The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1922-12-14
BANKERS BEHIND
81. WHEAT PRICES

PAASAAiS, dCCldICS tIiC} DGGSIIlUET 1SSut
of the National Leader in an article
setting forth the results of an inquiry
addressed to country bankers.
John F. Sinclair of Minneapolis
who is interested in chain of coun-
try banks, has taken the lead in as
certaining the bankers sentiment on
this measure, first proposed by A. G.
Townley Mr.. Sinclair is reported to
have large stack of replies from
country bankers almost unanimous for
emergency legislation to stabilize farm
prices.
It thus appears that sentiment for
reviving the government grain corpor-
alton is more wide spread than one
would Judge from the newspapers and
the explanation probably is that the
big banks, bound up with grain specu-
lation, have used their influence to
keep this all important news out of
the daily press. The National Leader
quotes the following as an Indication
of the response from country bankers
to Mr.. Sinclair's questions
November %, 1923.
"John F. Sinclair,
minneapolis, MINI.
"Dear Sir:
"Last evening the Griggs County
Bankers association held a meeting
in this city which was attended by 80
bankers of the county.
"At the meeting a resolution was
unanimously adopted to be forward
ed to our representatives in congress,
Senator Norris and Secretary McFad-
den of the North Dakota Bankers AS
sociation.
"I am going. to forward you here
with copy of the resolution in order
that you may know what was done at
our meeting.
Yours very truly,
Martin Garlid,
t'Cashier."
Griggs County Farmers Urge So For
Wheat
The resolution adopted reads in full
as follows:
"Whereas a very serious crisis ex-
lists throughout the agricultural dis
tricts of this country in that the mar
ket price of wheat for the past two
years has been far less than the cost
of production, and
"Whereas Griggs County, N. D. is
wholly an agricultural community de-
voted principally to wheat raising, and
that during the war the farmers were
encouraged to extend operations and
others to extend credit to them for
the furtherance of agriculture ard es-
pecially the raising of wheat, and
= "Whereas the price deflation Of
farm products has not been followed
by a proportionate reduction in the
cost of production, the result has brot
the farmers to point where they can
not longer continue operations unless
some immediate relief is provided, and
"Whereas the benefits given by the
war finance corporation are not un-
derestimated, but that legislation ex-
tending credits or lowering interest
rates is of no further material bene-
fit, but that agriculture must receive
a price for wheat large enough to COW
er cost of production, and pay taxes
and interest and at least partial
reduction of debts already contracted,
"Be it resolved, that we, the bankers
of Griggs County Bankers Associa-
ton, demand that congress Immediate
ly enact emergency legislation that
will guarantee minimum terminal
price Of 81 per bushel on wheat. We
feel that this is absolutely necessary
to encourage the farmers to continue
raising food for the rest Of the world.
Oscar Greenland,
...> ss~.' President
Theodore A. Marquardt,
- ST. . @.- Secretary"