The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1897-11-09
OUR GRRAT COTTON CROP.

article which, to all cotton growers,
will prove interesting.
The article is rather long, but unlike
many long articles, it is interesting
throdghout, and we are glad to repro
duce it for the benefit of the readers of
THE PROGRESSIVE FARMER. The Scien-
tific American, we must remember, is
published in New York, and unlike US,
speaks of it as a somewhat foreign sub
ject:
While the few unlucky miners who
have reached the Klondike are digging
for the gold in the frozen ground of
their Arctic home, and stories OF the
wonderful richness of the mines are
published to agitate world of readers,
a different kind of gold mine is being
worked in another fairer and warmer
part Of our country, where the sun
shines eternelly and the conditions Of
life are all that one could desire for
comfort and pleasure. The great cot
ton crop of the Southern States is
worth several Kiondikes; it yields
profits to hundreds of thousands of
toilers, and enriches our country by
many millions of dollars Oar exports
Of cotton alone amount to more than
the output of all the gold miners of
the world. We get on the average
more than $EOO,OOO,OOO annually from
the cotton we ship abroad after de
Quoting enough for our own use. The
lauded wealth of gold and silver mines
sinks into ineignifcance in comparison.
Early in October the new crop of cot
ton begins to come to market, and dur
ing the pleasant autumn months the
white fields OF the South are alive with
pickers. Simultaneous with the advent
of the first large shipment Of the new
crop, great industry that gives en-
ployment to thousands Of men through
out the country awRkens into activity.
The cotton is picked and baled on the
farms scattered throughout the cotton
belt, and an army of buyers appear
there to solicit trade for their houses.
Fully five thousand Of these buyers are
often in the fields at once, trying to
secure trade FOR theirFespectiv houses.
The advance couriers receive twenty
five cents per bale commission, and
good buyer will sometimes secure ten
Thousand or more bales for his house,
making for himself the handsome
salary of g. 500 for few months labor.
AS most Of the cotton received in
New York is in transit for Europe or
New England, and very little is con-
sumed here, there is of necessity a
great deal of transferring from wharf
to wharf, and from vessel to vessel.
Besides the longshoremen employed in
this business, there are the truckmen
and the owners and crew Of the light
ers. The truckmen transfer the bales
when the distance is only a matter of
a few blocks, and they charge about
fifteen cents a bale. The lightermen
charge about the same.
The lighters have greatly improved
in recent years, and they have labor
saving machinery for facilitating work.
Tney are mostly owned by the big cot
ton carry ing companies; but some are
the sole possessions Of their captains or
small lighter companies who operate
two or three. The ordinary lighter
carries from 1000 to 1,5OO bales at a
time. The lighters can draw up along
side of a Southern steamer, and, by
means of machinery, take the heavy
bales from her hold and transfer them
to their decks without much trouble.
The crew of these lighters receive
rather less pay than the regular long
shoremen, but their labor is less oner,
GUS and wearying. The derricks do
most of the lifting, while the men
merely guide the swinging bales as
they shoot up in the air and land on
the deck of the lighter.
Each compressed bale of cotton
weighs about 500 pounds, and uncom,
pressed nearly third less. Sea Island
cotton is generally received here un-
compressed, for there is a prevailing
notion abroad that it is injured by the
process. Nevertheless, greater care is
exercised in handling the Sea Island |
than the ordinary varieties. There has
been considerable discussion in late
years about improving our methods of !
baling Before the bales reach their |
final destination there is-a large per-
centage of loss TO be deducted through |
insufficient covering OF the cotton, and
this has prejudiced foreign dealers |
against handling American cotton ex-
cept when forced to.
Cotton picking is done almost en-