The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1882-10-05
SWINDLING IN COTTON.
THay, Straw and Gram Reporter.l ]


We hear a good deal about cheat
and deception in American cotton
by sand and other weighty matter
in the bales, and of Investigations
made in England and elsewhere, with
reports on the subject, which are not
very creditable to the American
planter. While the subject of cot
ton fraud is up, 1t may not be out of
place to outline such as are against
the planter, which, if not justitica-
ton, will none the less belittle and
almost obscure the petty frauds of a
few planters. We doubt if cotton
planters generally realize the rings
and peculations between them and
bale tie rings, represented by stock
companies, with millions of capital
OH which they pay enormous divi-
dends. They sell the planter heavy,
expensive patent hoop iron bands
when a quarter of the cost would
securely bind the cotton with neat
steel wire bands. Then the cotton
factor, or second ring, require that
the planter put up his cotton in loose
ungainly bales, in order, as they say,
to sample it, but really to permit
them to steal immense quantities of
cotton from the bales, so that some
of them sell from $4,000 to 100000
worth of samples annually.
Then the bales 60 to the repress
or compress ring, which is usually
combination of factors, or other mid
die men, and here the cotton crop
pays annually about ST, 200, 900 more.
The cotton passes on, may be,
through the hands of another ring,
who fatten on it, and finally reaches
the hands of the distributing mer-
chant in Baltimore, New York, Bos-
ton or Liverpool, by which time the
bales are badly soiled by dirt, mud
and rain, by reason of their ungainly
size, careless handling and stor-
age, and they are now not unfre-
quently treated to bath by rolling
them through the penetrating slush
and mud that usually covers the
Wharves of these large cities. From
the wharf the bales are carted to
some dirty back storage street,
where they are again dumped into
the street slush and rolled through
it into the storehouse, by which time
they are ready for the inspector,
who now takes each bale in hand,
cuts the coverings so that he can and
does pick the soiled cotton from the
entire outside of the bale until it is
as white and clean as lint from the
gin, and generally picks deep enough
so that the trimmings look nearly as
white as the bale. These pickings
are the inspectors spoils.
The bale is now resampled, which
means another steal of cotton, then
re-weighed, che weight of the cover
ing and bands deducted, and the net
weight of the cotton marked on it,
and the consumer buys at this
weight.
Now, all these middle men, know
ing the shrinkages and stealings in
which they share, pay enough less
for cotton to cover and leave them a
profit aud get rich, and unquestion-
ably the planter has to pay for the
untold millions pocketed by the cot.
ton band ring, the compress ring,
and all the factors and middle men
between the cotton planter and con-
sumner, by selling at a sufficiently re-
duced price to cover all. Political
carpet baggers may have robbed
southern states, and saddled them
with unjust debts, the interest on
which it is hard to pay, but that is
but a circumstance compared to the
loss these cotton leeches are infiict-
ing. Shake them off, and with the
saving the cotton planter alone can,
in short time, pay not only the III
terest but the principal on these
state debts, and then, if applied to
the purpose, pay the entire amount
of ofConfederate bonds issued before
the bonds issued by the treasury de-
partment at Washington mature.
The Hon. Edward Atkinson, of
Boston, Massachusetts,, who has care
fully studied the subject, as is well.
known in the cotton states, conf.
IDENTIFY declared that there is a losi
of 10 per cent in waste of cotton, be.
tween the planter and the consumer
in the manner of handling the cot
ton crop. Rating the entire cottoI
crop at only 100000 bales, there is
loss at 10 per cent OF $S0,000,0O0.
The loss is not only the profits anC
stealings of these rings, but the un
necessary cost of stock in bands, los
in labor in COMPRISING, and loss il
soiled cotton, all of which, together
with all profits and stealings, nigh
be saved to planters if they put tn
cotton up direct from the gin int,
small, compact, economical wir
bound bales of suitable size to b
handled and stored without soiline
and to load car to its capacity AM
shipped direct to the consumer, O