Newspapers / The Roanoke Beacon and … / April 17, 1914, edition 1 / Page 8
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The Source of the nets , . Co-O erati i Prod S How It Is Done in Europe and May BeJone in America to the Profit of Both Farmer and Consumer By MATTHEW ' t Copyright, 1914, Western Newspaper Union.; . - WILL THE BANKERS REFORM? Copenhagen, Denmark. The Ameri can banker must reform. If ho does ilot he will be up -against it as are others who refuse to mend their ways. The American farmer cannot ' get money of American bankers upon terms .suited to his needs. He is go ing to have the money from some source. If the banker will . not give it to him he will organize a new kind of a bank, for you may rest assured that the American farmer is going to have an opportunity to borrow money upon some suitable basis. The Irish farmer can get money on favor able terms; the Belgian farmer co operating with his neighbors does his own banking; in Germany the, co operative banks, do a business that is astonishing in its volume; in Denmark It is easy to get money for buying a farm or for temporary investment in eeds, fertilizers or stock. The' same is true of the farmer in Italy and France; even in benighted Russia farm credits are cared for by co operative organizations. Do the bankers of America think that the American farmer is going to consent to continue to be the only civilized agriculturist who has no ade quate borrowing facilities. That is not the American way. What, then, can possibly prevent the formation of co-operative credit associations all over America? Nothing, except the presence of some institution that will do for the American farmer what co operative credit is doing for the Eu ropean farmer. If the American bank er wishes to do the banking business of America so far as the farm is con cerned, he and he alone can give the farmer this sort of an institution and thus make co-operative credit socie ties unnecessary. ' It is up to the "banker. Capital for F Formerly when an American farm - could be acquired by living upon it, when hcrses. and cows and implements were cheap, and when fertilizers, "blooded stock, and special high-grade seeds were unknown, a young man with comparatively little capital could fcegin farming. Now considerable capi tal is as necessary to success in agri culture as it is in the manufacturing industries. Every wise farmer knows that money judiciously expended in better stock, better buildings, labor saving machinery, proper fertilizers, and good seed will net large returns. Vial it takes money to do these things. Consequently there is a demand for . Joans. Jn -America the fanner can seldom got a loan on terms that meet his needs. In Ireland, Belgium, Germany, Holland, Denmark, France, Italy and elsewhere upon the continent the brinks have forced the farmers to or ganize co-operative credit societies. In many instances the government also 1ms aided tlis co-operative banks in obtaining money for loans. These so- cieties are taking a. safe, profitable business away from the bank. Now when it is too late the banks realize their mistake. The question just now is this: Will the American bankers forestall co opcrative credit companies by meet ing the needs of rural borrowers or will they force the farmer to go into the banking business as did, the bank ers of Europe? It is up to them. Will they beat co-operative credit banks by beating them to it? Buying Farm Ecsy in Denmark. , To buy a farm there are a number of different methods open to the Dan ish farmer. It must bo remembered that in Denmark a farm is consid ered m having live stock and imple- rac -Titr used in working the land in-.re;:-3.rab!y attached to it, hence the . -purchase price to be paid includes all ' equipment necessary to the operation of tho farm end all mortgages are ee d by a pledge of this personal properly a well as of the real estate. j i tne VVUIU-B3 Duyer has forty per cent ,f the purchase price he may ;iri to a credit society for a long i r.o loan amounting to tisty per cent, 'f .!. ' r !j . of thq farm mid ail equip Bank Account. a arketin S. DUDGEON. ment and stock upon it The loan may run from forty-five years to seventy nine years. .. The. borrower has his prospective purchase purveyed and as sessed. He makes out a mortgage and delivers it to the co-operative society. This mortgage and hundreds of oth ers like it are delivered to a trustee with a trust deed which pledges them as security for a series of bonds. The co-operative society guarantees the bonds also. It is from the sale of these bonds that the co-operative society obtains its funds. These co-operative credit associations have in the beginning no capital whatsoever. Each is simply an agency whose functions are to see (1) that the real estate security of fered is assessed at its true' value; (2) that the title is clear; (3) that the mortgages are properly executed; (4) that they are grouped, pledged and deposited with the trustee; (5) that the trustee issues bonds; (6) that the land, buildings and equip ment are properly cared for and their value is not permitted to deteriorate; (7) that the