466 AGRICULTURAL CREDIT. DAVIDSON. 



ducer. Like the manufacturer, the farmer benefits when he has 

 to market his produce, but, unlike the manufacturer, he receives 

 little or no assistance from the banks to assist him in production ; 

 and it is precisely here that the pinch comes. Our banking 

 system provides no credit facilities for the farmer as producer- 

 Where, in other countries, farming is carried on on a large scale, 

 and where the farmer is as well-known in the business world as 

 the manufacturer using the same capital, the question of agri- 

 cultural credit does not specifically arise ; and if all farmers were 

 farmers on a large scale, like the typical tenant-farmer of Great 

 Britain, who, because he operates with a comparatively large 

 capital and is .well-known, can command credit, like any other 

 producer, on tolerably easy terms, we could trust the farmer to 

 get what credit his standing warranted. But large tenant-farm- 

 ing is not common with us, and the farmer who is in a moderate 

 or small way of business is not known in the business world, and 

 does not obtain the credit he requires from the banks on any- 

 thing like as easy terms as the small manufacturer or tradesman, 

 or retail shopkeeper. Wherever agriculture is followed as a 

 business, pure and simple, little difficulty has been found in 

 granting the farmer the necessary credit for his business; and as 

 agriculture is coming to be pursued more and more as a busi- 

 ness, with the market in constant view, it is possible that the 

 farmer in the future may get more special benefit from our 

 banking system. 



Even as it is, the Canadian banks do more for the farmer 

 than any other banking system does. Some eulogists of our 

 banking system have applied the term agricultural to it, and 

 this, at least, is true, that if ever a commercial banking system 

 was entitled to the term agricultural our national system is. It 

 is significant that where it is proposed to amend the banking 

 system of the United Slates so as to afford better credit facilities 

 for the farmer, the proposal takes the form of a system of branch 

 banks such as we hive in Canada. The only system which can 

 compare with our own in this respect is the Scottish, where the 

 famous " cash credits " had an enormous influence in developing 



