Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1866-01-25
COTTON ssPERQUIsITEs.,,

time it is landed upon the levee until
it leaves the factors hands. Pound
after pound is purloined from the
bales by samplers who claim this as
their perquisstes. TO give it its
proper name, it is nothing more MOI
less than barefaced swindling, and
the wonder is that the cotton bust
ness of New Orleans has not long ago
experienced that diversion to other
points, which is now manifesting
itself to an alarming extent, in con-
sequence of the outrageous practice
alluded to. The factors who have
control Of the staple shipped to them,
and who should have never permitted
such frauds upon the interests Of
their country friends, have rendered
themselves amenable to a charge
snacking of criminal Indifference,
and by a course so obnoxious, are
losing that hold upon the good will
and confidence Of their patrons which
with all their good Intentions and
efforts in the future they may find it
|
difficult to recover. They have taken
the alarm, however, as we perceive
by the New Orleans papers, and we
hope their movements at reform will
turn out to be permanently eficacious
for their own good and that Of the
country planter and shipper.
A contributor TO the columns of
the New Orleans Crescent, who signs
himself Merchant" gives the pub
lie an insight into the way things
are now working in reference to
those reformatory measures which
have latterly been instituted. We
copy his article:
The factors have at length recog-
nized the fact that the cotton shipped
to them belongs, all Of 1t, either tn
the producer or the buyer, and have
determined to disallow all perquisites9
If the claim of one class of samplers
to not over a pound bale perquis-
ties had been submitted to, the other
class would, of course, have preferred
the same claim. Taking it for granted
that the crop of 1865 may possibly
reach 100000 bales, the loss in
weight by sampling alone would
have amountedqo 100000 pounds,
worth 81, $50, all Of which, ow-
ing to the supineness Of factors, was
to have been divided in the form Of |
perquisites amongst fen samplers
in this city. The abuse had assumed !
proportions Of startling magnitude,
and the action of the factors has been
wise, and what is more t. the pur-
pose, honest. | was glad to observe
the other day, in walking amongst
the cotton bales on the levee, that
there was little appearance on the
bales that they had been pillaged ON
the boats, showing that the captains
and mates had done their duty. |
saw quite number Of bags Of stolen
cotton in the police Office, sufficient
proof that our officers were at length
aroused to the Importance of putting
a stop to levee pilfering.
Let the public keep a vigilant
watch over all these parties, com
mending them when they discharge
their duty and denouncing them
when they do not, and we shall put
a stop to the common complaint Of
loss in weight. There is one other
which l would make,
which would be merely carrying into
effect the now recognized principle,
that all of bale Of cotton belongs to
the owner.
At present, as the samplers are not
permitted to appropriate the cotton
necessarily wasted in sampling, it
would be destroyed if the owner of
the press did not gather it up. Now,
though it is far better that the person
who draws the sample should not be
tempted to draw more than is neces-
sary, by allowing him to take the
waste, yet there does not seem to be
any good reason it should not be
gathered up for the owner Let the
owner of the press be sufficiently
paid, in cash mot in any perquisite),
for gathering it up and accounting
Tor it to the factor. who could have it
oaled and sold for account Of the
owner.