Farm Loan Program Stabilizes 



Land Values 



Federal Loans Based On Farm Earning Power Says Gov. Myers 



THE federal farm credit program 

 was envisioned as a stabilizer of 

 credit and land values based on 

 what the farm is able to earn, in an 

 address by Governor W. I. Myers of the 

 Farm Credit Administration at a ban- 

 quet to 700 farm leaders of Illinois, Mis- 

 souri and Arkansas at the Jefferson 

 Hotel, St. Louis, Monday night, Oct. 8. 

 President Earl C. Smith and Treasurer 

 Robert A. Cowles represented the I. A. 

 A. at the meeting. A number of Farm 

 Bureau officials and leaders from ad- 

 jacent niinois counties also attended. 



We are making loans on the basis of 

 the earning value of the farm, said Gov- 

 ernor Myers. This system will retard 

 the wild speculation in land prevalent 

 during the war and early post-war years. 



The meeting was largely educational. 

 The entire program was devoted to an 

 explanation of the functions and pur- 

 poses of the Farm Credit Administration 

 and its various units, heretofore outlined 

 in the RECORD. 



Besides Governor Myers, speakers in- 

 cluded Commissioners A. S. Goss (Land 

 Bank), G. N. Brennan (Intermediate 

 Credit), S. N. Garwood (Production 

 Credit), and F. W. Peck (Co-operative 

 Bank). 



It was emphasized that close supervi- 

 sion is an important part of the produc- 

 tion credit program. Production loans 

 are held down to that amount necessary 

 to put the crop in, harvest and market 

 it, and no more. The permanent credit 

 system to be developed is one providing 

 long and short term credit, first for 

 farmers, and secondly for farm co-opera- 

 tives. 



The federal system seeks to supple- 

 ment commercial credit and not replace 

 it, Gov. Myers said. Private money, not 

 government money, is being loaned. 

 Therefore every precaution must be 

 taken to insure the safety of the loan. , 



It was disclosed that some 850,000 ap- 

 plications for farm loans had been re- 

 ceived since May 1, 1933 for approxi- 

 mately $3,750,000,000. Loan applications 

 represented about one-seventh of the 

 farmers of the country. Applications 

 reached a peak of around 20,000 a week 

 at the 12 federal land banks. Now they 

 are down to about 6,000. The force of 

 appraisers was increased from 200 in 

 May 1933 to approximately 5,000 for 

 the entire country. Seventy-five per cent 

 of loans made were refunding loans. One- 

 sixth of loans completed were scale 



downs for a total of about $60,000,000. 

 The reduction in interest rates, it was 

 reported, averaged about 25 per cent in 

 Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas. 



Paying Farm Creditors 



In New Federal Bonds 



Thousands of rural investors who 

 previously have not considered the ad- 

 vantages of government-guaranteed se- 

 curities offering the essential require- 

 ments of yield, safety and liquidity have 

 become holders or purchasers of bonds 

 of the Federal Farm Mortgage Corpora- 

 tion, according to Gov. W. I. Myers of 

 the Farm Credit Administration. "Fur- 

 ther retention of these bonds by rural 

 people may normally be expected." 



Issuing of the bonds to farmers and 

 their creditors in payment of loans was 

 begun in March this year and reached 

 the high point in June when a total of 

 $153,000,000 in loans were closed and 

 paid primarily in bonds. The number 

 of applications from farmers for federal 

 loans has been receding since the first 

 of the year. 



Baseball Dope 



(Continued from page 16, Col. 3) 

 runs and eight hits, while they drove 

 out nine safeties against George Brad- 

 ford of McDonough who lost his second 

 game of the season. 



Bradford struck out 11 men. McDon- 

 ough looked like the best team in the 

 first few innings, but Will county then 

 tightened up and started to hit. After 

 the fifth when Will tied the score at 2 

 to 2 it was nip and tuck to the end. 



The turning point of the game came 

 when Bus Welch, McDonough county left 

 fielder, slid for home and was called out 

 by Umpire McBroom. It was a close 

 decision but when Hohenstein, Will 

 county catcher, came up with the ball the 

 umpire ruled the base runner out. This 

 play saved the game for Will. Palmer 

 of Will county was the star batsman, 

 driving out three hits. Bergera and 

 Hohenstein of Will, and Welch of Mc- 

 Donough each drove out two baggers. 



Corn-Hog Referendum f 



As we go to press it appears that Illi- 

 nois corn and hog producers voted more 

 than three to one in favor of continuing 

 the corn-hog adjustment program next 

 year, and a one-contract-per-farm plan 



in 1936, ■--:;,;^>'^^.:;'':--vv-/^%-'-v-:- :''yr^ •.:':•/.- 



18 



V • 



Facing the Facts 



"Agriculture would be delighted 

 if foreign purchasing power were 

 restored. But it must be based on 

 something more than loans, on 

 which the foreign market was 

 based just before the depression," 

 Secretary Henry A. Wallace told 

 the Mortgage Bankers of America 

 in Chicago, October 4. 



He said he could see nothing in 

 sight within three to four years on 

 which to base a retreat from the 

 AAA program of crop control as a 

 means of raising farm prices. 

 "Without crop control," he said, 

 "agriculture would be put back to 

 the condition of '32-'33 without 10 

 cent com." 



Without a control program next 

 year, he predicted a 20 per cent 

 increase in corn acreage over that 

 of '32 and '33, with a resulting ex- 

 cess of 600,000,000 bushels of corn, 

 assuming favorable weather, above 

 the nation's needs. 



In Illinois as well as in other states it 

 appeared that the vote varied in accord- 

 ance with the explanation -made and the 

 understanding by producers of the eco- 

 nomics involved in achieving and main- 

 taining parity prices. Reports from coun- 

 ty corn-hog association officials were 

 that a substantial part of the vote 

 against the plan was due to the fact that 

 in the years 1932 and 1933 some farmers 

 were caught with abnormally low acre- 

 ages of corn and comparatively small 

 numbers of pigs for the size of their 

 farms. This resulted in such farmers re- 

 ceiving low allotments. 



As one central Illinois co-operator 

 said: "Normally I had been growing 

 from 90 to 100 acres of corn on my 240 

 acre farm. But in 1932 and 1933 my field 

 arrangement was such that I was low 

 on corn acreage. As a result I was al- 

 lotted only 53 acres. I am strongly in 

 favor of crop adjustment but I hope 

 something can be done to raise my allot- 

 ment. Fifty-three acres is not enough 

 corn on a 240 acre farm, all of which is 

 tillable land." 



Farm Adviser Walter Miller reported 

 a vote of nearly nine to one in favor of 

 continuation in Kendall county. At many 

 meetings the vote was unanimous in fa- 

 vor. At Rochelle in Ogle county, for ex- 

 ample, the vote was 41 "YES" and one 

 "NO" for a corn-hog program in 1935. 

 At Stillman Valley, says Farm Adviser 

 Warren, it was 54 "YES" and 3 "NO." 



The vote for a one-contract program 

 in 1936 was not so favorable. Misunder- 

 standing of the question was held re- 

 sponsible by AAA officials for this. ;* 



. ,-f ■ . •■<• 



'■: I. A. A. RECORD 



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