The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-09-30
The Alliance and the Lard BnL

The Alliance and the Lard Bill
Why is it that the alliances of Georgia
and the alliances of other cotton growing
states have not been more active in their
opposition to the bill TO tax compound
lard, Do not the cotton growers know that
this bill, if it should become a law, would
take millions of dollars annually out Of
their pocketsl Aud the chance that it will
become a law is very good. 1t has passed
the House and is now pending in the SEN
ate, and the impression is that the repub-
licans of the Senate regard it with favor
because it is demanded BY the western
farmers.
What has Dr. Macune, whose headquarters
are at Washington, done to defeat this billl
Has he used his influence against it, The
understanding is that he has been favOring
| it, and be was in Georgia the other day try
ing to defeat Gov. Gordon for senator on
the ground that the governor is not friend
of the farmers But is DR.. Macune friend
| of the farmers of the south If he favors tax
| ing compound lard!
The cotton gro Eers do not seem 70 realize
how great blow 30 their interests the pas
sage of the compound lard bill would be. 1t
would practically destroy the market for
cotton seed-or, at least, it would SO limit it
that profitable price for the seed could not
be obtained. The greater part of the oil
obtained from cotton seed is now used in
making compound lard. The compound
lard bill not only puts a tax on compound
lard, but it requires every retail merchant,
who purposes to sell it, to take out license
These are not the only restrictions upon the
sale of compound lard The bill re-
quires that it shall be put up in
certain kinds of packages, and
that it shall be sold only in
those packages Indeed, so many restric-
tions are placed upon compound lard, and
it is so burdened with direct and license
taxes that few if any, retail dealers would
handle it. They could not handle it profit
ably. and, therefore, they would have moth
ing to do with it.
Cotton growers now get large revenue
from their cotton seed, but let the pending
bill, which is intended to destroy the CON-
pound lard industry, become a law, and
their cotton seed would become worthless
to them except as a fertilizer. And the
cotton seed oil mills, the most of which
are in the south. would have to cease
operations. Their employees, numbering
thousands, would be thrown out of work.
Is it because the alliances of the western
states favor the compound lard bill that the
national leaders of the alliance are either
supporting the bill or are Indifferent to its
1t looks very much as if the alliances OF
the west and those of the south are not in
harmony. Nowhere in the west is there an
urgent demand for the sub-treasury bill.
What the alliances in that section want is
the compound lard bill. Here in Georgia,
where the passage of the compound lard
bill would be extremely hurtful to the cot
ton farmers, the leaders of the alliance talk
about little else than the sub-treasury bill
a bill that is not popular either in the west
or the north, and, therefore, has little or no
chance of ever being seriously considered
in congress.
In view of the fact that it is of the utmost
Importance TO the south that the compound
lard bill should be defeated, would it not be
advisable that the alliances of the cotton
growing states should be as active against
that bill as the Georgia alliance is
for the sub-treasury bill? And if
the national alliance leaders are the
friends Of the farmers of the south they
pretend to be, ought they not to show their
friendship by making little more energetic
fight against the compound lard bill9