The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-01-26
It's Complete Exhaustion is
Now Prophesied.
HENRY m. NElLL'S OPINION
Consumption in the Mills Must
Be Curtailed.
EFFECT OF THIS ON THE PRICE
For Four Months There Has Been
Struggle Between the Foreign
Consumer and American
Holder Of Cotton,
Holder Of Cotton,

Holder Of Cotton.
The startling prophecy of Henry NJ.
Neill the cotton authority of New Or
leans. that unless cotton consumption
i'm the mills Of the world is curtailed
the extraordinary spectacle OF com
plete exhaustion of port stocks of cot
ton in Europe viii follow. gives great
interest 10 the position OF the great
American staple this year. BY the
port stocks in Europe Mr.. Neill means
the stocks ON which spinners are ac-
cuStomed to draw for supplies 1t is
the custom Of the European mills to
carry very small stocks of cotton in
the mill storehouscs. preferring. for
he sake OF the saving i'm storage and
insurance, to let the bulk OF their sup
plies remain at the warehouses in the
ports. Thus the size Of the stocks held
in Europe can be counted with rea-
Sonable accuracy. The greatest cotton
port in Europe, in fact i'm the world
is Liverpool. There a vast deal of cot
ton is invariably stored, and from
these supplies the Manchester spin
ncrs buy as their daily needs compel
them. For several years the normal
takngs Of Manchester spinnerS in Liv-
erpool have been counted as 10000
bales. five days i'm the week, and 5000
bales ON Saturday. The weekly nor
NAL British consumption is $4,000
bales. The excess required is bought
by the British spinners usually i'm
America. This year the Manchester
min men and the Southern producers
locked horns eariy in the season. The
planter. looking around upon his short
crop. raised the price far above Liver
pools parity, and the British CON
slmer practically said, we Will not
buy from you" The struggle has now
lasted for over four months. The
American grower is still maintaining
Ills parity away above Liverpool. The
Manchester spinner, as far as he is
able, is trying to get along by buying
in Liverpool and taking as little as
possible from America. I'm pursuance
OF this policy ne has been compelled
to buy more heayiiy in Liverpool. For
six weeks sales Of spot cotton have
run uniformly al the rate OF 12,000
bales a day for five days and 10000
bales on Saturday. The Liverpool spot
holder is not phiIanthropist ard he
charges the Manchester spinner 3-1Gd
higher than the price at which futures
are selling in the salue city, Just as
spot cotton i'm this city is &c. higher
relatively than futures are. by this
course the British spinner has been
able to draw less cotton from America
this season than usual, The foreign
spinners, in round numbers. have ta-
ken up to date 100000 bales less than
last year at this time.
What has been the effect of his
long-drawn struggle OF endurance be-
tween the foreign consumer ana the
American holder Of the cotton How
much longer will the foreign mill own
er be able 10 draw on the foreign port
stocks? Who is in the better shape
to continue the fight? On the result
OF these questions will depend the out
come and whether cotton viii rise IN
value. When the cotton season opened
on September /, the excess of Ameri-
can cotton over the amount held on
the previous year at that date was
Sill 900 bales. That excess owing to
he tremendous drain of the worlds
steady and eyer-increasing consump
ton. has been changed into q deficit OF
s31 900 bales. This deficit viii be more
sharply apparent hereafter, for the
visible supply OF American has now
reached and passed its maximum. IN
stead of the usual increase Of the
worlds visible stocks Of American cot |
ton. the weeks figures on Saturday
showed IL loss OF 33. 900 bales from the
amount in sight the week before. The
entire visible supply OF cotton Of all
kinds in the world increased only %,
coo bales last week. The worlds visi- |
ble supply has reached it's maximum
also. and the inroads on this supply
before another crop comes in Septem- |
ber next to replenish it Will determine
now near MIR. -eilI's remarkable |
prediction will come 10 be fulfilled. |
1t will be October before any of this |
new crop of cotton can reach Euro |
Dean ports There is on hand at Liv |
erpooi of American cotton and afiOat |
for that one port alone ut present /
$4,000 bales less than at this time |
last wear The total stock of all kinds |
at Liverpool is 100000 bales below last |
wear. with eight months to elapse be |
fore they can get amy OF the new crop
on which they count SO heavily.
On the other hand, the great falling /
off i'm exports, due to the refusal of the |
foreign spinner to buy, has left no
weight of cotton in America because OF
the extreme shortage in the crop. The +
amount of cotton at the seaports and /
interior towns making the available I
supply, is only $4,000 bales more than (
at the same time last year. The entire /
worlds supply Of cotton is now 1859 I
goo bales, against 4, 526, 600 bales last /