The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1921-03-14

weeks.
Bingham county, however, com.
pared to other counties in the state
has no complaint to make whatso.
ever" he continued. "With the ex.
ception of the Boise country perhaps
and some of the western districts
Bingham county is in better condi-
tion financially than any other Sec
ton of the state. In the north or
upper country, where so much dry
farming is carried on, two year
practically total failure has been the
result which coupled with the short
age of speculative money has worked
drastic hardship on that section.
"In the Twin Falls section much to
the detriment of the state land values
have been inflated and much land was
sold on the installment plan on a
mortgage basis. And while the crop
production has been good in those
sections it has been necessary for
those producing lie money to send it
east to take up the payments on their
farm mortgages which has run those
sections of the country short OF
finances. This is generally true Of
the entire southwestern portion OF
the state"
The condition as outlined in the
above paragraph. has existed in many
of the growing states of the west and
the northwest and the writer has
come in contact with such conditions
to such an extent that many localities
have been materially retarded in
their development. This was especi-
ally true as the time of the develop
ment of the panhandle of Texas. On
the rolling plains it was impossible
for the immigrants to judge dis
tances. Designing real estate men
better termed as 1ocaters," with very
little scruples as to truth, would take
the land seekers out in automobiles
perhaps twenty or thirty miles from a
town and state that the distance was
only ten or twelve. Put an inflated
price on the land and sell it, AS soon
as the purchasers would learn that
they had not been fairly dealt with
they would either leave the country
or make bare living with the result
that the country receive da bad name
and it took years to overcome this
effect. In the Bingham county lands
are on sound basis and are worth
every cent that is being asked for
them.
Continuing this banker said: "Of
the extensive acreage in Bingham
county, comprising some 100000
acres only 10000 acres are devoted
to dry farming which is today in the
infancy stages of development. In
fact the dry farming areas of the
country are not looked upon with
much favor; due to the fact that they
are strictly in the experimental
stages. This is one reason why
Bingham county does not have to go
thru the stages of adversely that so
many other sections of the state are
passing thru. Again this county has
some 175,000 acres of excellent
agricultural lands under the irriga-
tion plan with some 100000 available
for irrigation purposes and which will
be eventually irrigated. The farm
ers as class are prosperous and
with the exception of the beet crop
harvested a good crop this year.
ut is not the intention to mislead
and get people to thinking that Bing-
ham county had missed the effect of
the present financial furry. 1t is
merely the inteition to show that dur
ing this crisis Bingham county has
been better equipped and in better
condition to weather these conditions.
The potato crop was good. The
alfalfa crop was good. The beets
made about 0ne-third of a crop. Low
market prices, which have prevailed
over the entire agricultural belt has
made money tight, but owing to the
large production and the general
good financial conditions as a result
OF past prosperous years Blackfoot
has not suffered and the banking in
stitutions Of the county have been
able to care for their patrons and to
keep things moving constantly on the
up climb"
The reader may get some idea of
the financial condition of the county
when it is stated that the seven banks
of the county have normally more
than $5,000,000 on deposit which is
a condition that is found very seldom
in any section of the west or the
northwest, which depends absolutely
upon the development of it's natural
resources and where oil, minerals or
some other commodity is not to be
found to swell bank deposits.
In the city of Blackfoot alone the
largest bank has resources Of $4,000
1881 with total deposits of $1,2S9,-
456 while the second largest bank in
the city has resources Of $1,423,-