Evening star., 1937-02-07
MAKING FARM TENANTS
OWNERS HERCULEAN JOB
Government Confronted by Whims of
Human Nature, But Opportunity of
Assisting Willing Ones Is Apparent.


a farm. and multiply it by 100000.
The result Is $4,000, 900, ,000-$12,-
600. 100000 which the Government
would need to pay out If it were to
buy up all these tenant-operated
farms. Twelve billion dollars is a lot
Of money. Even to the New Dealers
the amount Is staggering. Mr.. WAL
lace says-and everybody will have
to agree with him-that it is imprac-
ticable for the Government to buy all
these 100000 farms and turn them
over to tenants. The project must
be approached in some slow, gradual
and more modest way.
Another obstacle encountered was
that venerable confounder Of all re-
formers, namely, human nature. It
was discovered that not all tenants
want to be farmers-many prefer to
remain tenants. And it was discov-
cred that not all tenants are fitted to
be farm owners. Not all tenants have
the qualities to acquire and manage
farms.
Whether tenant buys his farm
from the Government or from a pri-
vate owner. he must in either case
make partial payment. If he has
not been able, as tenant, to accu-
mulate enough money to make the
first partial payment on a farm, 1t
a sign that he is hardly fitted to
farm owner. Certainly it is impo.-
sible for him to become farm owner
for the first down payment" Is indis-
pensable
Something I wrote some weeks az
on this subject brought me many lie =
tiers. Many Of the letters came fror.
farm owners eager to sell their farms.
From these letters I infer that there
is no lack Of farms for sale. What is
lacking is tenants wanting to buy and
able to buy. A man in Oklahoma writes
me that he owns a farm of 80 acres.
containing 4-room house and barn
and chicken house. The value Of the
buildings is about $500. This owner
Is willing to sell the 80 acres and the
buildings for $1,000. But, he says.
there are no purchasers: there are
tenant-farmers who would like to buy
the place. but they do not have any
thing to pay down. would be willing
to take a payment of $500 in cash and
give long time on the balance"
$500 Start Necessary.
Pretty clearly. if tenant has net
been able to save up $500 to make a
first payment on a farm Of his own
he is not likely to become farm owner
even with the help and guidance Of
the Government. The Government. as
understand. will in all cases require
down payment from the person to
whom the Government sells farm.
The New Dealers discovered yet an
other difficulty in human nature. The
Government might take tenant. set
him on farm and make him owner
OF the farm. But suppose the tenant.
now a farm owner, should at once
sell the farm or rent it to a tenant.
Obviously the net of this operation
would not be any decrease in the mum.
Der of tenants in the country.
So the New Dealers came to the
point where, in their plans, they would
prevent the new owner from selling
his newly acquired farm. The Gov.
eminent would buy the land and sex
1t to the tenant on small annual pay
ments strung out over 20 years. But
| the Government would not let the pur.
chaser sell his title to the farm untyl
after he had completed all his pay
ments And the Government would
not permit the purchaser to make his
! final payment until after 40 years,
| even though the purchaser were able
and eager to pay in full. In short,
the Government would take a tenant
and put him on farm and make him
an owner But he must remain. an
owner, willy-nilly, for 40 years.
When Congress starts to debate the
subject and write a law these and
other difficulties will be threshed out.
In the end it is possible it may come
down to some such simple program as
| this:
II there Is a tenant who wishes to
become a farm owner, let him look
about and find farm which he wants
and which is for sale. Let him make
his own contract with the owner. Let
him make his first payment. At this
point the tenant can turn to the Gov
ernment. The Government would adj
vance the amount necessary to com.
plete the purchase. And the Govern.
ment would let the tenant (now be-.
come owner) pay his debt to the Gov
'ernment in small payments over a
period Of 40 years at a very low rate
of interest.
That is the simplest way. Whether
it, or some other way, will be the one
adopted by Congress will appear in q
few weeks
tcopyrisht. 1879