Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1933-08-31


another way out of the dilemma.
We ali know that it is not only farm
real estate that has been devaluateu'
Int also all other real estate as well
as securities and personal property
of whichever description. We may De-
and | believe We are, trying 10 con-
vince ourselves that conditions are
improving, that values of land ana It's
products are on the upgrade that
the bonds, stock and farm mortgages
or whatever else our investments con-
sist of, will soon be worth race value'
but do we really believe 1t! is II
not with as as with the blacksmith
of old that had heard that faith couio
move mountains. He reasoned that
if it was so, then faith also slnouio
be able to make his hammer float
and so he threw in in the river put
it sank. AS it disappeared he SAID:
81 doubted like the dickens that IL
would float"
We are doing our honest best to
believe that the measures instituted
by the government in Washington VIII
cure our ailments; we even try 10
convince others that they will; but
somewheres in the back OF our nina
vivid little devil pops up and wills
pers: 1T won't" So while we try TO
make others have faith in the stab
| ilization of things, we start Wlld
scramble to have the government re-
deem the securities in which we pro-
fess so much confidence. 1t is with
us as with the blacksmith, we doubt
like the dickens that the remedies
will cure At least we wish IL pos
sible to get our own ship into haven
and watch the outcome from there.
If things go we'll and the weather be
fair we will go out again, take part
in the game and do our part. We may
be protesting that 1--WE do our part,
but do we? If our part is considered
to be the gathering in of the wreck
age from our own debacled fortune
then the statement may be true; 9TH
erwise it appears false.
1t is stated that the banks have
lots of loanable funds. Maybe so;
but let a poor farmer try to get a
small loan from them. Can he get
it? Yes, if he has the required Sc
curity, government bonds or some
thing as good. Well, he has neither
the one nor the other; everything
he has is already pledged, and so
he is told to try to get loan from
one or the other government agencies.
The country banker has no faith in
the farmers ability to pay. He, the
farmer may try to obtain loan from
friend whom he knows has some
surplus cash; but the result will be
the same. Friends and neighbOrs have
lost faith in each other.
But there is a way out of this dill
emma. If our President will use the
power granted him by Congress and
cut the gold value of the dollar to
half of what it is now, then the farm
er can be refinanced on a stable basis.
automatically double. The farm will
again be ample security for the re-
financed mortgage, and the income
from it will be enough to pay interest
and taxes and give the farmer a de-
cent living. If that is done the de
preston will be a thing of the past.
The farmer will regain faith in him
self and the banker and the business
man and the rest of humanity will re-
cover their nerve and their faith in
the farmer and in his ability to meet
his obligations.
Some one has figured out that to
put farm buildings, and farm machin-
cry back in as good shape as they
were before this depression started at
least $500 should be spent on an aver
age on each and every farm in this
country. l am sure if the farmer gets
to feel secure in the possession of his
home, most of that work would be
undertaken at once. The material
needed for this rehabilitation would
cause the closed and partly closed
factories to open up at full speed
and all the idle workers would be
called back to their jobs, which would
enable them to again buy food and
clothing and other necessities of life.
1t would start the wheels of industry
in all it's branches.
Would the cutting down of the gold
value of the dollar be unfair and un-
justifiable? 1t might be so to very
few, to most of us it would be boon.
Nearly all dollars are invested in
land. i'm buildings, in stock, in bonds
or in one thing or another. Most OF
those invested dollars have already
lost more than half their value in
gold, and if the depression lasts an
other year, they will depreciate still
further.
Interest will not be paid, nor will
taxes, nor rents, nor dividends. II
: simply can't be done. What then is
the value of the capital? Of course
in the case of mortgages, they may
be foreclosed; but what would that
help? At this time, foreclOsed prop
erty cannot be sold for more than a
fractional part of the investment and
if foreclosure is resCrted to on grand
scale the depreciation of invested cap
ital will be still greater. If taken
over by the mortgage and rented to
a tenant it will not pay taxes and