payments of principal and interest are promptly met. Easy Repayment of Loans. The farmer pays from four to six per cent, of the principal amount each year. This is not wholly Interest, how ever, for it includes a small install ment of principal, for the mortgages are all amortization mortgages. Pay ment of this fixed sum annually or semi-annually for the fixed period therefor automatically discharges the debt. A small amount out of each payment is also set aside for reserve for the co-operative society and for an expense account. It has been the universal experience, however, that the expense runs very low. Still Easier for the Farm Laborer. There are other forms of loans even more advantageous to the borrower, particularly if he is one of the poorer farm laborers. If such a laborer seeks to become a land owner on a small scale he may under certain conditions secure a loan for nine-tenths of the value of the proposed purchase, being required to 'advance only one-tenth of the purchase price in cash. The gov ernment furnished the funds for these loans. The conditions are (1) the bor rower must have been engaged in ag ricultural labor for five years (women may take advantage of this law as well as men); (2) the land must not exceed ten acres in extent nor $2,144 in value; (3) the borrower and pro spective purchaser must agree to crop the farm in a certain manner, dividing it up into five or seven fields and fol lowing a certain rotation of crops, thus insuring continued productiveness and preventing deterioration of soil fer: tility. Under these mortgages the borrower pays three per cent, interest with no installments upon the princi pal for the first five years. Then he pays, in addition to the interest one per cent, upon two-fifths of the loan as an installment upon principal, doing this until the two-fifths of the loan is entirely discharged. Thereafter he pays an annual installment of one per cent, upon the three-fifths remaining of the principal, this being in addi tion to his three per cent, interest as before. The bonds' may be issued upon unstamped paper and are free from tax. Does the Danish farmer take advan tage of these opportunities? Are the tenants becoming land owners? The facts are these: Denmark has 2,000,000 population, somewhat less than that of Chicago. It has about 500,000 fami lies, including those in cities and vil lages as well as those in the rural re gions. These co-operative credit soci eties have a membership of over 200,000; that is to" say, two out of every five families in the entire coun try ar represented in them. Largely as a result of this credit ejetem ninety per cent, of the 'fanners of Danmavk own their own land. , - How Chcractcr 13 Capli2iij.ee!. Obtaining a loan on personal secur ity has been euphoniously termed "capita lisLis character." It Is not an inept phrase since any farmer who has a good character, who is a sober hon est, industrious, intelligent, productive worker, has a capital that is consid ered a proper basis for credit and he can in fact capitalize his character. His character is in very truth under these conditions his capital Here is the way it is done here in Denmark: By' the law enacted in 1898 the gov ernment is authorized to turn over to the credit association ' $1,250,000, for which the associations account to the government at the rate of three per cent, per annum. This sum is placed at the disposal of the farmers' credit association In order that these asso ciations may be ready to give small loans to their members. When any farmer finds it urgently necessary to secure a loan in order to meet ex penses such as the payment of wages, the price of better seeds, or of artifi cial manures', or of feed for cattle, he makes application to one of these as sociatione. In determining the amount of the loan to be granted to each man it is the theory that the earning ca pacity of the borrower should be taken into account. This is thought to be best indicated by the number of dairy cows which he owns. A member may thus obtain a loan to about $13 per head of cattle fed and milked on the place. The loans must be repaid In from one to nine months. Interest must not, according to the original law exceed 4 per cent, per annum to the borrower. Danish Bankers Have Reformed. The fact that there are in Denmark many banks which are organized for the sole purpose of meeting the needs of the farmers has awakened the Dan ish banker to the fact that the rural credit is a big business which he can not afford to ignore. Compared with the American banker the Danish banker most decidedly has reformed. He does meet the needs of the farmer in a manner which would surprise Americans. This is particularly true of the method in which he assists in financing co-operative ,- associations. When the big Trifolium dairy associa tion was formed, for example, it was done in this way: One hundred farm ers, most of them owners of large farms, formed an organization for the manufacture of dairy products and for the further purpose of supplying milk to the city of Copenhagen. These one hundred farmers were the owners of something like 12,000 cows. While