Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1921-04-28
Foreign Advertising Representative
THE. AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION

Foreign Advertising Representative
The AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION J
A correspondent in a recent issue
of 1.-THE Zenith" house organ of Mar
shall Wells, gives some views of gen.
eral business conditions, and of condi-
tons in North Dakota that are more
,plainly put than we have ever seen
before. The correspondent, North
Dakota banker, touches first on gener-
al business conditions. He sees that
present conditions are causing far
mers to come nearer to a cash basis,
with less "plunging. He contends
that the story told in the loans and
discounts of his bank is typical, and
answer pretty generally for the story
of all the grain-raising states.
According to this bankers view, the
average farmer has been holding his
wheat for riase, and has been SELL
ing only gradually in order to buy
necessary supplies, or to meet press
ing obligations. In the meantime, he
is leaving his past bills stand wher-
ever he can, even going somewhere
and paying cash rather than go near
the men he owes. This banker con-
tends that this very condition means
future prosperity; it means farmers
are getting the habit of selling as
they need to buy, and are learning to
pay cash, with. the advantages accru-
ing. And the first good crop will al
low him to begin liquidating gradually
his old accounts, while his newly ac-
quired habit of paying cash will keep
him from getting in too deep in the
future.
Another feature of this bankers
letter that appeals to us particularly
is the business relation of the aver
age small banker and his patrons. He
says:
IF any farmer owes me, say $4,000,
I am going to do every thing I know
to help him get in shape so he can pay
it. l am going to stake him for
seed if he needs it, and try and per-
suade him to put in big crop and
farm it right so I will get my money
back"
In those few remarks is complete
answer to the propaganda that the
banker is money hun perched like
a vulture awaiting it's prey, making
a loan on some poor farmers property
so that the banker-at the first oppor-
tunity-can foreclose and take the
poor farmers property away. This
sort of bunk has been peddled right
and left in this state during the past
four or five years. It is not the case,
as can be easily shown. First of all,
in the past ten year, foreclosures have
not exceeded one per cent of the num-
Der loans. Many bankers are able to
.brag of the fact that they have never
foreclosed loan. Others have only
done so in rare instances. Take the
history of practically all foreclosures
made and you will find one of two
conditions to exist: either the borrow
er has given up trying and has prob
ably scratched together what money
he could and pulled out, or the Dor
rover has tried to put across some
scheme to leave his creditor in the
lurch. Both cases are rare. But it
remains the truth that few foreclos-
ures are ever made by those who are
loaning money. And it isn't because
the bankers and other loan agents are
philanthropists by any means-it is
purely business.
If the average borrower would stop
and look over the general scheme un-
der which loan business is carried on,
he would find the following facts to
be the case: The average bank de-
ponds upon reasonably certain mar
gin of interest above the amount paid
for deposits. Usually the rate of in
terest required Of borrowers deter.
mines the rate paid on time deposits.
A bank can carry only small amount
Of real estate. Hence, the banker
aims to loan his assets to those most
certain to meet their obligations.
Foreclosing on property would eventu-
ally ruin bank because the bank can
not afford to have its assets tied up
in real estate or similar property.
Tho average banker sizes up an appli-
cant for loan as to his honesty, his
ability andl his probable likelihood Of
being ableto meet the size Of the OBJ
1ieation he asks. Every ban has an
element Of risk. A<man may be a