PROVISION OF BORROWING FACILITIES. 389 



mortgages are moderate. The registration of a mortgage charge for 

 500 in Prussia costs , and its cancellation half that amount, 

 including in each case the notarial and court fees. Compulsory 

 registration of title as it exists in Germany, Austria-Hungary, and 

 Russia, or at least compulsory registration of deeds (as in France, 

 Belgium, Holland, North America, and elsewhere), appears an 

 indispensable pre-requisite for the foundation of a system under which 

 landowners may obtain mortgage credit on suitable terms by the 

 creation of land bonds which would take their place as first-class 

 securities in the open market. In Ireland registration of deeds has 

 been in force since the eighteenth century, and by reason of the 

 transactions under the Land Acts, registration of title has taken place 

 with regard to a great portion of the country ; in Scotland there is 

 registration of deeds ; but in England the system of registration of 

 deeds appears to be in operation only for Middlesex and Yorkshire, and 

 of registration of title only for London. 



PERSONAL (SHORT-TEEM) CREDIT. 



Under this heading is considered credit based mainly on the 

 security of the general standing of the borrower, or of the borrower 

 and his surety, as well as on an implicit estimate of his or their 

 assets in the event of ultimate default, as distinct from credit based 

 on the definitely assigned security of real property. The former 

 credit tends to have the further distinction of being sought and 

 granted for relatively short terms. 



For the provision of this form of credit in adequate amount and 

 on suitable conditions as to interest and repayment, farmers, especially 

 medium and small farmers, require a different credit organisation from 

 that which has been evolved for merchants and manufacturers ; and 

 for certain rather obvious reasons. The outstanding feature of the 

 agricultural industry is the length of period of production. Within 

 limits the manufacturer can hasten at will the process of production, 

 and repeat his products, or the trader can restock his store several 

 times within the year ; for the farmer the time of beginning and the 

 time of finishing production are fixed by nature. Although the 

 duration of the period of production may be shortened to some 

 extent, artificial hastening processes are not applicable in most 



