Gunnison news-champion., 1922-11-24

De- lator:-
W. "ute you this letter so that you
may use II on behalf of the settlers
under the tncompahgrc Valley Re-
ciamatlon project in securing needed
relief for them from the present finan-
cial stress. Notice has been sent To
our farmers requiring the payment of
$l.iO per acre by December !, and IL il
is not paid IT bears penalty interest
at II per cent per annum. The sec
retary of the Interior has granted TO
the settlers one years extension Of
tins payment at 9 per cent per annum
where the settler can show inability
10 secure the funds To make the pay
ment at the present time but resources
from which he can state with certainty
that be will be able To make the pay
ment within the year. The law pro
vides that should he not be able at
the end ( 4 year to make the payment
the delinquent instalment will bear
penalty interest at the rate of l2 per
cent per annum. Now ninety per cent
Of our farmers can tTuthfully make the
affidavit of inability to meet the pay.
ment at the present time, but their
statement as to the probability OF
meeting the payment year from now
would in the majority OF instances
have to be based on the hope rather
than assets. Ninety per cent of our
farmers have chattel mortgages to al
most the full extent Of the value OF
their farming stock and machinery.
Inc ability to make payment at the
end OF the year would depend entirely
on market conditions and the recon-
struction and re-equipment of the rail-
road which is supposed to serve this
community. While for the last eighteen
years the Denver & Rio Grande West
ern railroad has been unable to give
proper service to the farmer, this year
has witnessed the almost complete col
lapse Of service by the railroad. Under
these conditions the farmers produce
has little value. The farmer would be
far better off if, instead of having the
partial service of the Denver & Rio
Grande Western, We had no railroad
at all but by trucking for 100 or $50
miles could reach a real railroad. Shut
in by high mountain range it is inn
practical to haul our products out by
trucks to Pueblo. Consequently the
slight service we are able to get from
the Denver & Rio Grande Western is
our sole dependence.
The banks have advanced to the
farmer to the extent of their ability.
Four-fifths Of these loans will have
to be carried over for another year.
There will be but little new money
coming to the country. With poor
prices for crops and impossibility Of
half of the product of the farmer ever
reaching market, the farmer has bsen
to the expense of raising large crop
at terrible loss. The banks win be
able to help the farmers but little the
coming season. The situation is so
acute that most of the loan companies
and individuals doing business in Delta
and Montrose counties have refused
to advance money to the farmer by
way of first mortgage loans on his
real estate. There would be scores
OF foreclosures here, were it not for
the fact that the holder OF, the mort
gage would be unable to get anyone
on the place if he were to conduct q
foreclosure proceeding, but the condi-
F. ton is one of extreme difficulty on the
part of the farmer who has to depend
solely on the mercy of the person or
company holding the real estate mort
gage on his property for the renewal
or extension of the loan.
We believe that the majority of
our farmers will not make enough
met this year from their crops to pay
their taxes.
The situation is not one requiring
the extension of time for one year.
The farmer should have at least five
years time within which changed con-
ditions may have enabled him to ex-
tricate himself from the heavy debt
of mortgages and chattel mortgages,
to complete the reclamation Of his
lands, to stock the land so that diversi-
fed farming may be practiced. Any
less time than fve-year period of ex-
tension would be but Temporary relief.