The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1918-05-30
That Interest Rate.

Editor Courant:-I was inter-
ested in the remarks of "Old
Subscriber" Of Carbury in a re-
cent issue, especially in that part
relating to interest rates and the
interest bill Of the 1917 legisla-
tive session.
1 think if "Qld Subscriber"
will look up his data, he will find
that the North Dakota interest
rate at the time he named of 81
per cent was on first mortgage
loans only and with short time
loans included, far exceeded this
amount.
Regarding the interest rate
bill we have never yet seen the
exact details of the demise of
this bill in print, nor heard them
given, and at the request of 9TH
ers we will. give them here. As
a result of the vote of the League
caucus I introduced this bill in
the house where it passed, with
1O3 ayes and 3 noes, Z absent
and not voting. It lay dormant
in the upper house for some
time, but was finally taken up by
the banking. committee. I ap-
peared before this committee
every day for about a week to
answer objections raised by the
members Of the committee and
by lobbyists sent there to defeat
it.
The senate made four amend
ments to the bill. They raised
the rate from 8 per cent to 9 per
cent. They exempted building
loan associations. They provided
that banks should not pay more
than 5 per cent on deposits. That
the law should not take effect
until Jan. LIST, 1918. The house
refused to concur in the amend
ments, and I was appointed
chairman Of a conference COM
.mittee to confer with a like coms
mittee from the senate to try
and compromise our differences
so that the bill might become a
law. Senator McGray was the
chairman Of the Senate commit
tee We took up the 9 per cent
amendment first, but the opposi-
ton refused to do a thing with
it, saying that banks should have
a A per cent margin to do bust
ness with the farmers, notwith-
standing the fact that I>offered
to produce affidavits showing
that certain North Dakota banks
had been buying European war
bonds at 5 per cent and 6 per
cent, apparently preferring to
assist European countries to
fight rather than North Dakota
farmers to raise grain. The
senate committee also refused to
bulge regarding the 5 per cent
amendment, and took the same
stand regarding building and
loan associations, although the
representatives Of these compan-
les did not ask to be exempted,
provided the rate was raised to
9 per cent.
We considered the amendment
regarding the time for the law
to 90 into effect last. In con-
nection with this we pointed out
the time for laws to go into eff
feet was July LIST, after their
passage; that most of the farm
ers' indebtedness came in the
fall and that if it were not set
tied in due time they would be
extended until the next fall. So
that if we accepted the last
amendment we would not derive
much benefit from the bill before
the fall Of 1918, just previous to
the next legislative session.
1 stated we would adopt the
first three amendments if they
would recede from the last one.
I pointed out to them that there
were only three opposing votes
to this bill in the house; that q
strong minority was in favor OF
lit III the senate, and that for
them to utterly ignore the wish
es Of the house and the masses
Of people Of the state, and to put
their own opinions above every
thing else was more IN accord
ance with an altocratic than
with 4 democratic form Of gov
eminent, and not in accordance
with their oath Of office.
Senator .McGrays said we could
take the bill as they saw fit to
Irass it 81 let tide. ! said that
& believed that / was acting ac-
cording = The WISHES Of the
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