The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1891-05-21
Too Much Cotton.

The farmers OF the South are toleraoly
familiar with the arguments in favor of
planting less cotton, but they are not
aware probably that their grandfathers
heard the same doctrine preached quite
as earnestly as it is preached now. That
this is true, however, is proved by the
New Orleans Times. Democrat By some
ancient evidence which has been unearth
ed recently.
In an editorial article printed under
the heading "Wisdom," in 1928, the
Raleigh Register noted the disposition
among the farmers of North Carolina to
abandon in some measure the cultivation
of cotton, which was then regarded as
Improbable and was thought likely to
become more 40, and TO turn their atten.
ton to the introduction of new crops.
ut becomes more apparent every day."
said the Raleigh editor, that we must
soon change; partially or altogether, one
of those articles which has hitherto been
the main prop of our prosperity, or lose
oar wealth and our Importance"
Niles Register copied this article, and
in commenting on it added its indorse-
ment of the advice given, and quoted
remark made to its own editor eight or
ten years before-that iB before 1820-by
distinguished cotton planter, then
Senator of the United States, that "the
time was close at hand when cotton,
because of its over. production, would be
bad business and that it became him
and others to look out in due season for
the cultivation of new products to employ
their capital and labor.
At the time when these authorities
we're declaring that too much cotton WAS
produced, the largest crop grown in the
country was about 100000 bales, of the
average weight of the bales of the present
day. The crop this year is about 8,O00,.
600 bales larger than it was then, and
still the demand is not satisfied. Pro-
duction will probably continue to increase
for many years to come, and it is we'll
within the probabilities that the mark of
ten million bales will be reached and
passed within the current decade. In
this view of the subject the Times Demo
crat philosophically says:
"After having lectured the farmers for
two generations on the necessity of re-
ducing the acreage and production of
cotton without the slightest result, for the
crop has grown faster than any other
staple product in this country it is now
about time to abandon the idea that any
thing can be done by the press in the way
of limiting production. The evil, if it is
an evil, will be corrected only by expe-
rience. If the farmers lose money by it
they will probably plant less cotton, but
they have clearly shown that they have
no disposition to follow editorial advice
on this point"
These remarks appear, at frat hearing,
to have considerable force, but our con-
temporary will pardon us for.saying that
it seems to have lost sight temporarily of
the real point of the lectures" and sad
vice" to which it refers, and whi"' re-
quires to be pressed now with as III
earnestness as heretofore. The press of
the South, We believe, has not seriously
advocated the reduction of the cotton
crop as itself a desirable, or at any rate,
practicable end. Its contention has been
in part for diversi6cation of crops, but
mainly for the cultivation by the cotton
farmers of enoug b of the staple food
crops to make them independent on this
account and 80 enable them to derive and
retain the full profit of their cotton crops.
That this advice was sound and wise
cannot be disputed. 1t has been urged
by the most intelligent farmers in the
South quite as earnestly as by the news
papers, and has been adopted and applied
in recent years by very many of the far
mers in every State to their manifest and
great advantage.
We have not the statistics at hand for
ready comparison, but we believe that it
is safe to assert that the farmers of the
Southern States buy relatively less corn
and bacon, for instance, than ever before
and if this be q fact, it proves that they
either produce more of these supplies at
home OF substitute for them others of
their own production. That there has
been, too, marked advance in the direc-
tion of diyersifying the agricultural pro-
ducts of the Southern States scarcely re-
ouires to be stated. The railroads are
burdened nearly six months in every year
with the varied crops of fruits and vege.
tables, moving northward and westward
to market, and which bring hundreds Of
millions of dollars into the South where
the returns from such crops could have
been counted by thousands only few
years ago.
The advice of the press, therefore, has
not been wasted. 1t has borne rich fruit
already, and heap of it, and the right
and wise course is for the newspapers and
the Alliances and the professors and the
more progressive farmers themselves to
keep on "lecturing" on the same line
until every cottontot in the South shall