they individually had property, real and personal, they had. no money which they wished to invest in a co operative organization. They there fore sent their leaders to the bank to borrow the money. They simply asked the bank for a loan of $125,000 on the note signed by these leadero. The bank did not require the other members of the association to sign the note, although by the terms of the agreement into which all had entered in the formation of the co-operative association all were liable, jointly and severally, for the debt contracted at the bank. As a matter of course the bank made the loan to these farmers at a low rate of interest. A most -interesting feature of this transaction is the method of repay ment. It -was agreed that the loan should extend over a period of twenty years with the privilege on the part of the association to repay out of its profit each year a sufficient 6um so that at the end of the twenty years the debt should be discharged. At this time the association has been run ning for- twelve years and has been more than able to keep up its amorti zation payments. At the end of eight years more the debt with the bank will be discharged. At Fredericks sund, out some little distance from Copenhagen, there is a co-operative egg association which Is composed of 10,000 farmers. These 10,000 farmers had no capital which they wished to invest in an egg-packing and shipping organization. Their leaders went to the bankers as did the leaders of the Trifolium dairy association and made a similar loan except that in the case of the 10,000 farmers who wished to start an egg-packing establishment the period of repayment was over a period. of ten year3 rather than twenty. This seems to be quite an ordinary prac tice. Can Banks Supply Rural Credit? I have said it is up to the banker to supply the American farmer with loans similar to those supplied to the European farmer. But there are those who say that the joint stock bank can never meet the farmers' needs as do co-operative credit societies and that co-operative credit will come in spite of all the bankers can do. Dr. Charles McCarthy is of this number. He bases his conclusion on these grounds: First, no joint stock bank can afford to tie its money up for long-period loans as do the credit banks. These deposits are all short time deposits. They have no way of hypothecating one series of loans in order to raise money for another se ries. Their system of finance is not sufficiently elastic to lend itself to the transactions demanded in an adequate line of rural credit. Second: No money-making concern can possibly serve the farmers as do co-operative credit societies whose sole aim is to aid the borrower and to pro tect his. interests. But in agriculture a system of rural credit cannot be a substitute for brain3 and business sense and a mar keting system. Unless the farmer pro duces a good product and sells it to advantage his farming will be a fail ure. Easy loans will only make it a... bigger failure. Co-operative credit is important, but with it must come a better system of marketing either co-operative or otherwise, which will give the farmer more than half what is paid for the farm product. And, so far as we can learn co-operative mar keting is the system which will do this. THE STATE HIGH tH' ".l..!IDH".l "WW.Wt IIIHIIpil l.lllll HIH.IIilUHIIIH Ul" . ' I U ' HIIIIIHHI -WIW WW Clifton Eaton and Charles Riddick of Winston-Salem, 15-year-old win- Clifton Eaton and Charles Riddick ners of State High School Debate held Kernodle and Miss Flonnie Cooper of and Riddick. CAN NOT ENFORCE SEGREGATION LAI! A LIST OF OTHER RECENT DECIS IONS OF THE STATE SUPREME COURT. LATE STATE CAPITOL NEWS Review of the Latest News Gathered Around the State Capitol That Will Be of Interest to Our Rader Over North Carolina. ZSxlsiglfc. In a list of 12 opinions , delivered recently by the Supreme Court one of special note was that of the state against Darnell from Winston-Salem involving the right of the aldermen of that city to prescribe certain blocks for colored or white occupancy for residence. The Court, Chief Justice Clark . writing the opinion, declared that there is nothing in the charter of Winston-Salem to empower the alder men to enact and enforce an ordin ance such as that involved, but does not pass upon the question of wheth er or not the Legislature would have power under the Constitution to enact statutes that would convey power to prescribe such "race segregation." The list f opinions follows: Parrott vs. Norfold Southern Rail way Company, from Lenoir, new trial as to whether the continuance of a flag station would interfere with the defendants duties to the public in the carriage of freight and passengers; Slocomb vs. R. C. & S. Railway, Cum berland, no error; Hodges vs. Wilson, Cumberland, no error; Bank vs. Mc Arthur and . Bank vs. Newton, from Wake and from Cumberland, affirmed in both cases; Dallege vs. Coast Line, Pender, no error? Blumenthal and Bickart vs. Kennedy, New Hanover, no errors Thompson vs. Seaboard Air Line, Bladen, error; State vs. Darnell, Forsyth, action dismissed; State vs. Shouse, Forsyth, no