Evening star., 1932-08-30

mol ln1reQuenJly meetings are Aelu vi
Sunday and at night.
There is nothing perfunctory about
the actions of this corporation, either
by the directors or by the managing
force. Sufficient time is given to every
application and every problem pre-
sented to the corporation, SO that all
phases and all bearings may be fairly
understood, and as far as possible,
proper decision reached.
'I shall not undertake to discuss the
causes leading up to the creation OF
this great corporation. Suffice to say
that without it, in my opinion, there
would have been a complete collapse
of all trade and industry and finance, at
least for time. And while 1t IS ad-
mitted that conditions have been almost
unbearable, it is probably fact that
we Just barely escaped general mora
torium. Not that there was any justi-
fable reason for collapse, but because
of an unaccountable fear that seemed
to penetrate every nook and corner of
the world. Particularly, fear that we
would be forced off the gold standard
and this led to currency boarding and
gold boarding to an alarming extent,
and to foreign balances being Withdrawn
in gold. ,
fear. this expecting something terrible
to happen the next day or the next
hour is passed, and our people In all
walks and all sections are now looking
back upon those terrible days as his
torv-and forward to better times.
But back to the more intimate
phases of the Reconstruction Finance
Corporation which I want to discuss.
Lending $500, 100000 and more Is
no light task. if it is to be loaned as
the law requires, upon adequate secur-
ity, and as authorized by Congress.
Praises Congress
Speaking Of Congress, want here
to state that, in my opinion. no body
of men ever faced a more difficult sit
uation, or more conscientiously felt
their responsibility to distressed coun-
try, than did the Seventy Con-
gress. You might not have agreed with
them. or with all that they did. You
might have been impatient and critical,
but faced with the problems and con-
ditions that the members of this Con-
gress were faced with, torn by their
very heartstrings with appeals, con-
demnations, demands and whatnot, you
probably would not have done as well
as they did.
1.-THE corporation was created to pro-
vide emergency financing for agricul-
ture. commerce and industry. AS
originally created, the corporation could
lend to banks, savings banks, trust COM
panies, building and loan associations,
insurance companies, railroads, mort
gage loan companies, Federal land
banks, Joint stock land banks, Federal
intermediate credit banks, credit unions,
agricultural credit corporations, live
stock credit corporations.
"As amended, the base OF the cor
poration was broadened so that we
could lend to public and private agencies
for self-liquidating projects. such as
bridges, water works, tunnels, canals,
markets, ETC., and for carrying and the
orderly marketing of agricultural COM
modities and live stock.
ITO better enable the corporation to
function in the latter respect, Congress
authorized the r. F. c. to create region
al agricultural credit corporations, as
many as IL in number, one in each
Federal land bank district. Each OF
these corporations is to have a capital
stock of not less than $3,000,000, fur
nished and owned by the r. F. c., and
may lend to individual farmers and
stockmen for agricultural purposes,
crop production, raising, breeding, fat
tening and marketing Of live stock and
agricultural products.
Cites Price Advance.
"Bv making available ample credit
for these purposes, and to these classes
of our citizenship, commodities OF all
kinds, including live stock, should soon
recover to at least fair and living
price. I am glad to say that subStan-
io1 ol olroqdU hQ6n MADE
These agricultural credit corpora
tions may, with the approval OF the
r. F. c., rediscount their loans with
the r. F. c., or with the Federal Re-
serve Bank, and Federal intermediate
credit banks, thus affording an almost
limitless supply Of credit to our farm
ers and stockmen.
THE act provides that all loans OF
this character, and, in fact, all loans,
must be fully and adequately secured,
and it will not be the intention of
the directors to make loans at inflated
values, but rather at fair values, and
to enable our farmers and stockmen
to carry their farm products and live
stock for a reasonable time, and to
market in an orderly fashion.
These loans, as all others by the
corporation, may be for a period not
exceeding three years, though, II neces-
sary, the corporation has the power to
extend from time to time to total
of five years.
Congress undoubtedly had In mind
that within a period of three years
five at the most-there should be such
recovery and return to normal condi-
tions as to make the lending by this
governmental agency-the Reconstruc-
ton Finance Corporation-no longer
| necessary. And, in that respect, it is
my firm belief the Congress was right.
Another very wise provision by the
Congress that runs all through the
act is that no fee, or commission, shall
be paid by any applicant for loan,
and the agreement to pay, or the pay
ment of any such fee or commission, Is
unlawful.
"A phase of the work now before
the directors that Is occupying great
deal of their attention is the setting
up Of these regional agricultural credit
corporations and machinery for the
proper consideration and appraising OF
the -liquidating loans.
Locations Being Picked.
| Locations for most OF the regional
| agricultural credit corporations have
been selected and the personnel is now
being chosen. Effort is being made to
| get these banks functioning as early as
| possible in order that We may take
care of feeder loans this Fall, and pro-
| vide funds for feeding and marketing
cattle, sheep and hogs.
"It has long since been proven that
q very excellent way to market grain
is to feed the grain to live stock. A
fat animal brings a much better price
per pound, and, Of course, weighs a
great deal more than q lean one.
Feeder loans in normal times are