The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1918-11-21
Administration Acts for Credit
less Farmers and Urges Banks
to Use Credit Facilities.
WILL BOOST. PRODUCTION
National Tragedy Which Would Natur-
ally Result from Failure to Put
Across Baer Bill Will Be Averted
BY Similar Legislation.

Unable to wait longer for congress
to pass the m~uch-needed Baer bill, the
administration has decided to advance
loans amounting to S. an acre with a
maximum loan of $500 to very needy
farmers. A total of s., 000, 900 has been
set aside for the purpose and roughly
apportioned among the states which
have suffered drouth. Six per cent
interest will be charged and the loans
will be payable at the end of the next
crop season.
"Tre "'an," declares the Department
OF Agriculture, sis to assist only those
who have exhausted their resources.
No loan will be made to any farmer
who has unincumbered real or person
al property sufficient to secure a loan
Of $500. In such cases country banks
are urged, as a matter of public ser.
vico, to render assistance and avail
themselves of the facilities of the Fed
eral Reserve Banks and the Wa
Finance Corporation which are pre-.
pared to render support to such ef-
foSrts."'
Banks Should % Duty.
The small amount set aside for
drouth-stricken farmers is probably
due to the fact that the government is
loathe to interfere with private bank
ing, be the above declaration shows
that the government expects the banks
to do their part to help win the war.
The Federal Reserve Bank 10 prepared
to rediscount farmers notes so that
the bank can lend the same amount
over and over again to farmers just
as they do to business men in the
cities. The War Finance Corporation
is also prepared to advance money to
banks up to Is per cent of the AMOUNT
of their loans.
Some banks are neglecting the needs
Of the farmers in their vicinity be-
cause they are too backward to take
advantage of these new methods. 9th
ers are making use of a pretended
shortage of money to influence the po-
litical situation or to pick up real es-
tate bargains on foreclosures. A mum
Der Of banks in the Northwest have
been circularizing their patrons about
the shortage of money and the unwill-
ingness of eastern bankers to make
the usual advances to them. Can it
be that the Wall Street interests are
not only refusing loans, but are order
ing these little banks to not take ad-
vantage of the new facilities offered
by the government.
Poor Banking Hampers Production.
The effect Of this ignorance or sab
otage on the part of bankers, wherever
1t is found, can mean only one thing
smaller production. Farmers, no more
than the business men Of the cities.
can produce without adequate credit
facilities. Just at this time when pro-
duction Of farm products should be at
the maximum, the money trust appears
to be pursuing its old extortionate tao
tics. Among these Is the nationwide
propaganda to discredit tho Farm
Loan Bank which the Farm Loan
Board and the Non-partisan League
have exposed from time to timA
Al soon a. the crop failures IN vari-
d sections Of the United States IN
1917 became known. Congressman
Basr, from North Dakota, INTRODUCED
: bill IN congress providing tor ! spe-
sial loan o. 1te.eoe.o0o - thess suffer-
1a1mMs. osaUsss - ~ ~.
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