error; State vs. Atwood, Forsyth, no error; Tate V3. Mirror Company, Forsyth, no error; Rangley vs. Harris, Surry, no error. State Banks Make Report. Members of the North Carolina Cor poration Commission gratified at the showing made by the banks in their reports of conditions as of March 4 just made public. The summary shows 415, including 17 branch banks, compared with 400 banks, including 16 branch banks for the summary on April 4, 1913. Total resources show an increase of $6,701,111, and deposits an increase of fully $5,400,000, and an increase of nearly $70,000 in cash on hand. At the same time there i3 a decrease of $71,835 in overdrafts and of nearly $500,000 in notes and bills rediscounted and bills payable. Charters Orthopeadic Hospital.' The Orthopeadic Hospital (Inc.) of PastQnia, received a state charter a ew days ago for the purpose of founding at Gastonia a home for dis eased and crippled indigent children, especially dependent orphans. The in stitution is to also have power to maintain a department for training nurses. The directors for the institu tion include such well known men as Senators Simmons and Overman; State Superintendent of Public In struction J. Y. Joyner, C. R. Hoey, -5. N. Duke, J. Elwood Cox and others. Cress-Examines Comptroller Plant. Attorney Bickett resumed the cross examination of Comptroller Plant d the Southern Railway a few days ago with a view to showing that if the Southern Railway's own figures be ap plied to the interstate movement of freight of North Carolina local trains the showing of overcharge against in trastate freight would be over $12,000 and that the whole statement filed by the Southern using April, 1913, for de monstration, is based on a false per centage as between state and intra state business on local trains. SCHOOL DEBATERS of Winston-Salem, 15-year-old win at Chapel Hill recently. Michael H. Graham, team which lost to Eaton Hospital Board's Annual Meeting. The regular annual meeting of the board of directors of State Hospital fpr the Insane has just been held in Morganton. For the first time in sev eral years every member of the board was present, namely: I. I. Da vis, Morganton; J. "P. Sawyer, Ashe ville; Charles P. Matheson, Taylors ville; A. A. Shuford, Hickory; F. P. Alspaugh, Forsyth county; A. E. Tate, High Point; Dr. J. E. S. Davidson, Charlotte; Dr. L. M. Glenn, Gaetonia; R. B. Clark, Statesville. It being the regular time for the election of offi cer, Mr. Davis of Morganton, was re elected president of the board and Mr. Clark secretary. Messrs. Davis, Clark and Tate were continued as the executive committee. F. M. Scrooga was .re-elected stew ard of the hospital and his salary was increased from $1,R00 to $l;800, and Miss Cilia Summers was elected ma tron to succeed Mrs. C. 'A. Marsh, Mrs. Marsh, who has been matron since the institution opened, has been in feeble health for some years and recently her mind has failed. She is now a patient in the hospital she has so faithfully served. Miss Summers has for years been housekeeper of the Institution, and she will arw be both matron and housekeeper. The report of Superintendent Mc Camphell for th- four, months ending with March 31 showed that there are 1,302 patients on the rolls. During the four months 56 were admitted, two discharged and 17 died; and for the same period 54 applicants had to be denied admission to the hospital for lack of Toom. Several New Charters Granted. The Southern Dyestuffs & Chemi cal Co., of Charlotte, capital $1,000, by Pouis E. Green and others. The Sladeville Transportation Co., of Sladeville, capital $2,500 by J. A. Lupton and others for maintaining boat lines for passengers and freight. The Swan Quarter Supply Co., of Swan Quarter, capital $100,000 auth orized and $10,000 subscribed"' by Tooly Cutrill and others for general mercantile supply business. The Farmers and Merchants' Bank of Hillsobo, capital $100,000 author ized and $10,000 subscribed by J. F. Johnston and A. J. Forest and other for general savings banking business. Revenue Records Show Increase. The records at Statesville in Col lector Watts' office show revenue col lections for last month as follows: Lists, $3,075.62, special tax, $125.25, tobacco and snuff, $560,469.87, cigars and cigarettes, $25,495.29, a total of $589,169.03, which Is considerably above the monthly average. The monthly collections, however, nearly always reach the half million mark. Governor Names Delegates. .. . Governor Craig commissions . 37 leading citizens from various parts of the state to attend the National Drain age Congress in Savannah, Ga., April 23-25. The list includes: A. H. Eller of Winston Salom; Dr. J. R. Alexan der, of Charlotte; P. B. Beard, of Sal isbury; J. S.