That out of the whole 4,767,179[89] farming families in the United States only “65.92 per cent,” or 3,142,414 families “own the farms [SN: FARM FAMILIES IN DEBT.] cultivated by them.” And “that 28.22 per cent,” or 886,839 families out of the 3,142,414 owning ones, “own subject to encumbrance,” i. e., they are in debt; “and 71.78 per cent,” or 2,255,575 families, “own free of encumbrance.” So that among every 100 farm owning families 72[90] own without encumbrance and 28 own with encumbrance. And the same Bulletin further says: That “on the owned farms there are liens[91] amounting to $1,085,995,960, which is 35.55 per cent of the value of the encumbered [SN: DEBT AT 7.07 PER CENT.] farms, and this debt bears interest at the average rate of 7.07 per cent,” which is more than 7 dollars for every $100 borrowed. It is at this rate per annum that the farmer’s labor energy is drained by the wealthy creditors or by the bankers. “Each owned and encumbered farm on the average is worth $3,444.” This average, of course, includes the families far above $3,444 worth and far below it—“and” each, on the average, “is subject to a debt of $1,224.” Hence it follows that the principle of dividogenesure, in these cases, has a yearly demand that every debtor should, on the average, pay about $86.53 worth of the results [SN: INTEREST.] of his labor energy to his creditor. And it is a question whether even a highly effective capital worth $1,224 is really able to increase the yearly results of the debtor’s labor to the extent of $86.53—I mean an increase in his product absolutely due to the aid of the borrowed capital on which he is to pay this sum as the annual interest charge. It is rather probable that the majority of the mortgagors pay more than half of this annual percentage at the expense of their personal energy, even under the condition of the most effective use of the borrowed means. For the rate of 7.07 per cent is unconscientiously exorbitant and is generally abnormal. As to the families owning homes, the corresponding facts are “that 27.70[92] per cent,” or 809,831 families, out of the 2,923,577 home-owning families, “own their [SN: HOME FAMILIES IN DEBT.] homes with encumbrance, and 72.30 per cent,” or 2,113,746, “own them without encumbrance.” So that in every 100 home-owning families 28 are in debt and 72 are free of debt. “The debt on owned homes aggregates $1,046,953,603, or 39.77 per [SN: DEBT AT 6.23 PER CENT.] cent of the value of the encumbered homes, and bears interest at the average rate of 6.23 per cent. An average debt of $1,293 encumbers each home, which has an average value of $3,250.” This average again includes the family homes worth far above and far below the indicated value. While the homes below this value may have greater encumbrances than the others; and it is certainly the poorer families that lose their properties first, if they attempt to get rich by means of the loans they can obtain at the rate of exorbitant per cents.