The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-08-10
FINANCING THE CROPS

From the Wall Street Journal.
 l There was probably never a time when the country faced the crop moving period
 with relatively greater resources at it's
 command and with less cause for concern
 over the usual problems than now. After I the experience of last year it seems scarcely worth while to mention the l harvesting operations, yet there has been
 much throwing about the brains'' to ex- | plain that there will not be the same | endorsements this year and to point
 out the new banking facilities within reach
 | No fault can be found with any en- deavor to instill confidence, up to cer- tain point. | But it may not be out of
 place at this time to call attention to a certain phase that presents itself in this connection. On more than one occasion I the federal reserve authorities and the treasury department have invited atten- ton to the facilities available for the | marketing and warehousing of the cotton l and other crops through the rediscount privileges of the new system. But will | these facilities be an essential feature approaching season and is there not
 question of propriety and even wisdom in thus advertising the functions of the new reserve institution?
 | There is no doubt that Washington would like to see the regional banks pros porous, but there has been little opportun- | ity for any but a few of the institutions to make money The report of the fed | eral reserve board showed considerable | rediscounting on the part of the reserve banks of Richmond, Atlanta and Dallas during the first seven and a half months of operation. But this was the result
 of peculiar conditions. The federal re-
 serve banks are meant to be a resort to which the banking community may turn in times of stringency and it is unfortu-
 nate for them that they came into being
 at a time when they are little needed.
 As regards its rediscount functions a cen
 tral bank should be only at the disposal of the other banks. If 1t sets out to
 make money 1t should be in other direc- | tons. There is, therefore, rather a lack of dignity in this bid for rediscount business.
 There is an abundance of loanable funds in the banks just now. The na- | tional banks, over the country, show
 excess reserves in the neighborhood of
 s700, 100000 The clearing house members at New York answer for surplus of
 nearly 100000. There is then no ques-
 ton as to the ability of the banks to
 finance this seasons crops They have
 done it before under less easy condi- tions.
 1 The truth is that cotton has so many
 active friends, both in and out of Con- gress, that each year it may be depended upon to assert itself in no uncertain terms. It has a habit however, of ras-
 ing rumpus over nothing. East year, after crying that nothing short of a s135,-
 100000 banking pool could save it, 1t was contented with only encroachng thereon | for $16,000. This year the conditions have | teen met by a reduced acreage and 6 crop that costs two-thirds the regular | outlay to produce. It Is much of a
 question, therefore. how far 1t Is wise tc keep on calling the cotton planters at- | tention to the ease with which he can | carry his cotton and thus possibly in- jectng an element of speculation that is
 undesirable under existing circumstances.