The Barnwell people-sentinel. (Barnwell, S.C.) 1925-current, July 27, 1933, Image 3

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

Banker Describes the Way Loans and Securities of Banks Are Based on the Hopes and Plans of All Classes—Values Dependent on Public’s Ability to Meet Obligations P. H. SISSON By FRANCIS President American Banker* C REDIT may be informally described as future hopes, plans and good in tentions converted into present pur chasing power. The farmer, the manu facturer, the mer chant, the home buyer, the p u r- chaser of household goods, the investor and the speculator all borrow at times. They p»an to repay with the earnings of their crops, pro ceeds of the sales of their goods, in comes from their wages and salaries or profits from the resales of their securities at enhanced market values, each as the case may be. The greater part of these various forms of credit is obtained by the bor rowers directly or indirectly through the expansion of the loans and invest ments of the banks. It is this which creates the notes, securities and mort gages in the portfolios of the banks. The banks are able to extend these loans because a great many people de posit money with them. Even under the best conditions the plans of a sfnall percentage of borrow ers go wrong through mistakes, bard luck or dishonesty, and the Judgment of the banker in such cases is proved by the after event to have been at fault. The losses caused under such condi tions are ordinarily fully met by funds set aside out of the earnings of the banks for just this purpose and do not affect the money of the depositors, who seldom hear anything about such losses. In the vast majority of cases ana in the overwhelming volume of business Involved the confidence of the bankers in their customers snd the confidence of the customers In their own ability to carry out their plans and obligations to successful conclusions are wholly justified This Is th« normal economic situation and It constitutes the condi tions under which the u*e of credit adds to public welfare and progress. The Faith of the Banks Such was the structure of hopes, good Intentions and common confidence in one another that egi/ted among all classes of the nation's community life when the series of economic shocks began to shake the nation's social fab ric In 192S. The people had deposited billions of dollars with ths banks be cause they bad confidence in them. The banks bad loaned large volumee of these deposits on farm and home mort gages and on notes cf manufacturers. busioe*s men nod flounce concerns, and »had Invested in tb« standard securi ties of the nation's corporations, stats snd local governmental units and the national government Itself, because they bad confidence la the dtisenship and business condition of the nation. Their mortgage sad other loans to owners of farms aggregated lf.50o.000,- 000. Loans on urban real estate were M .OOO.OOO.OOO. Loans to individuals se cured by U. S. Government, municipal and corporate securities totalled 911.- 000.90o.oo0. Loans to Industrial and commercial enterprises In connection with the production and distribution of the nation’s infinite varieties of goods amounted to almost 119.500.000.000. Investments in Federal. State and mu nicipal bonds were almost 9f.000.000,- 000. and in various kinds of railroad and corporate securities 911.000.000.000. These made total loans and Invest ments of 95S.000.000,000. This great credit structure was built while the country was at peace, while the farms and factories sere produc tive, while the nation and the world provided great active markets for their outputs, while the earnings of all kinds of enterprise were large, while the H. SISSON, Association in Tkt Forum working people of the nation were fully employed, while wages and sal aries were steady and generous, while prices of commodities were strong and while the minds of the people were dominated by faith In the future and confidence In one another. Great Changes Came to the Nation Then suddenly, almost as it the sun itself had lost part of its vitality, everything changed. Foreign markets failed and disappeared. Industry slack ened. A rapid drop in all kinds of com modity values set in. The earnings of business fell. Unemployment devel oped. Wages and salaries went down. Domestic markets shVank. Fear be came general. The securities markets became panic-riddei as the prices of stocks and bonds withered to fractions of their former values. It was the greatest disintegration of human plans, economic conditions and worldly values That history bad ever witnessed. These destructive changes cut right through the qualities and values of the loans and investments, the notes and securities in the banks. Business men and manufacturers could not repay their notes to the banks as due. Many governmental units and corporations defaulted the payments on their bonds. Property underlylnt real estate mort gages became worth less than the face of the mortgagea The market values of standard securities became less than the banks bid paid for them as in vestments or accepted them at as col lateral for customers* loans. This meant. In fine, that the ability of borrowers to carry out the future hopes, plans and good Intentions that 1 have defined above as the basis of credit bad become Impaired to a far greater extent that had ever before oc curred fh tbs nation'* history. The re sulting losses could not be absorbed by the banks alone out of the normally ample funds that had been set aside sgslnst the expectancy of a certain In evitable percentage of human plans gone wrong. Banks Showed All Reasonable Car* It was In loans and Investments, whose values thus became so