The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1918-01-19
STEVENSON AND THE FARMS.


When the proposition for the gov
'rnment purchase of 500, 900, 900
farm loan bonds came up for consid-
GRAFTON in the house last week. il
met with vigorous opposition at the
hands OF representatives of mortgage
companies who do not like the idea
or having their per cent loans fall
OF with loans bearing lower rate of
interest.
In the course of his argument
against the appropriation, Represent
oVive Campbell of Kansas, said that
not q single one of his farmer con-
stituents had asked him to support
the appropriation; and he read the
foi'owing extract from a letter i'm
opposition
THE farmers are not asking this
appropriation Of 1000, 900 to buy
farm-loan bonds. 1t Is device of the
Federal Farm Loan Board to help get
themselves out of their embarrassing
financial difficulty. The farmers
TIN roushout the country never were in
more prosperous and better finan-
ctal condition than now. All kinds of
farm lands are i'm demand and selling
at increased prices, the legitimate
wants of the farmer are being taken
care OF now and will be i'm the future
as they have been in the past, without
borrowing from the United States
government"
Congressman Stevenson of the Fifth
District of South Carolina, a member
of the committee on banking and cur
rsncy. spoke In favor Of the appro
priation as follows:
Mr.. stevenson. Mr.. Chairman, the
gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Camp
b"D closed his remarks by reading
statement from somebody who does
rot seem to have been q farmer, stat
ing that the farmers were not asking
IT,.
farmers are asking to the extent O:
fioo.eoO.o .oos. for loans with which to
relieve themselves from encumbrances
that they can not relieve themselves
of etherwtse. unless. as his CORES
pondent suggests. they sell their
farms; and when they sell their farms
the correspondent says that the farm
lands are bringing q good price,,
therefore when he attempts to con-
t'hue to farm by buying another ne
finds the price Of the farm that he
wants to buy put up SO high that he
la squeezed out OF the farming busi-
ness: and now they are asking that
loans be. provided in order that they
may have funds with which to liaui-
date these debts and enable them to
go on. This statement of his CORES
pondent that the farmers are i'm
good and prosperous condition is part
iy true. but as to the section of the
United States from which come, IL is
Just beginning to recover from the
enormous loss. which congress said il
could not help them to avoid, brought
about by this war. when in 1914 they
marketed the crop of cotton a los,
OF $3.50. 100000 and many farm was
mortgaged as result. and they have
not had prosperous time sufficient
to rehabilitate themselves. They made
16.000.000 bales OF cotton in 1914, and
1t cost the average farmer at least 12
cents a pound to make it-$60 to the
bale-and the people got. on an aver
age $40 for it. They have never re-
coverd. and they are today facing de-
mands from England and elsewhere
from the mortgage companies, that
they iiquidate their mortgages, and
they nave got to do 1t In this way or
not at all. Now. are these bonds safeo
III they are not. who Is responsible? ?
ihis congress enacted this act. and in
the 27th section 1t provided the Fed
erai reserve banks should have the
right to buy and deal in them. Well
u they are not safe security, why al
low the great financial institutions,
handing the commercial credits of
this country to deal in them as assets
on which our currency should be
based. Not only that but is 1t lust
that we should do something for
them. and is II propitious nowo We
have got to- do one of two things, to
allow these farm-loan bonds put up-
on the market in competition with the
United States loans that are being
made and asked for for the purpose
Of helnino until thi.. ...... L..