The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-05-05
Deplores Lalu Which
 Driues Out Capital.
"Demenfia Pistola. ''

are about $2,000; the bad collections prevalent in his section last fall and unfavorable monetary conditions of this what. He is one of the hundreds of small country merchants in Alabama, also planter; an honest simple coun- tryman who wants to pay his debts. mess to help him solve the riddle be- cause my employer happens to be his largest, creditor. This mans only a small stock of merohandise. His realty is within one hundred miles of Montgomery, title to which consists of the best title. te. clean government in his neighborhood, $15 to SIS per acre. He wants to borrow s5 to $7.50 per acre st eight per cent per annum, agreed FePsat to es use my Ser good oces n deavoring to negotiate a loan for him. On Monday the 22nd ultimo called on every foreign loan company in Mont gomery in his behalf. The companies who until the passage, or rather in- troduction. of this law were free talk CTS of this. class loan at six per cent but without avail. Some of their rep resentatives Gall of whom I know per sonally). simply declined the loan, .oth- CTS frankly stated that hey have bama, make no more loans and to call all existing contracts as rapidly as they mature. no renewals. no exten- sions, simply foreclose and quit the
 These three cases illustrate rather forcibly conditions as they now are. I will not burden you with many other such within my knowledge, but ask
 MT. Conner. "Your Governor" if you please. tells you that this law is a the people of Alabama to have such occurrences as those above cited among their daily experiences?
 In short. our recently adjourned law making body has said to all foreign capitals, If you want to lend your filthy. lucre to our constituents we will condescend to permit your doing so if you will pay us for the privilege, the message they have sent to New York, to Philadelphia, aye and across the seas to England and to Scotland for two of the loan. companies doing the largest volume of business in Ala bama are British corporations.
 MT. Conner, Your Governor, as you know;I nov says to tr you: am concernaa , can easily see that if the rates on money or anything else were not fixed by the law of supply and demand, and the foreign money lenders were simply acting the part of the Good Samari- tan.' hunting places and people where they could lend money rht rsheap rpcrt tneir ir
 
 not lent nor business done that way. When you consider that. 1-50 of cent or 1-5 of mill is simply tax of SEQ I thought then and I think now, that 1t is simply absurd, and amended the bill to its presena shape, which was passed and became law"
 itans" indeed? Of course they. are not, what man in the business of lend ing money is? Quite the, reverse. they l. Iz1 hue N1nsn who know that if our dear little State of Alabama wants to charge them for the privilege of using their money, II matters not if the charge were l-l0Oth of one cent. that they would indeed be precious fools to comply with such an utterly absurd demand when other States q am informed all but twol are begging for. it without any such two do charge), approach Alabema in the greatness of their demands.
 MT. Conner. 19ur tS,1s o,,. governor you
 "The law as 1t now stands, Imposes four mill tax on foregin , lenders lending out $1o0; ;Qo0; two mlll tax or quarter mill tax on one lending s1,, 900. 900. This does not include the en. trance fee, which is paid but once, ana the fifteen cents privilege tax whicf paid The tax then amounts in net figures to 4-10 of cent; Is of cent and 1-6 of a cent on the amounts aS above stated. In other words, if the borrower was paying per cent before this bill Was passed. if he paid the pany lending $loO,0oo; 1,5 to 2 com. comp&hy lending $1,oOo,OoO. Any ad vance in money rates to borrowers above these figures quoted is not caused by the new revenue bill"
 The closing sentence of this las statement Is in the abstract, true, i.e. Any advance in money rates to Dor rowers above these figures quoted f. not Ssused by the new revenue bill. No. not directly, because everyone knows, as this wise Governor so grac iously informs us, that the law of sup | rates the world over. He tells you thit and then proceeds to defend law whicl will directly curtail the supply by jus | as many millions of dollars as the for | eign loan companies see fit to withdraw | from their Alabama agencies on ac l count of this law and just as man, l millions more as other foreign capi l talists might be glad to invest in thi! | State but will not place because MT Conner and his Legislature have passed this and other laws which frigh CT and has made them "cross their fin | gers whenever you say Alabama" II ! their presence.
 l No one has more confidence than l in the great future of this wonderful ! State of my adoption which, if separa
 ted from all Christendom by a higl l stone wall would have within her gate l every necessity and the wherewith t,
 make practically every luxury know