The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1883-03-08

o. bave ,aksu occasion before this 70 call
attention ~ the bad management ana uanRe'
A, onr farmers and planters Involved IN
placing their entire dependence ~ one s'@
ple product. II places the whole seouVn
nu,,lna A. faith In such staple at the fuue
m.rcy of spell OF unusually wet or Dry
weather. TO say nothing Of the losses ana
dlsasters resulting from an carly OF ia'e
so,son. or "A fluctuation In the prices oil tne
article. And yet, our farmers ana p'ah'eis
within the cotton belt, still laoorlnS unuei
tho old idea that cotton is KIDS ailios'
rsf,se as a class TO turn their attention 10
the cultivation OF any other product 9V"io
Improvement is taking place Ia TINS matter
however, we are glad 10 note out sun vul
nlanters will not adopt inc pan
of raising diversity pio,
drcts Their meat ana oIe""
lat continue to come at exorbitant rates.
,ron, the north and east, while they con-
- 40 devote themselves exclusively 10
w. ro;s;np of cotton. The policy is GER
ainly an unwise, and TO great eA'eiS SUI
cldal one. The sooner the FARMERS " 'ne
cotton belt recognize the necessity ioi VI
versitvinc their products and raising iot
,harnsolvss at triling cost and labor what
'.ha, ,hey now nay ruinously high prices
c,- tho better It will be for them and their
entire section, which is always more LATELY
dependent for prosperous trade upon WIG
nrosneri,v of the producing class than upon
anv other fact or influence. SO great is Tue
nocosaitv becoming for variety Oh
crons in the south, anu pur',ou,
Iar,v the recognized cotton oeit'
that the cotton factors have commence ~ ~
sneak out on the subject, and those oi st.
Ton;a have published an address TO sou'h-
orr apriculturists relative TO the matter
Ths address is published in the hope Oh H.
Auencing the people to pay greater "''en'
Co., q, tho cultivation OF food products IN
the south, and contains the very sou'.uesS
advice, which, we trust, Will De eA'enSi'ety
| read and Needed by our farmers anu pi"nV
ers in Texas. The address Is s'sne" W
twertv nrominent firms OF cotton factors.
| Amer referring to the unrivaled salubrity Oh
climate and fertility of soil in the souln'
these gentlemen say: Compare your sl'ua
tion with the farmers OF the nCftn anu vest
They. by systematic labor are btom'Hs
richer every year, while you, with pa,len'
,o;I and close economy, are neither 50 thrl'-
inc nor prosperous as you should be. mere
IL oapse for these troubles, and we, as COZ
49,, ,,o, whose interest is closely idenCheo
with yours, believe we are IN posi.ion ~
=
note many of the evils that exist anu onei'
without presuming, the following susbes-
tons: osa,+ IN
The credit system as at present III
,,oo,,, +bronghout the south is dkastrous
~ e. ,,Ionters and tenants, forcing them to
nav extrayagant prices for suppiies' anu
causing their crops TO be forced INTO i'ilihe1
with snch rapidity and in such quantit'es
"a 70 breal, prices almost invariably peloW
cost of production. r.. ofl
. After noting for years the elect Oh
- o,o,s of cotton, we find that the over
production of this staple is the Keynote 10
the situation, and we strongly ADVISE az
nart;es interested in the prosperity vi 'ne
south tn discourage the planting OF a large
acreage this year and devote Their lsoofs
first to the raising Of grain, cattle anu hogs'
and give the balance of their time 10 tne
culture of cotton.
Thispolicy will bring good results IN many
WAYS. for instance, many small farmers
and large ones also are so heavily IN DEBT
when their cotton is ready for sale that thP5 |
are compelled to let ii go, even thougn Tue
nrioe is below its intrinsic worth, WINE u |
thew had supplies at home, produced, ana
not bought on credit, they could aHoro 10
hold their cotton until they felt jastihed IN
selling. The price of cotton to-day is iui'y
Is per cent. below the. average OF .tue
past FIVE years. while on the other manu-
corn is SO per cent. and provisions oo per
cent. above the average. Thus are you
losers boIb WAYS. With the production OF
enough provisions on each farm, cotton
would become q surplus, and soonthe lncu-
bus of debt would be lifted from your peo-
nile. and each year would record rapid
strides in wealth." The arguments USED IN
the above excerpt from the address speakior
themselves, and ought to sink deeply into
the minds of our producing class. With
every facility for raising their own supplies
and greatly diyersifying their crops with
nrodncts that are now bringing extremely
high prices in the markets every
where these planters and farmers OF the
cotton belt as these factors say are paying
ont money for their food products and
de,oLiug al lLeil energies, time and acre
age To the cultivation of staple that is
seemingly depreciatiug in value annually.
As a result they ara getting poorer year
after wear. while in other sections, wheat,
corn. mules, horses, hogs aud variety OF
other objects of concern to the farmer are
beine raised by him, with constantly
increasing profit and success. 1t is strange
therefore that more OF our own citizens DO
not indulge in such cutting of from old
methods as will better their condition
almost from the very start. Aside from
the convenience and profit, the fear and
anxiety attendant upon the cultivation OF
bat one product will be removed and all
the channels Of trade be proportionately
benefited. We therefore especially COM
mend to the consideration Of orr Texas
Farmers and planters this address OF the st.
Louis cotton factors.
fl would be wise, and doubtless ex'
a.. fIaOnm