Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1916-02-03
Land MOrtgageLoan BY Joint
Committed Rural Credits

they may become dspositaries of pub
lie money, etc, and the secretary OF
the treasury shall require satisfac
tory security. by the deposit of u. s.
bonds or otherwise.
No security wal required for the
deposit Of the s200;0o0.O00 OF gold
with the federal reserve banks. Not
much of a duplicate.
Third: No government funds de-
posted under the provisions Of this
section shall be inxestedain mortgage
loans, The security was to gnaran-
tee the safe keeping and prompt
payment of the public money deposit
ed with them" What benefit would
the deposit be unless they could use
lit? Now compare that with the use
the federal reserve banks could make
of the $20O,O00.0 900 loan or deposit.
They could issue and loan two and a
half times the amount in federal re
serve bank notes. or $500, 900. 900. No
sign of a duplicate there.
Fourth: The government has dele
gated its sovereign power .to coin
(issue) money to the federal reserve
banks without limit; but the federal
farm land loan banks will have to
depend on voluntary deposits, for
which they will have to pay four per
cent, or on the sale of bonds bearing
a rate Of 5 per cent to ecure cur
rent funds that have been issued out
loaned out by the federal reserve
banks at an interest rate OF s per cen
to 10 per cent. Instead of being a
duplicate" or equal footing it is
gross discrimination against agricul-
.ture.
1t is not at all in accord with the
desire expressed by the committee as
quoted. To duplicate would be for
the government to delegate exactly
the same power and authority through
the medium best suited to each sys-
tenn, and no true friend of agriculture
can afford to accept of any less.
On page 6 the committee comedies
that we must have some medium
other than the commercial banks" 1t
should be wholly independent as well
Indeed, as agriculture is our basic
industry, it should have prior con-
%sideration. We must first produce
something before there is a necessity
for a medium of exchange.
Our farmers are compelled to com
pete in the worlds markets. where
1.-THE price is fixed by the uncontrolled
law of supply and demand; with u
competitors having cheaper land, the
use of money or credit for less than
half the rate of interest, and public
transportation untaxed for p2lFate
profit.
Unprotected from foreign competi-
ton in our own markets, discriminate
ed against by legislation at every
turn, and the prey of every protected
and special privileged Industrial and
commercial trust, agriculture cannot
pay more than two per cent for the
use of money or credit, and stay the
present rapid descent from iarm
Ownership to tenantry, and the in
Icreased exodus from the farm to the
lefty.
"a Low Rate of interest"
/ do not see how one could be
LOANED for less than six o. seven per
cent under the proposed law. OF
course that is a low rate as com
pared with current rates as reported
by the comptroller Of the currency.
But why pay any tribute to the
commercial system? Why pay 6 per
cent for the use of this. public utility,
when it can be provided for 2 per
cent by an independent system. The
committee accepts of the principle
of private monopoly by a special
privileged class called bankers, and