The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1897-12-23
'ly Independent of home spccula-

BE it further resolved, That cacl
cotton growing State petition thci
representative in Congresses and ais
the representatives Of thcUnitcd States
to aid the passage of an nnti-option bill
now being prepared by the Hon. j. W
Stokes, Of South Carolina, thcrcb,
lifting the weight that has been bear
ing down and crushing the prices o
our product Though speculation IN fu
lures. We hereby pledge ourselves I,
sand by and aid III every effort to re
Iicvc the oppics csscd cotton growers q
the South. We further commend ant
urge that the planters adopt the
plan mapped out by W. &. Bradley il
this article advocating the reduction OF
acreage"
eve held the preliminary meeting
in November" said Mr.. j. G. Wilborn
who is promir ent planter Of Old
Point, $. g., ''and we discussed the
necessity for forming an organization
at that time, an,l decided to call meet
ing TO be held in Atlanta fer that pur-
pose.
''Our object in SO doing was that At
lanta is a central point and easy of
access to the planters Of South Caro-
lima, Gcorgi" and Alabama, the three
States which would naturally come
together on questions Of this kind, be-
cause of their cOntiguity and their
community Of interests.
eve have found out, to our cost =,
that the increased acreage planted in
cotton from year to year is proving
rumous to our farmers, AMI our OBJ iccl
Is to make all organized movement in
favor Of the decrease in acreage and
tie increase in price of cotton, and for
The encouragement of the raising oI
food crops, so that our farmers may
become more independent and self
sustaining,
"Undcr the present regime spccula-
tion runs rife and thousands Of dollars
are made by those who gamble on the
output OF the crop long before boil
has opened. The farmers, under the
rule OF all cotton, are completely at the
mercy Of the spcculatols, who have It
in their power to raise or lower the
price Of the staple, and Il reduction in
the price OF cotton leaves the planters
high and dry, as they have not the food
crops to fall back upon.
"All these evils must be met square
ly, and the proper remedies adopted.
and The only way in which to do this is
to effect an organization, for which
purpose we have met here today. We
arc III full sympathy with the work of
the American Cotton G:owcrs' Pro-
tcctivc Association. and, the primal
objects being the same, to encourage
the increase of the price of
the staple"
81 have Just returned from tour of
the famous cotton growing belt of the
Wcst," said Hon. Hector -. Lane,
president of the American Cotton
Growers Protective Association, who
has taken an active part in the Atlanta
'and find that the plan to
reduce the acreage meets with increas-
ing favor out there.
''L visited Indian Territory, Arkan-
sas and Oklahoma, and tell you there
is the finest cotton growing country in
the world. In the Mississippi delta
and the BraZos bottoms the only limit
TO the amount harvested is the humber
of bales that can be picked.
"Thc planters there have raised one
third molc cotton than they can pos
sibly harvest and they are sick AMI
tired of it. Farmers from Kansas h we
given up raising dollar wheat and have
gone into Oklahoma and Indian Terri
tory to raise 4 II aud ) cent cotton,
and they all begin to realize the ruin
GUS policy of planting such a large
acreage in cotton and reducing the
price through ovcr-production, ycal
after year, until cotton raising has
grown worse than Improbable.
"Thcy kept me there longer ;han
would have been otherwise, because Of
their anxiety for relief, and ! organ
izcd eleven branches Of the association
in that part Of the country during MY
stay. l feel very much encouraged by
my trip and am more than ever I'M
pressed with The fact that in organizing
the planters of the South may find that
relief of which all feel the imperative
need
"l was at Muscogcc, Indian Terri
tory, when issued the call for the
Memphis meeting, December 2lst, and
il was mainly AT the solicitation of the
planters of that section that | called
the meeting, as they arc poor people,
in spite of the enormous crops of cot
ton grown, ard that date would be the
best suited TO their convenience in at
tending.
"Thcy appeared anxious to meet
with the farmers and planters of the
other cotton growing States so as to
participate in the discussions relative 10
the objects Of the organization, and |
cXpcrta large Attendance of the dele
gates from those sections at the Mem
phiS cOnvcnliOn.'
Some of the most prominent planters
of South Carolina were present in re-
Spouse to the call issued by Mr.. VII.
born, and the representation included
men from all the principal cotton grow
ing sections of the State.
The new county Of Greenwood sent