The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1894-12-26
TEN-CENT COTTON.

TEN-CENT COTTON.
The Question of the Hour for tile People
of the South.
To the Editor of the News and Cou-
rier: I am cotton man. My welfare,
like that of our whole people, depends
upon the price of cotton. How to raise
that price so as to make it pay the
farmers is a problem that, just now,
for the South at least, dwarfs in i'm
portance all other public questions.
The schemes that have been suggest
ed to control the market by the crea-
ton of big trust or by the throttling
of speculation are, as every clear
headed business man knows, visiona
ry and unsound. Neither is practica-
bic, and either plan, if it could be car
ried out, would surely aggravate the
very trouble it was meant to cure.
What then shall be done2 The SIM
pie, sensible and only real remedy is
to cut down production. But, we are
told, this is impossible. The enlight-
ened selhshness which impels the far
mer to tell all his neighbors that by
planting only half as much cotton
they will get for their crop more than
twice as much money does not 60 far
enough to lead him to practice on his
own farm what he breaches to the rest
of the county. Of course, no matter
how expedient and how necessary for
the public good reduction of acreage
may be, even Legislature OF farmers
is powerless to enforce it by law, and
the perversity, inconsistency and
grasping tendency of that human ma
ture that is as strong among cotton
growers as among other people bars
the way to a reduction of the crop by
voluntary and individual choice.
Yet we must somehow apply the
remedy, and apply it quickly, or the
South will be ruined. The vague ap-
prehension of a substantial decrease Of
production next season is at this mo-
ment, as every cotton merchant under
stands, the chief, if not only support
to even the beggarly prices which now
prevail. If the world could only be
certain that the South next spring
would plant for another monster crop,
cotton would now be selling much
nearer three cents pound than five.
Consumers care nothing whatever
about the cost of production. With
them it is cold question of demand
and probable supply of the raw materi-
al.
How then can the indispensable re-
striction of production be brought
about9 The only way, I fear, is by
the pressure e-terrorism, ifyou will
of local public sentiment. Our farm
ers know perfectly well that a crop of
six million bales will bring more mon
ey to the producers than a crop OF ten
million bales. Let them form at once
'aTen-cent Cotton League" in every
county of the South. Let every
member bind himself in writing to
plant only one-half the acreage that
he planted last spring. Let each farm
er not only act as vigilance commit
tee of one to see that his neighbors
carry out their pledges, but invite
their inspection of his own fields so
they may be satisfied that he has done
likewise. Let every farmer who re-
fuses to bind himself with the rest or
who, having done so, breaks his pledge,
be vigorously "boycotted" as traitor
to the community. This may be called
terrorism but we of South Carolina
know that a little wholesome terrorism
has sometimes done great public SER
vice. Let the movement be once
fairly started and it will spread like
wild-fre There is no time to be lost.
The emergency is Ias pressing as it is
grave. The remedy, however rough"
is not illegal, And desperate cases re-
quire desperate remedies.
Let Manchester and Fall River only
hear that the formation of a Ten-cent
Cotton Legue is begun in earnest, and
there would be an end scent cotton.
The receipts would cease to frighten
anybody. Neither spinners nor specu-
lators would wait for the pledge of the
league to be carried out. Everybody
would want to buy cotton. The price
would leap upward, and l believe that
in less than month every pound of
cotton remaining in the South would
be worth at least 2 cents a pound more
than it will bring now.
But, I repeat, if this plan is to be
tried, there is no time to be lost.
Fairfax.