The Sauk Centre herald., 1928-10-18

ADJ. N1uuu, SCt. I4-t1eCp1V1cGlf-
tatiyes of the National Farm loan
Associations located in the central
counties of Minnesota held their
annual convention here today
The years activities of the asso-
Citations and the Federal Land
Bank of St. Paul through which
they operate, were reviewed and
plans made to continue to carry
on the extensive farm financing
operations in which the Federal
Land Bank System is engaged.
Eugene Meyer, Farm Loan Com
missioner, Floyd R. Harrison a
member of the Federal Farm Loan
Board, Chester A. Morill, it's Sec
retary and General Counsel and
H. M. Shields, of the examining
division, all of Washington, D. &C.,
were present. They represented
the Federal Farm Loan Board
which has supervision of the Farm
Loan System. F. H. Klawon, Pres
ident, w. L. Day, Asst. to Pres,
F. G. Wlanek, Secretary, and Di-
rectors "A. C. Erickson of Albert
Lea, Mimi, John C. Smith, of
Mandan, N. D., Frank R. Colt, of
Hudson, Wis, and E. J. VanLeu-
ven, of Mt. Pleasant, Mich; rep
resented the Federal Land Bank,
of Saint Paul. The Federal In
termediate Credit Bank of Saint
Paul was represented by j. A.
Rickert, its Vice-President.
"Minnesota's agricultural condi-
ton as reflected by the payment
of instalments on the mortgages
which the Federal Land Bank Of
Saint Paul has made for some $500
Minnesota farmers, shows worth
while improvement over a year
ago." according to the statement
made by President Klawon. ''The
payment of state and local taxes
and insurance premiums on land
affected by land bank loans also
shows an Improvement over year
ago. Another barometer of the
status of farming is found in the
number of farms sold and the
prices received" he continued.
although it is still impossible to
indicate an advance in selling
prices compared with a year ago,
still, it can be truthfully said that
there is a better market for farms.
Inquiry is more brisk and farms
are selling. For instance, the Fed
eral Land Bank which operates not
only in Minnesota, but in Wiscon-
sin, Michigan and North Dakota,
sold 81 farms in it's territory dur.
ing July, August and September,
or practically twice as many as a
year ago."
Mr.. Klawon said that the bank
has over forty million dollars in
loans in Minnesota alone and
$137, 900, 900 in loans in the four
states that comprise its district.
"tThe bank has on hand at this
time nearly four million dollars
that is available for loans at the
unusually low rate of 5 per cent
interest"
''The cooperative or mutual
Federal Land Banks are one sys-
tenn which has lived up to its prom
ises, although back in 1916 when
Congress was passing the act
which brought the banks into lex-
istence, some enthusiastic Legis-
lators promised more than any
thing but a charitable institution
could deliver. So far as the prom
ises in the law itself, both letter
and spirit, they have been and are
being fulfilled. One of the great
est promises of the act was to
leaven or equalize interest rates
throughout the country. 1t re-
quires only a rather short memory
to recall the high interest rates
which were common here, in a
great part of Minnesota, before the
Federal Land Bank of Saint Paul
and the hundreds Of local national
farm loan associations began to
serve the farmers. The saving
runs into astronomical figures when
we apply it to the total farm mort
gage loans because the bank has
set the pace. Every farmer IN
Minnesota who has mortgage on
his farm, no matter how small,
benefits from the activities of this
bank.