The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1897-03-03
COTTON GROWERS CONVENTION. c
President Hector D. Lane Issues Strong
appeal.

President Hector D. Lane Issues Strong
appeal.
Mr.. Hector D. Lane, President of
The Association of Cotton Growers,
has issued the following call:
ATHENS, Ala, Feb. II, 1897.
! To the Cotton Growers Of America:
The time has arrived when the farm,
ers should be giving the prospects OF
the coming crop most serious consid
Grafton:
That the environments Of the cotton
grower are becoming more lnimical to
their interests each succeeding season,
is discouragingly apparent; that the
encroachmants upon our commercial
rights are becoming more piratical in
their character, is fact that is not
only appr ciated but condemned by
all right minded men who recognize
the right and privilege of legitimate
commercial methods, and the obtuse-
ness of the Southern planter in failing
to observe, and his subserviency in
submitting 10 these ills that are being
inflicted upon him By this scourge in
the hands of this reckless class ofspac-
ula.ige gamblers, IS encouraging them
in their pernicious methods, is render
ing him p;tiable in the eyes OF the
world and subjecting him 10 the oblo-
guy of being beth stupidly ignorant Of
his interests and ignominiously serv;le
in his for5earance.
As is usual at this season the cotton
''baar" is again in evidence, hewing
down prices to the very lowest notch,
using all tbs sophistry that his Gun.
ming can devise and all the articles
that be can SO ingeniously invent to
hammer values down to less than ii7-
ing prices. They are thoroughly in
different to normal conditions and
reck little Of the common veal. They
are sowing the seed of incipient com :
munism in fields in which i. is an un
Known aud an unnatural growth.
They should exult over four cent cot
ton and would contribute their active
aid in pressing it down to the lowest
point regardless Of the sorrow and des-
titution that would prevail through
out the South under such conditions.
Al this time last year they were an
ticipating matters by industriously cir
cula:ing rep orts that it was the inten-
ton o. the Southern cotton grower to
enormously increase the acreage which
they gleefully stated would result in
the production Of from eleven to
tvelve million bales. Like fabrica-
tons are again being circulated By
with the hope OF affecting future
values
The Southern planter has the power
to checkmate these reckless despoilers
OF cur prosperity by manly and intel
ligent action. The only remedy is to
light the devil with fire, NEE! organ
ization with organization.
Do not be led into error that you
can combat this power without sys'e-
matte organization. You cannot de-
ceive the great firms that buy your
product. They have their emissaries
in every town and village; they are
ever scrutinizing your actions and
know more in regard to the general
conditions than you can possibly find
out.
Destroy the nnualsurplus of cotton
that is the active coadjutor Of the cot
ton bear" This can be accomplished
by increasing the acreage offood crops
ard consequently the iudicious dimin-
ishing of cotton acreage. You will
be better off with a seven million bale
crop selling at ten cents, supplement-
ed by ample food crops, than with a
ten million bale crop selling a. i've
cents.
The world spends about three hun
dred and thirty.fve million dollars
annually for American cotton. II we
make seven millioo bale crop they
run after US for our product. If we
make ten million crop we fall over
ourselves to sell it to them.
The ten million bale crop OF 81 and
'95 brought the South in round num-
bers two hundred and eighty-nlne
| million. The seven and half mil
lion bale crop of '93 and '94 brought
in round numbers two hundred and
ninety-three million dollars.
The seven million bale crop Of '95
aud SO brought two hundred and
ninety-two and one quarter million
dollars, demonstrating the fact that a
small crop brings more money ire,
spective OF acreage used for food crops
and the labor and money expended on
a larger acreage.
Our only hope of protection lies in
intelligent concert OF action. We
should keep ourselves informed Of
crop condition, amount Of production,
ETC., throughout the cotton area. Then
by systematic and judicious market
ing Of our crops we can realize inesti
mable benefits that never can be Sc
cured permanently otherwise.
Its not my desire to incite preJu-
dice, and I deprecate the arraignment
Of one class against another, nor
would l wish to fire the Southern
heart to any action beyond legiti-
mate resistance of commercial vandal-
ism, but l would that I could inspire
the spirit Of the Southern cotton
grower without reference to class or
color, to a proper appreciation of the
unfair attitude that We are forced to
occupy in the commercial world, and
wish devoutly that l could arouse
you from this lethargy which has
grown upon you so insidiously that it
car be likened to that OF the freezing
man who lies down and becomes actu-
ally comfortable through dormant
sensibllities, though even in the icy
grasp Of death.
Believing this to be OF paramount
importance to cur material interest
and that these questions in their most
comprehensive form should be grave
II considered, I deem it advisable that
the cotton growers meet in convention
that we may adopt some rule of action
by which We may be enabled to COM
bat these agencies that are daily grow
inp more destructive to our interests.