Show BANKS FOR FARMERS I f The proposal to establish farmers farm farm- I ers banks in the United States I 4 has not been r received by the public with the enthusiasm that we anticipated This may have been due to failure on the part t I I of the public to note the conditions condi- condi I condi-I which the banks are intended intend intend- f ed to reme remedy y It will be recalled recall recall- r ed that we borrowed the build build- ing and loan association idea i from Europe but we appropriated only a part of the plan The j weak point in our plan is that each organization is segregated in its own community There is t t- ti i no means of interchange whereby whereby where- where by f funds may pay flow from the come community com- com e j which does not need r Ct a- a them into communities where im improvement r operations are more more active and borrowers are more moret t I plentiful than lenders it In Europe these conditions have been remedied The land banks of those countries make a aj j 4 specialty of supplying the money needs of the farmer or small builder and obtaining the funds from investors who may be far distant Some of the orga organizations organizations iza- iza are strictly private and some have been organized by government agencies but all are If under government supervision i. i Loans of the Credit Fonder of t France are about 87 per cent of p t the total business of the building and loan associations of s sj I the United States and this enormous enormous enormous enor enor- business is being done with practically no losses or failures The usual practice of the institutions institutions institutions is to make loans until enough securities are aie are accumulated ed to afford a basis for a bond bondt t issue In 1912 the Credit Fon- Fon cier tier made a bond issue of r the bonds running seventy seventy sev sev- f enty years and bearing three t per cent interest The issue was as overs oversubscribed twenty-three twenty rate of interest seems low to people of the United States Stat Stat- jJ es but money is usually loaned f to borrowers at about four per cent As long a time as 75 Iii years i t is also granted to the borrower Ir All these banks build up a reserve re- re tit 4 serve usually amounting to five per cent of their assets and also have a certain margin of general assets over and above the amount of debenture bonds which they are allowed to issue t i When we consider the good t work which these ins institutions f Y f are doing by extending a helping help help- r ing lug hand to those who desire to t improve their property in in coun coun- count countries t f zw tries where business conditions y are settled we have reason to tot toI I t t expect even greater results from the proposed system of farmers farmers' i banks in th this s new undeveloped 1 r country where Progress is the t watchword f |