some of the older communities that are now taking great deal of eastern money will be able to supply the local de- mand largely from the savings of the people themselves.
 But while they are doing this other new sections are being opened and lnew enterpris 4s are being undertaken to such a notable extent that there can be little falling off in the total de- mand The probabilities are that the size of western farms will materially decrease in the next decade. The systems of intensive farming that are being adopted by intelligent western CTS will make it possible to support & family on much smaller area than at present. It will be found that it is htrue economy to use as much as pos. sible. To accomplish this, and to bring the smaller holdings up to & high measure of fertility will mean the use of great dea more capital than the west now p3ssesses.-Bonds and Mortgages,