Chapter 42 6. Shearing and the American Agricultural Recession in 1921

On September 1, 1894, we shall stop all extensions of loans.On that day, we will claim our money back.We will own and auction the outstanding property.We'll get two-thirds of the farmland west of the Mississippi and thousands of acres east of the Mississippi at a price we set ourselves.Farmers will (lose their land) become employed, as in England.1891 American Bankers Association (received in Congressional Record April 29, 1913) Shearing is a term in banker circles for taking advantage of the opportunities created by the process of economic booms and busts to own someone else's property at a fraction of its normal price.When bankers control the power of currency issuance in the United States, economic prosperity and recession have become a process that can be precisely controlled. For bankers, sheep shearing at this time is like evolving from the nomadic stage of hunting for a living to scientific breeding. stable and high-yield stage.

The First World War brought general prosperity to the United States, and the large-scale purchase of war materials greatly promoted the production and services of various industries in the United States.From 1914 to 1920, the Federal Reserve injected a large amount of money into the economic field. The interest rate of the New York Fed dropped from 6% in 1914 to 3% in 1916, and remained there until 1920. Twenty years. In order to provide loans to the European Entente, the bankers conducted four large-scale bond raisings in 1917 and 1918, called Liberty Bonds, with interest rates ranging from 3.5 to 1.5 million.Five percent to four.Five percent varies.An important purpose of these bond issuances is to absorb the money and credit that the Federal Reserve has already issued in excess.

During the war, workers received high wages, farmers' grain was sold at high prices during the war, and the economic conditions of the working class improved greatly.When the war was over, the farmers, living and spending frugally, had a lot of cash in their hands, a vast wealth that was out of the hands of Wall Street bankers.It turned out that farmers in the Midwest generally kept their money in conservative local banks. These small and medium-sized bankers generally resisted and confronted the international bankers in New York. They neither participated in the Federal Reserve Banking System nor supported loans to European wars.The elders of Wall Street have long wanted to find an opportunity to repair these country bumpkins. In addition, the farmers are fat and strong, and they have already watched the eager Wall Street bankers prepare to shear the sheep.

Wall Street bankers first resorted to playing hard to get, creating an agency called the Federal Farm Loan Board to encourage farmers to invest their hard-earned money in new land.As a result, under the coordination of the organization, a large number of farmers applied for long-term loans from international bankers and paid a high proportion of down payment. Farmers may never know they've fallen into an elaborate trap. During the four, five, six, and seven months of 1920, industry and commerce received large credit increases to help them weather the coming credit crunch.Only farmers' credit applications were all rejected.This is a well-designed financial explosion by Wall Street!Small and medium banks designed to rob farmers of their wealth and destroy agricultural areas that refuse to obey the Fed.

Irving, chairman of the Senate Banking and Currency Committee (who co-sponsored the Federal Reserve Act of 1913), said at the Senate Silver Hearings in 1939: In the early 1920s, the farmers were very rich.They accelerated their mortgage payments and borrowed heavily to buy new land.In the second half of 1920, a sudden credit and monetary crunch made them bankrupt in large numbers.What happened in 1920 (farmer bankruptcies) was the exact opposite of what should have happened. The excessive credit extended due to the war should have been gradually resolved over several years, but the Board of Directors of the Federal Reserve met on May 8, 1920, and held a secret meeting completely unknown to the public.They plotted together all day; the minutes of the meeting amounted to sixty pages, which finally appeared in Senate records on February 19, 1923. (Federal Reserve) Class A directors, members of the Fed's advisory committee, attended the meeting, but Class B directors, representing commerce, trade and agriculture, were not invited. Class C directors representing the American people were also not invited.

Only the big bankers attended this secret meeting, and their meeting that day led directly to a credit crunch that ultimately led to a loss of $15 billion in national income the following year, millions of jobs lost, and land and farm values ​​plummeting $20 billion. Wilson's secretary of state, Bryan, pointed out the root of the problem: the Federal Reserve Bank, which should be the most important protector of farmers, has become the worst enemy of farmers.The credit crunch to agriculture was a calculated crime. After the shearing of agriculture yielded a good harvest, the stubborn small and medium-sized banks in the Midwest were wiped out, and the Federal Reserve began to loosen monetary policy again.