THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



423 



National wealth has increased from $7,000,000,- 

 000 in 1870 to $140,000,000,000 and the money in 

 circulation from $279,000,000 to $3,419,000,000. For 

 the entire country bank clearings have grown from 

 $52,000,000,000 in 1887 to $174,000,000,000 in 1913. 

 Improved social conditions among the people are 

 shown in that 19,000,000 children are enrolled in 

 public schools and 200,000 students in colleges. The 

 total expenditure on education approximates $500,- 

 000,000 a year. 



More than 22,000 newspapers and periodicals 

 are printed. 



In 1850 there were 251,000 depositors in sav- 

 ings banks. There are now 11,000,000, with de- 

 posits aggregating more than 100 times as much 

 as at the middle of the last century. 



The value of farms and farm property in- 

 creased during the last half century from $4,000,- 

 000,000 to $41,000,000,000; value of manufactures 

 from $1,000,000,000 to over $20,000,000,000, and the 

 number of miles of railroad in operation from 9,021 

 in 1850 to 258,033 in 1912. 



In the last twenty-five years the number of 

 passengers carried has increased from 492,000,000 

 to 1,004,000,000, and the volume of freight handled 

 each year from 632,000,000 to 1,845,000,000 tons. 



Nearly 20,000,000,000 pieces of outgoing mail 

 matter are handled annually by the Postoffice De- 

 partment, which disbursed last year $262,000,000, 

 or $2.70 per capita. 



Don't those figures make you feel better? 



A lot of people marvel at the ability of 

 Diversified the German people, shut off from all 

 Crops the world, to supply their immense 



Stop armies and still have plenty of food 



Worries for the home-folks. 



The answer is the German farmer. 

 Look at the German farmer in your own neighbor- 

 hood. Two to one, he is doing less worrying be- 

 cause the war has disturbed financial conditions 

 and thrown markets askew, than anyone else in 

 your vicinity. There is a reason for this. 



The German farmer, no matter where he is lo- 

 cated or what the condition of his land may be, 

 raises more or less of the things he requires for his 

 table. Also, he generally has a surplus which fur- 

 nishes ready money throughout the year. If the 

 price of cotton declines to the point where he does 

 not see a big enough profit, the German farmer 

 invariably retires his holdings until such time as he 

 thinks it expedient to turn loose all or a portion of 

 his crop. The German farmer furnishes concrete 

 evidence of the good sense in diversifying and al- 

 ways being prepared to meet an emergency. 



Wisconsin's law for the estab- 

 A Law Under lishment of co-operative land 

 Which Farmers mortgage banks offers some fea- 

 Can Help tures to which Federal Water 



Themselves Users can well afford to give 



careful consideration. In this law 

 may be found the nucleus of a system whereby the 

 Water Users' Associations on the Federal projects 

 or the wealthier members of these associations may 

 develop banks, which will furnish substantial aid 

 at reasonable rates to the settlers. 



The new law permits any number of freeholders 

 (not less than fifteen) resident in Wisconsin, to 

 form an association with a minimum capital of 

 $10,000 divided into shares of $100 each, and gives 

 such an association power to make loans against 

 first mortgages on agricultural lands, forest lands 

 or lands occupied by dwelling houses situated with- 

 in the state. 



The associations are intended to promote rural 

 credit and to disburden farms by granting amorti- 

 zation loans at moderate rates of interest. The 

 most important provisions which safeguard the se- 

 curity of the mortgages and, consequently, of the 

 bonds issued against them, are the following: 



No loan shall be made unless the Committee 

 on Loans is satisfied that it will benefit the bor- 

 rower and will be used either for effecting improve- 

 ments in the land or other property mortgaged, or 

 for the purchase of live stock or implements to be 

 used for agricultural purposes directly in connec- 

 tion with such land. In the latter case the loan 

 shall be made only to a bona fide resident upon the 

 land offered as security. All mortgages must con- 

 tain provisions for the proper conservation of the 

 soil and for the full insurance of all buildings. 

 Further, all mortgages must make provision for the 

 annual or semi-annual reduction of the amount of 

 indebtedness; no loan shall be made against the 

 mortgage of any real estate in which an officer or 

 trustee of the association is interested, directly or 

 indirectly, except upon the approval of two-thirds 

 of all the trustees; and, finally, the maximum 

 amount for which a loan may be made shall not 

 exceed 65 per cent of the value of the mortgaged 

 property, in the case of improved farm land, nor 40 

 per cent in the case of unimproved land. 



A borrower may repay his loan by instalments 

 of such amounts and at such intervals as may be 

 agreed upon and, upon sixty days notice, may re- 

 pay the whole amount outstanding. 



Each association is required to build up a re- 

 serve fund equal to 20 per cent of its subscribed 

 capital by setting aside, out of the earnings of each 

 year, an amount equal to 2 per cent of such capital. 



