Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-10-29

percentage chunk to go over
the particular line he represented.
Rates were fixed, equitable and just,
they said, to themselves and shippers.
They took numberless friendly nips,
lunched sumptuously several times,
and went home lovely and full of
smiles. The man who buys cotton
and pays the bills wasn't let in, nor
indeed consulted. A very important
freight route, that Of our great river,
was also wholly ignored.
Subsequently, however, the boats
began to touch here, wanting
cotton to fill OUT cargoes, at Sl.23 per
bale, figure fixed at st. Louis for
our people to pay. Shippers growled
furiously, aud paid it few times, and
then shipped at lower prices, the pres
ent ruling figures. The shippers Of
st. Louis also saw the ignored route
over the waters offered advantages
not before observed, and yesterday a
steamer passed south with $50 bales of
s.. Louis cotton destined to Europa.
The vessel is the third to pass south
with about the same quantity, and the
cry is 'still they come" The south
bound carriers, both boats and rail
roads, have all they can handle, in
sight, though not at quite as lucrative
rates as they expected. Meantime,
heavy railway cars, many from the
south to the eastern seaboard, go
empty. This may change after bit,
when eastern spinners send their
orders for cotton more freely than
they have been doing lately.
This is one feature of the case as it
looks just now. 1t may develop Others
in few days.
There is another feature of interest
to us here at present. We have re-
ceived in this market since the FIRST of
last month 81, ,293 bales of cotton, and
81, l07 bales more than three years
ago, when everything worked smooth
here. At st. Louis only 81, ,342 bales
have so far been received against
ll6,975 bales at this time last season.
The merchants of St. Louis are as un.
happy as the freight agents. They
do not understand it at all,
but it is plain to everybody
that our market offers superior adyan-
tages, and is properly the cotton mar
ket Of the northern portion of the cot
ton belt, Memphis, New Orleans and
Galveston are properly cotton markets
of the Mississippi valley and the Tex,
as country. When sent TO northern
points, beyond the belt for market,
losses in weights and other tribula-
tions are injurious 10 the staple. Prop.
erly 1t. Louis has not received this
year even the amount noted above by
by more than l7,000 bales, as
the warehouse records show,
the remainder being cotton merely
passing through to other points and
leaving nothing behind. The decline
in the cotton trade OF st. Louis is
natural, but the people of that market
are not pleased with it nevertheless.
They had built capacious warehouses
for an anticipated increase, and offered
manifold facilities to capture our
cotton trade, The inducements were
tempting but failed to work.
In this connection the Louisville
Courier-Journal makes a remark or
two which is pertinent, as follows;
"We have previously expressed the
opinion that the phenomenal growth
of the cotton trade Of St. Louis was a
result chiefly to the misfortunes Of
Memphis and other southern markets,
and that Yellow Jack was equal to
| the whole corps of drummers in turn
ing cotton hitber; but loss Of SO per
cent in the whole trade in one year,
the first year of healthy season in
/ Che south, was hardly to be looked
fnr ,"