Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1912-11-07
INTEREST TOO HEAVY
TAX ON OUR FARMERS
B. +. Yoakum Shows How
Europe Has Advantage Over
America.
CAUSE OF HIGH PRICES
Millions Of Excess Levy Paid BY
Agricuituraiists - Germans
Have to Pay Only About
Halt.
CAUSE OF HIGH PR1cl

The United States government can
borrow money at 2 per cent annual in
terest; American business men can
borrow on commercial paper at Al
per cent: loans Of the mortgage secur-
ity of city property cost only S per
cent, but the American farmer has to
pay an average rate OF SIS per cent
for the money he needs to operate his
business.
Why this is SO. and how the Euro
pean and even the Egyptian farmers
are able to borrow more cheaply than
their American competitor. is old in
terestingly by Mr.. B. +. Yoakum, presi-
dent of the st. outs & San Francisco
railroad. in the first OF his series of
articles on The High Cost of Living
in the Worlds Work.
Writing I'm the September number of
that magazine under the title, THE
High Cost OF Farming" MIR. Yoakum
places this excessive burden of inter-
est borne by the agricultural producers
OF the high cost of living-a problem
that is more serious here than abroad
since, as he points out, the American
dollar shrank30 per cent in purchasing
power between 1897 n 1911. while
the English dollar lost only % per
and the German dollar still less.
says Mr.. Yoakum. lis the first of our
agricultural problems. When 1 make
that statement I am not thinking Of
the bonanza farmer. or of the owner
OF a rev thousand acres Of highly de-
veloped and carefully cultivated land.
He bOrrows on a business basis. Often
the large planter borrows to meet his
current needs from a couple of nearby
banks in which he owns large inter
ests. His business has nothing to do
with the agricultural prosperity. or the
reverse, of the average American
farmer. His problems are as different
from the troubles OF the average farm
er as are the troubles OF the United
States Steel corporation from the trials
OF the local foundry in IL cross roads
town.
After all. when you come to talk of
agricultural borrowing. you have to
come down to talk in terms OF the
'one-bale farm The farm of so to 100
Is the real agricultural unit. The
foundations of n permanent agrlcul-
ture in any country are laid only when
the land is made to support as many
families. owning their own land. as the
q can properly support. Therefore.
money is the question whether the in
dividual farmer. owning and opera
ting his own land. is supplied with
ample capital at reasonable rates or
WiCIEleT ne is lUleU IN c1D1taI n
gouged in his interest account"
Citing government statistics to
show that the total Indebtedness Of
American farmers is $6.0fS, 0OO. 900,
MIR. Yoakum continues:
"The armer's debt is aboat half on
account of fXed rapital-mostly
mortgage loans-and half on account
of current loans. The total number Of
farms In the country is about 5000 900.
Therefore. the average farm has a
mortgage debt of 5000 and a current
debt of about the same amount cut
standing against it.
THE rate of interest paid on this
tremendous volume of borrowed capital
Is. according to the best estimates j
can find, between 8 and 3 per rent per
annum. The actual rate of interest
itself is only a part Of the burden of
borrowing. To ii must be added the
constant drain OF renewals for mort
cages on farms. OF loans. fees for re-
cording mortgages n other loans to
farmers. most of which are made on