Special Lectures 363 



in all cases granted less tlian 50 per cent, as the following table 

 will show: 



From the above table you will see that we were very careful 

 and conservative in making our loans. It may interest you to 

 know that on the few loans mentioned above we have saved 

 two farmers from losing their farms entirely, one of which has 

 paid in the last ten years nearly $2,000 in bonuses. One of the 

 men, to whom we gave a loan of $3,200, was offered a loan for five 

 years, but he would have to pay bonuses of $800. On a loan of 

 $1,700 we saved a man a bonus of $150, and on a small loan of 

 $800 we saved a bonus of $80. We now have on hand applications 

 from farmers for loans amounting to nearly $80,000 ; and, had we 

 sufficient funds, we should have no difficulty in placing ten times 

 that amount on first mortgages in the territory in which we are 

 operating. 



It is a very easy matter for any group of farmers to organize 

 a savings and loan association and become a member of the Land 

 Bank and thus be able to serve their community. The savings 

 and loan associations of this state are under the supervision of 

 the Banking Department. They have been in existence for a large 

 number of years and are conducted in a conservative and economic 

 way. lione of them pay large salaries to officers ; in fact, their 

 expenses are circumscribed by the statutes. 



I cannot understand whv a laree number of farmers in this 

 state have not taken advantage of them. It is true that the 

 savings and loan associations, as originally planned, are better 

 adapted for city employees, who receive a regular monthly or 

 weekly wage, and who are thus afforded an oj)portunity for saving 

 money and acquiring homes on easy payments ; but there is abso- 

 lutely no reason why farmers of every state — particularly farmers 

 residing within comparatively short distances from ISTew York 

 City — cannot organize savings and loan associations in their midst. 