unfore- eeeebly Impaired, that the .hanks. In all confidence. In all good faith. In all humanly reasonable care and good judgment had entrusted the htttlone of dollars of deposits which their cus tomers had entrusted to them. Those loons and investments were under all normal conditions, as good ss gold Itself. Indeed. If the banka In stead had filled their vaults with gold bars, and then tom* unknown cosmic ray had transmuted them Into lead, the rciuits would bav* been scarcely more startling than the depreciation that was caused Id the aaaets of the banks by the unforeseeable economic forces which permeated and debated them. The Inevitable result was that, when the banks urgently needed the money they had entrusted to those assets, so that they could meet the unreasoning demands of their depositors, they could not get It back. It was not that our banking system and methods wars of themselves weak or reprehensible, apart from the rest of the Ilfs jf the nation, ss has so much been made to appear. It was not that onr banks were per meated with inconipetency or dis honesty or with lower standards of business ethics than were the other forms of human activity with which their own fate ami activities were in extricably interwoven, as. It almost seemed at times* there was a concerted national conspiracy to lead our people to believe. The great fact'df American banking Is that it shared fully in the plans and hopes and hazards of the American peo ple.—and when these plans went wrong, the banks carried their share of the burden and suffered their chare of the misfortune. IN ANSWER TO A LADY'S LETTER A lady writes to say that she does not understand why an 8-cylinder ear does .not cost more to run than a car with fewer cylinders. She refers to my statement that our Ford V-8 develops more power on a gallon of gas than any car we have made. 'a The use of 8-cylinders does not mean the addition of two or four ■ extra fuel consumers. It is not. for example, a 4-cylinder engine multiplied by two. Our 8-cylinder engine takes the fuel supply of an ordinary 4-cylinder engine and divides it eight ways. And why? By reducing four larger explosions into eight smaller ones, we get engine smoothness and quietness. Eight-cylinders indicate the wajr the gas is used, not the amount. It is just the difference between going upstairs in four long jumps or in eight ordinary steps. Two things use up gas—bad engine design and useless car weight. Besides having an engine that gets a high percentage of power out of the fuel, the Ford V-8 has a light, strong body and chassis so that no power is wasted in moving excess weight. , % The only extravagance about the n v .w Ford V-8 engine is in the building of it. The extravagance is ours—the economy is yours. The whole question of car economy needs clearing up. An economical car gives economy all round. Price, operation, upkeep, all play their part. If what you save on gas you lose elsewhere, that is not economy. As to upkeep, our dealers say that in recent years the Improved quality of Ford cars has cut down-their repair business 50 per cent. As to price with quality.—judge for yourself. As to economy, here is the record of a stock oar three weeks out of shop in Oklahoma: On a run of 10,054 miles at the rate of 1,000 miles a day—th * V-8 gave 18.8 miles per gallon of gas. Not a drop of water was added to the radiator. The oil was changed once in 1.000 Biles. That should answer a lot of questions. July 24th. 1933 FARM ACCOUNTING CONTEST LAUNCHED Bankers Evolve Plan for Stim ulating Important Aid to Farm Success T'HE Cache county, Utah, bankers re- ^ cently added a stimulus to banker- farmer cooperative work by launching a farm accounting contest. At a meeting of the Clearing House Association the project was put before the bankers, and methods and plans formulated. Each bank in the county agreed to enroll a minimum of five farmers in the farm accounting project. The names of the farmers when enrolled will be sent to the Secretary of the Clearing House, and also to the Ex tension Division cf the Utah State Agricultural College. The bankers sgree to cooperate and keep in close touch with each farmer they enroll so as to Insure the completion of s maxi mum number. The bank which auc- ceeds at the conclusion of the contest In enrolling the largest number of farmers completing the project will be given a special recognition at the an nual meeting. The banks of Cacffe county have agreed to subscribe to an award fund, which will be presented to five winners as follows: first prize, 935.00; second prize, $25.00; third prize, 920.00; fourth prize, 912.50; fifth prize, 97.50. Recognition (or Good Farming In addition to the cash prizes, every farmer customer enrolled, who scores sixty per cent or more, will be awarded a special certificate issued by the Clearing House Association and the Ex tension Service jointly in cooperation with the Agricultural Committee of the Utah Bankers Association. The scoring will be done on the fol lowing basis: Farm and home account records (accurate and complete) ....50% Success of year’s operations as brought out in the summary of the year’s business 23% General appearance of farm ami Improvements and condition of livestock and poultry, (judging to be done during tbe summer months) 25% The contest will end December SI, 1933. The judges will be the County Agent, the County Key Banker, a rep resentative of the Clearing House As sociation. and two representatives se lected by tbe Extension Division of the College. SAVE YOUR EYES By Dr. W« Iter F. K mball Mist.uri Strte B<-ato of Opt.metiy SHADING BABY'S EYES. The eyes of infants are muth n. a* native than these of adults and for the first few