Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1922-04-01
STATE BELIEVED
92O'NuLLENNIUM.

On top OF this long period OF hard
times and hard luck came the boom
times Of 1920. When prices were M and
the demand could not be supplied the
whole State thought the millennium had
come. 1t proceeded to make up for lost
time and lean years. Nearly everybody
borrowed money. II was the easiest
thing in the world 10 do. The loan com
panles were even soliciting the ranchers
to borrow from them. Men who had
never been In the cattle or sheep bust
rs found Il readily possible to borrow
money 10 buy herds. The State was eK-
tended to the limit. Everybody saw for
tune In sight and an indefinite prolonga-
ton Of high prices and a heavy de-
mand. In other words. the same con
dition prevailed IN New Mexico as pre-
vailed everywhere else In the United
States through that flush period. People
not only borrowed money, but they spent
money they raised their scale Of living
and broadened the scale Of their &C
%tivities.
New Mexico had just got SET and was
all ready 10 so when suddenly and with
out warning along came the consumers
strike" the fall in prices, the period Of
dehatlon. The people OF the State were
caught all s%praddled out. They were
called on 10 pay their debts, and some OF
them could not DO II without selling at
low prices that they bad bought at hlg
prices.
They were in q deep hole. 1t looked as
II they would all 20 broke together last
autumn. TNey could not see n ray Of
light ahead Of them. Just at the black
est period they found they could borrow
money from the War Finance Corpora
ton, and since that time they have taken
more than 5000 900. That is a fairly
large sum 10 be borrowed in n State Of
only about four hundred thousand per
sons, Including a large percentage OF
Mexicans. New Mexico has not only
borrowed all this money, but It must
borrow some more. before II is through.
So the situation md condition here con
Germs itself largely with the attitude Of
mind OF these people, whether they are
discouraged and dismayed or whether
they are full Of pluck and resolution. It
may be said at once that they are con-
hdent they will be able to pay out. Some
Of the more hopeful fix the period at two
years; but the average Of conservative
opinion is that IT will take three.
In loanlng money on cattle the moral
character and the experience Of the
ranchmen, who owns the herd. are Of
more value than the cattle. 1t IS the
man, plus the cattle. or the sheep, that
makes the security, and the character Of
the man is the larger part Of It.
All these people ask is that the weather
shall be kind to them. that they shall
have their fair share Of moisture and be
spared droughts or unreasonable snow
falls. Snow that falls in the winter and
lies upon the hills, turning into streams
In the spring and running down into fiat
country, IS Of more importance than rain
fall. If they only get this and other fair
average weather conditions they will pull
ct. The stock raising industry, the old
stockmen viii tell you. Is quickly de-
pressed. but even more quickly recuper-
ates. Meat for food is a necessity of
life, and they always can sell It when
they can produce It. They have been pro
ducing it In New Mexico for a good many
years under good conditions and bad.
They have been In a hole before and they
always have come out. There is no rea-
son why this time should prove an ex-
ception.
Copyright, 1922, by Public Ledger Com
pany.