The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1895-11-06
COTTON BALES.


baling cotton for market has been dis
cussed 10 the newspapers and trade
journals, and great emphasis has been
laid on the necessity of radical reform
10 the pravailing method =; but so fer
tue discussion has been upproducs've Of
noteworthy results. 1t is admitted on
all hands that there exists the necessity
for change in the shape and in the
method Of covering the bales, and this
much being admitted, it is now tine
for the reform to be made. There is
nothing TO he said in favor of the
method of taling cotton now in vogue.
unless saying that it has always been
done after this manner is construed as
an argument The bales are unwield-
ly. wasteful Of the cotton. easy to catch
on Ere and require compression and re-
baling for exporting. Even after COM
preston and re-baling the cotton reach
es it's destination in a dirty aud d'lapi-
dated condition. From the consular
reports We learn that the cotton from
America reaches Eagland and centl-
nen,as Europe in an incomparably
worse condition than the cotton from
India aud Egypt. Cotton growers IN
these countries pack their cotton 10
smaller bales and take much more care
in covering them so that the lint is not
exposed to dirt and the danger of lire.
By reason OF these precautions, based
on ordinary common sense, the cotton
is cleaner aud is consequently given
tie preference over the same grades of
Americ cotton. Besides the waste is
less the stealace is reduced to a mini
mum aud the rates of insurance are so
much lower than on American cotton,
packed 10 the ordinary manner, that
this item alone amounts to considerable
sum. In addition to these items OF
expense and loss, the expense of COM
pressing for export must be taken into
consideration and charged up against
the present method. All Of these ex-
penses come out of the pocket of the
cot,oa producer. for in fixing the price
o. american cotton the Eoglish cotton
huyc-< aud manufacturers, who fix the
nr;ce for the world, consider these items
and make maximum deduction from
the price to be paid per pound. They
see to it that they pay for clean cotton
aud not for the jnse covering, iron
ties and dirt that accu,nulates 10 the ex-
posed cotton while 10 transit. There
is no meaps Of ascersainicg the total
amount ,has toe cotton planters OF
the South haze paid out for the pr'vl-
lege of packing cotton as it always has
been done. But it is plainly to be seen
that i: has amounted to All immense
Of dollars since the war.
The American farmer is reckoned as
the noss iutelligent and progressive, on
an average, to he found 10 the
world. and it would seem that
they would would bring this
in .elligence ll;o play in the consider
alton of this matter. If they would do
so and lock at it 10 a business light,
considering it simply as selfish bust
ness proposition, they would adopt some
one Of the improved methods of pack
ing and baling cotton and free them
selves of the stigma Of prcperiog cot
ton for market 10 the most slovenly and
wastelul manner known to the CONNER
cial world, and at the same time rid
themselves of the heavy tax that ad-
herence to this method very properly
eotails.
There are swo methods Of packing and
balipg cotton that are at present being
broagh. prominently before the public,
both of which accomplish the same re-
result These are the Bessonette aud
Anderson systems. Of these the Bes-
souette is. perhaps, the best known and
best. The Bessouet,e bale aud method
of packing is described as follows;
..Tbe Bessonette bale is cylindrical.
On an average 800 pounds,