Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1931-12-03
Not Fundamental Legislation.

The governor did not ask Tor any
fundamental legislation, but the farm
ers of the northwest are now commit
ted to a proposal for fundamental
legislation, which, if put over, will
take care of the governors proposal
and will also go much farther, namely
the Farm Debt Refinancing Act pro
posed by Senator Frazier of North
Dakota, which was introduced in the
last Senate and which, in a slightly
different form, will be reintroduced
in the next Senate.
Last winter, the Minnesota Legisla-
ture and four other Legislatures in
northwestern states passed resolutions
petitioning Congress to enact the
Frazier bill. During the summer this
proposal has been much discussed and
sentiment in it's favor, both among
business men as we'll as among
farmers, has grown very strong; it
is now rapidly coming to be nation
ally known as the only logical pro-
pOsal for farm relief.
This bill proposes that the federal
government liquidate and refnance
the farmers debts upon the fair mar
ket value of farms, lat rate of in
terest of one and one-half percent
and yearly ammOrtizatiOn payments
of one and one-half percent" Also
that loans be made to farmers on
their live stock, used for breeding
or agricultural purposes, up to sixty
five percent of the fair market value,
at a rate of interest of four percent
with a yearly reduction payment of
ten percent, loans to run up to a per-
iod of ten years if the security is
properly maintained.
Funds for Re.Financing.
The funds with which to finance
the rehabilitation of the farmers are
to be furnished by the Federal Farm
Loan system, the Federal Reserve
Bank system, the Postal Savings De-
pOSitOry system, as well as states and
private individuals will be allowed to
invest in the bonds. Also provision
is made for the increase in the cir
culatiOn of actual money, our pres
ent banking system being so designed
that expansion and contraction of the
circulating medium is now regulated
by the bankers alone, and at their
pleasure. without regard for actual
need.
The control of the farm financing
cuc he IN, l. Io
of Board of Agriculture consisting
of one member from each state,
elected by the farmers interested with
an executive committee of three mem
bers, who shall supervise the work of
liquidating and refinancing farm in
debtedness, while the machinery for
making the loans will be the Federal
Farm Land Banks and National Farm
Loan Associations.
An agency like the Minnesota Rural
Credits Bureau could be fitted into
this scheme of things, or its business
could be taken over and liquidated
in it's entirety by the new, nationwide
undertaking.
A Sound Proposal.
Only the lowering of interest
charges will not help all farmers.
The farmers debt load is, in most
cases, out of all proportions with the
present value of farm lands and farm
income; therefore there must be a
liquidation of excessive farm indebt-
edness and this the lowering of in
terest alone will not accomplish.
Stabilizing the price of farm lands,
by making it, as proposed in the
Frazier proposal, a considerable part
of our money and credit structure,
will again be reflected in better and
more stable farm income. All pro-
posals for farm relief, hitherto
brought forward, and for means by
which to increase farm income have
either been exploded or refused a
trial. The Norris bill, which pro-
posed to take gambling out of the
sale of food stuffs would have been
the most effective. The McNary-
Haugen bill was brought out to kill
the Norris bill, which it did, only
to be killed by Coolidge in turn. The
debenture proposal would not help
much and will never be tried. The
tariff has been tried with disastrous
result. Therefore it is time to begin
to dig in in the fight for something
of far-reaching magnitude and some
thing that is sound. The Frazier
proposal is sound, sound to all but
the big bankers whose business it
would hurt-and timid congressman.
A full Farmer-Labor delegation, of
fighting men, in Congress from Min
nesota, would bring before the people
a proposal for justice for the farmers