The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1890-02-04
HOLDING H E COTTON.
The Southern Farmers Slowly but Sure
~ Achieving Their Independence.

The Southern Farmers Slowly DuC Sure
" Achieving Their independence.
The contest of the farmers of the
South for independence from trusts
combinations and syndicates, says the
Americas, Ca, Recorder, has been a
phenomenally successful one. In the
face Of great odds, they have, In a
single year, achieved results that at
the outset looked to be both improba-
BILE and impossible. Those who pre-
dicted failure are now compelled to
acknowledge the success of the move
ment, and this fact will greatly aid
the farmers in their further efforts to
better their condition. The Savannah
Neus thus alludes to the success of
the attempt to in a measure control
the price of cotton:
with two more seasons ike this
one Liverpool will have to pay for
cotton whatever the cotton farmers
may ask" said one of the best informed
cotton men of Savannah the other
day. What he meant was this: The
good cotton crop this season and the
high price of cotton have made the
cotton farmers comparatively indie
pendent. If they have two more such
seasons they can afford to hold their
cotton until a price that satisfies them
is offered for it. With their Alliance
organizations they are able to act In
harmony. Not pressed for money,
they will be able to say, thr' ugh their
Alliance, owe will sell SO much cot
ton this month, and so much next
month, and so on through the season,
but we will not sell any until we get
the price we think we ought to have"
There is no doubt that cotton is
now being held back. Cotton is
coming to the ports very slowly,
though there is a very large amount
of it that has not yet been marketed.
The farmers are not in the need Of
money, and hence are not anxious to
sell particularly as there is a prospect
for getting a better price than is
offered at present. They are begin
ming to understand that they can in
fuence the market to some extent,
and they are not slow to use their
knowledge for their own benefit.
If the farmers should find them
selves in a position in the neal future
to hold their cotton for any length of
time that they might think advisable,
they would have only one thing to
fear, and that is that effort would be
made to grow cotton in other countries
upon a much larger scale than is being
done now. However, they would not
have reason for any serious alarm on
that account, because the cotton grown
in India is much inferior to that grown
in this country. Nowhere else on
the globe does cotton reach such per-
lection as in this country, and it is
pretty safe to assume, therefore, that
the demand for American cotton will
be equal to the supply.
The high price which cotton has
commanded this season is largely due
to speculation. Spectators sold vast
quantities Of cotton early in the season
for future delivery. They had, of
course, to comply with their con-
tracts, and this fact being known,
factors have not pushed the cotton on
the buyers. They have held on to it,
and have parted with it only when
they were offered the price they
upon it.
Doubtless the cotton farmers will
perfect their Alliance organization,
and in that way bring themselves into
communication with each other.
If they can get such harmonious &C.
ton as will enable them to hold co.,
ton when the price is low, they may
be able to dictate the price. The pros
pect that their material condition is
to be greatly improved is GER
promising. The fact that they
have beaten the jute bagging combina-
ton has given them confidence. They
are beginning to realize their power,
and if they are guided by wise coun-
sells, the period of struggling for mere
existence may be regarded as past
atlanta Journal.