-Myers, of Charlotte; R. P. Richardson, of Reldsville; George Stevens, of Charlotte; Dave White, of Mebane. . Governor Pardons Don Emerson. Governor Craig granted a pardon recently for Don Emerson of Guilford county, - who has served four months of a six-months' sentence for carry ing a concealed weapon. He is a youth and is just recovering from an operation for mastoiditis of both ears and the county physician says to re commit him to jail might jeopardize his life and that he certainly cannot be sent back to the convict camp. The judge of the municipal court who sen tenced him, recommends the pardon. Instruct North Carolina Infantry. Official notification came recently from the war department to Adju tant General Young, of the North Car olina Guard, ' that Captain Bernard Sharp, retired officer of ; the United States army, is assigned to service in North Carolina to assist Capt. R. C. Langdon in . the instruction of the North Carolina infantry. He will make his headquarters in Tryon, M C, with the consent of the govern ment, this being his home town." Capt Langdon will continue to make all the official inspections of companit'S. SOU A1I0US FOR TRUST LAWS 'RESIDENT DISPLEASED WITH IDEA OF ACTION ON LEGISLA TIVE PROGRAM. FIRM IN HI6. OPPOSITION Democrats in House and Senate Are Against Perfecting a Full Schedule, But Prefer to Make Recommenda tions to .Next Congress. Washington. Unqualified disarmi o val was expressed by President Wil-1 son of the proposal in Congress to curtail the anti-trust legislative pro gram for this session. Later, mem bers of the House Judiciary Sub committee, who had conferred .with the President on the subject, declared that an effort would be made to 're port quickly a single measure, em bodying the substance of all the sep arate tentive trust bills, and that leg islation also would be pressed to meet the demands of labor for restric tion of the injunction power of the courts. That opposition to carrying out the full trust legislative program is grow ing among Senate and House Demo crats continued in evidence during he day, notwithstanding determinatf to revive the effort to nerfect m ures affecting interlocking direct ates, holding companies, price dis criminations and other evils. Senator Newlands, chairman of thei Senate Interstate Commerce Com mittee, said his committee' expected to report a general trust bill soom though the members had not agreed upon details. Before the committee determines finally upon its course, however, it will pass upon the amend ment already prepared to preclude aera tion at this session upon anything but a bill to create an interstate trada commission with broad, powers anjd express direction to investigate tme whole problem of big business, and recommend to the next Congress what legislation supplemental to the Sher man law should be enacted. . - ; , ECONOMIC SIDE OF REPEAL Senate Committee, Considering Matr ter Excludes, Questions of Obli- i . gations. j Washington. The economic side of the Panama Canal tolls controversy occupied the Senate Inter-oceariic Canals Committee to the , virtual ex clusion of the treaty obligations i in volved and neither aspect was in evi dence elsewhere about Congress. At til f W'Yi i f A TTnn an Tinwavar PfooMDnt Wilson reaffirmed his belief thaV re- peal of the exemption from tolls grant ed to' American coasfwisA shins wnrtd r y. , not constitute an .interpretation 4 -o the Hav-Pauncefotfi treatv. bnt mp Iy would indicate the unwillingness ol this country to bring up the questio oi discrimination. The President agreed with the views recently expressed by Secretary Bryan that no amendment was neces' sary to the pending repeal bill, re- afiirmmg the sovereignty of the TJnit ed States over the canal. New Corn GradingRule3. . Chicago. The new corn gradind rules of the Chicago Board of Tradt were adopted by a vote of the mem bers. The new rules gives a prerniun on unmixed corn and conform to tlu new Federal Government corn rule which go into effect July 1, 1914. Opposes Medical Experiments. Trenton, N. J. Governor Fieldea which would have permitted foreig medical societies in this state. Th bill was backed by the Rockfeller Re search Institute. . - ' ' North Carolina-Tenn. Boundary Washington. The Supreme CcVir essigned the boundary line 'contl versy between North Carolina a Tennessee for argument on Octo? 1 ft -nonr- I .. 4 i ne wnite i-iouse wedding. Washington. Although there ha been no formal announcement fron the White House as yet of the dat for the wedding of Secretary McAdo and Miss- Eleanor Wilson, younges daughter of President .RjVlrs. Wi son, friends who are , l)tIon know say. May 8 has I'Jtiltetjvel selected. The affair is exited to li private. Mr. McAdoo'3 colleagues it the cabinet being practically the onl; guests outside of the wto families. Miss Wilson trousseau, it is sai practically is completed. , Federal Reserve System! Washington That the work ht th organization committee in settinW u the new Federal reserve banking Ws tern will not be delayed by the ban was indicated . by an announcemew I that already many banks have fo warded checks or cash in payment cl the first part of their subscription tf the stock of reserve banks. " , j The subscriptions are : ' premature! however, and the money offered wi " be returned, pending formal nouficff tion that the committee is ready t f organize. J
The Roanoke Beacon and Washington County News (Plymouth, N.C.)
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April 17, 1914, edition 1
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