Evening star., 1933-07-25


OF silver is here given. The lower the ratio
Of The sOS dS Sn., in
may be found by consulting the table
which accompanies this article). This
first loan natures in l947. Nobody
knows what the dollar will be worth
then. But the loan was callable last
June, and II 1t had been called then
and the bonds redeemed. they would
have been redeemed In 73-cent dollafS.
As . debtor. would Uncle Sam have
been defrauded out Of ; cents On the
dollar?
In November, 1917. Uncle Sam asked
the people for the second Liberty loan.
The dollar then was worth 70 cents
The loan was called for redemption in
November, 1927. and Uncle Sam paid
the loan in dollars worth So cents
Was 1t fair for Uncle Sam to repay TO-
cent dollars with 58-cent dollars? Were
the creditors, his own people, defrauded?
No attempt was made then to change
the standard Of measurement-the gold
dollar-in order to permit the creditors
of the United States Government to re-
ceive 70-cent dollars instead Of 58-cent
dollars.
The third Liberty loan was made
in 1918. with q 57-cent dollar and was
called for redemption In 1928 with q
58-cent dollar. That was relative JUS
tice for both debtor and creditor. But
the fourth Liberty loan was made In
1918 with q 58-cent dollar and is call-
able for redemption, but will not be
called, next October. II this loan were
redeemed next October, would It be an
act Of justice to Uncle Sam to change
the standard OF measurement-value-
50 that he could repay the loan In dol
lars worth So cents? Not II there was
any justice to Uncle Sam in the fact
that he borrowed the Victory Liberty
loan in 1919 with q 56-cent dollar and
called the loan in 1923, when the dol
lar was worth so cents.
Millions Of Debtors and Creditors.
But Uncle Sam Is only one debtor,
and he has been spoken Of here Is m
individual entity. when, Is matter
Of fact. he symbolizes all the people
Of the United States. When he bor-
rows money from the people. It merely
means that the people are making avail
able their monev to permit themselves
to do certain things.
There are millions of private debtors.
and many of these debtors are, at the
same time, creditors. A man buying .
home is q debtor. but If he works for
q salary he Is. In q sense, creditor.
An insurance company may be q
creditor as far As farm mortgages are
concerned, but the insurance company
Is . debtor in respect to It's policy
holders. We speak Of the farmer as .
4 ~t t>ssf
farmers and active farmers together
hold q greater percentage Of farm mort
cages than the Federal land banks, the
commercial banks, the mortgage COM
panies or the joint stock land banks.
Retired and active farmers and other
individuals hold . greater percentage
Of farm mortgages than the insurance
companies, or than the commercial
banks. the mortgage companies and the
joint stock land banks put together. II
Justice is to be given the debtor farmers
by such expedients Is lowering the
money standard. there Is . counter
balancing injustice to the creditor farm
ers.
Debts Of Various Terms.
When did the farm debtors assume
their debts? It would be necessary to
know this If. by reducing the standard
of value, they are to be given the op-
portunity to pay their debts in the same
kind of dollars that they borrowed. The
average term Of farm debt in the United
States is estimated by the Department
of Agriculture at 80 years; that Is, the
average time it takes to pay OH . farm
debt Is estimated at 80 years. But most
Of the farm debt was contracted during
the war years. when the vslue Of land
rose spectacularly, and when dollars
were cheap" and easy to get and when
prices Of farm products were high.
Farm debt increased 136 per cent be-
tween 1910 and 1920. and . further 10
were these farm debts contracted in
terms of the 100-cent farm dollar Of
1915, the 85-cent farm dollar Of 1916,
the 56-cent farm dollar Of 1917, the So
cent farm dollar Of 1918, the Accent
farm dollar Of 1919. the Ascent farm
dollar Of 1920, the S6-cent farm dollar
Of 1921, the S0-cent farm dollar Of
1922. the 74-oent farm dollar Of 1923
and 1924 or the 65-cent farm dollar Of
1925?
Six-Year Average Debts.
The average term of farm mortgage
loans Il eight and . half years, but
most Of them run for about six years.
The renewal Of . mortgage Is. to all in
tents and purposes, the making Of .
new loan.
If, for the purpose Of this illustra-
ton, We are permitted to use the cost
Of living" dollar In connection with
farm Indebtedness, it may be said that
the farmers who borrowed in 1914
with . 97-cent dollar paid on the
loan In 1870 or secured new one
with . Accent dollar; those who bor-
rowed In 1915 with 95-cent dollar
paid Oh In 1921 or secured . new loan
with . 57-cent dollar; tho6e who bor-
roWed in 1915 with m Accent dollar