Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1917-10-17
WEDNESDAY. OCTOBER II, 1917.
LOOKING TO THE FARMERS TO BUY
LIBERTY BONDS.
Galveston News

Committeeman serving ~ bono statesmen
without pay. are 10 90 out in the country
to ask farmers 10 purchase Liberty Loan
Bonds. They ought 10 meet. and we be-
lieve will meet. with n ready response.
This assertion j. based upon these incon-
controyertible facts: The farmers. most 81
them. have surplus money: they ought "a
invest il. and the Liberty Loan i the hest
and safest investment available. Their, j.
another reason The farmers in their DAYS
of trouble have had The sympathy and ac-
tive help of other members of society.
wherefore reciprocity l. in order.
In the dark days immediately following
the opening of the present war. y huge cot
ton crop was harvested. There was no
market for the product. and for a time
such sales n were made were M the
ridicnlou>ly low price of ab.st ) cents per
pound. Men and women who lived in the
towns and cities throughout the land came
10 the rescue. They started and lived M
TO NE ~klosan. 'Buy a Bale ut 10 cents Il
pound. Also. they organized the big cot
ton pool To invest in cotton. Compared
with the value of the cotton crop. these
things were a drops in the bucket: hut in
truth they acted a. brakes upon the train
that was carrying cotton 10 perdition: they
built up a confidence that save the cotton
growers and sarted and pushed the value
Of their product upward. Much of the
prosperity of the farmers today j. due to
the helping name of 1914. 1t j. nnbeliev-
able that the farmers will forget this now
when their country, which means NIL of
the people. needs their help.
And they are not asked 10 do much. II
isn't "a though a neiehbor who never paid
anything back va asking for the 'loan''
of a ham of a bu>hel Of -pudS. Uncle sam
l. not asking the farmer 10 give ANYTHING.
He i merely asking them 10 lend him their
dollars: and his credit i, first class. His
Sword l. a good a his bond" and he j.
giving both.
The whirligig of time ha sbrought pros
perity to most of our farmer. Cotton j.
worth what it j. selling for. five or six
times a much IA il brought in the DAYS of
1914. Nor has the farmer'> cost of living
increased proportionately. Rather il j. the
other way: for. with prudence and fore
sight. he has produced more largely than
before the things consumed on the farm.
In consequence. many of our ~farner~. If
pot indeed most of them. have a consider
able surplus. IN money or in unsoId prod
ucts. after having paid all debt~. Aside
from the fact that there i a patriotic duty
resting upon every citizen to lend of hi
funds To his government. the farmer, are
confronted with q practical question a. to
what they shall do with their surplus mon
~.
OF course, there j. a temptation To spend
II for Injuries, or in the having of a good
time, but the knowledge that there viii be
a rainy day admoni~he~ the farmers not
to do this. Clearly. after making reason
able provision for the nceds and comforts
of their families. they ought Ia invest their
money In something that will keep and
that can be realized upon when the money
actually shall be needed. Really. II should
be counted a rare good fortune that they
can buy bonds OF their government. pa vin.
four perEcent interest per annum. and free
from taxation.
IN j. true. of course, that the farmers can
get the promise of more than four per cent
interest for their money, but not upon such
security a. Uncle Sam give~. Nor can The
fact of duty he brushed aside.
This government of the United States
has been pretty good 10 the armers Con
slider just one item: The government i
%exempting them from military service, We
hope and believe that the farmers will be
good To the government.