days of life they are ex* tifinely ftensitive. The no Of nplete de* ve! pnient at this time of the pro- tec'ing tissues cf the eyes, the eye- brew., eye-lashes, and the pale, thin lid** lender has protect on than is possible by a Suits. The eyes of meny animals ate* protected at birth fion r oo str ng light until the pro tecting membranes have acquired a good start- e In the first few weeks of life the eyes of the baby shou.d at all times be sheltered from bright or dazzling illumination, remembering that in fants, uni ke adult?, cannot protect themselves by changing the position cf their heads or by reaching up to null down the window shade or tilt a lamp shade. Too often the infant is placed near a window in full light of day and sometimes even with direct sinlight shining in its face. This should never be permitted; the resulting ef fect of ail that light is a handicap they will carry threugh life. Nor should we go to the eppeste extreme by covering the face so as to hinder the access of ftesh air nor of keeping the room dark, as this renders the eyes over-sensitive. Impure air, the presence of dirt, dust, smoke or foulness and the pres ence of dirty cloths all affect the eyes cf iniants injuriously. The caie given the eyes oi an infant influences hrs position i life, hi$ choice of pro- fesson or trade; limit* his accomplish ments. Certainly all parents are in terested in giving the sons and daugh- teis thd best possible equipment for living. Tbe eyes are a vital part of such equipment. Give infant eyes intelligent care. Se v*n ty-foor bottl e* of liquot | Ol 2nd n Owe M* h. u*e and a ( Kip c * as locati ed in a pes patch F: ank Owen*, . Sr., and t.aude wt ali>o prt sent •t the time rft id. but F: ank. Jr., claim* *1* nntl bility f< ar th' t possession «• u«»r and w a* pi a«ed under bt IV1|£ Uter reieai se^ under f Th* I re-1 TO LOSE FAT »»T Sac 1*1 to bond. 1300, ' TO IMS Choosing Bloodhound Pngs * "The most Important thing to con sider In developing a reliable man- tralllng hlyodliound." says an author ity In the Washington Star. M ls first to secure well bred pups fmm parents that are known to be dependable trail er* No person following horse racing would attempt to develop a racer out of a Percheron or other heavy breed, but would choose a trim built animal that was a descendant from the racing type. Although they are all horses they have been bred for years for an entirely different purpose, one for speed, the other fq£ strength. Condi tions similar to this exist with the bloodhounds. It Is impossible to make an expert man trailer from every bloodhound just because he happens to be of that particular breed of hound. Smw foe Turn tetoS m mm? *•« Ml? ErawS— •Mv«r(4 «■ <■** u. isas*. TO IMS tot SAFWLT sad RAJUfUaW- LT. ui« » Salt Uaisooeful a* Keuacbea Sails la a slaas ar bo* waior la tbs morning boforo brasSfasI 4—1 Bias a m ora la#—a bottle (bat lasts « masks costs but s tftSo get Kruse ben Salts at any dragsters la Awsrlrs. It as* Joy fully Mtunsd aXtoc tbs first botUs VARICOSE VEINS. Healed By New Method We oporadaao aor laJartUtna. lo stalls bora* treat- ■aont pormtis yea to go aboat year yea ar* already ao disabled as to be confined to year bed. la that ca*d Emerald OU acts ao aaicbly to b«A year leg soroa, reduce any .welting and and all yata. that yea are a* and about again la an than. Just follow tbs simple dtrectloao and you are aura to be hel .Iped. Y< druggist yea are. Sheriff Makes Raid. Sheiiff J. B. Morris and his deputy, Giimote S. Harley, made a raid in tbe Olar section of tbe county Satur day, aa a result of which they ar rested Frank* Owens, Jr, on a charge of violating the prohibition law. Airplane Taras Easier Whether or not the automobile or the airplane Is the easier vehicle to operate is a question to which there may be no final answer, but there Is one maneuver which an airplane makes more readily. Ask any pilot and he will tell you that he much pre fers to turn in an airplane than in a motor car. While the latter will take a curve easily if the highway happens to be banked .suitably, the aircraft does Its own banking. The greater the speed the greater degree of bank ing to be obtained simply by moving the stick. It is much safer and easier than when the vehicle Is dependent upon something exterior to itself as, of course, the automobile Is.—Los An geles Times, Water Fowl, in Death Valley Death Valley, Cali?., may lose Its reputation as the driest spot in the United States unless ornithologists quit their maraudings. For years. Death Valley has enjoyed its name as the most uninhabitable of places. Then science stepped in for an Investigation and emerged with the in/ormation that 78 species of birds. and water fowl thrive therein. The wild life ranges from ducks and geese to the osprey and burrowing owL Death Valley is 300 feet below sea level. • It Begins Monday, July 31st The Most Important Furniture Event at White* In Many, Many Years— White’s August 1933 FURNITURE SALE Of super-importance because we’re prepared to save money-— , much money—for dlir customers,Tn the face of a rising market! Furniture Prices Have Already Advanced IS to 40 Per Cent Yet prices in this sale are st.H at depression levels. This ap plies to our entire stork, including special purchases of thous ands of dollars worth cf new funiture secured for this sale at before-the-rise-prices. _ Convenient Household Club Terms , * e • —if desired, and White’s prepays purchases amounting to $5.00 or more, to R. R. points within 200 miles. Yen'll Look Back On The Purchases You Make In White’s 193T Sale as The Greatest Investments The Family Ever Made For - • . i The Home! J.B. AUGUSTA, &CO. GEORGIA. Send Us Your Job Printing Orders |