The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-11-14


and Combines
Correspondence of the Progressive Farmer.
"Agricola," OF Halifax county, has
been attendir g the sale of tobacco in a
near by warehouse, and judgir from
his correspondence in late issue of
The Progressive Farmer, he is not very
much elated with what he saw. The
account OF sales he copies is fair sam
pie Of prices now paid in most inland
markets. Ali intelligent farmers are
agreed, that the auctioneering OF to
bacco in our warehouses has become
nothing else but an empty farce, calcu
lated to throw dust in the eyes Of the
unwary. The auctioneer, as a rule, is
hired by the week or month for small
wages, and the biggest part of the auc
tioneering Tee charged goes with the
rest into the pockets of the warehouse.
men ~
Before the advent of the tobacco
trust, when much tobacco was bought
for speculation, the bidding and buy
ing were spirited an d lively. No n an
could tell or guess how much a pile of
tobacco would bring. Then the auc
pioneering was pertinent and helpful
to the farmers. Bat now, since the
great bulk of the weed is bought by
the American Tobacco Company, which
fixes the prices to be paid for the sew
eral grades to it's buyers in the various
tobacco towns, all genuine competition
has ceased / The buyers in turn, through
their petty local boards of trade fix the
price that is to be paid to the producer,
leaving for themselves all the margin
they po, si0ly can.
The werehouseman sometimes with
much gusto) starts the bid, leaving
enough margin for the buyers to throw
in few fractional bids simply to hide
the clap trap performance. If the
farmers could geE the price paid by the
American Tobacco Company they
could still raise the weed at a profit
and, as the phrase runs, make buckle
and tongue meet"
Far more hurtful than tde trusts and
combines a thousand or hundreds of
miles away from here, is the small cot
| erie Of parasitical fellows, these little
boards Of trade and combinea at home,
tho very people that send out circulars
asking for tie farm3r's produce and
patronage, signing themselves Your
. ssiends," that devour the substance of
the country. "Agricole" says they
are all getting rich. Yes, they are.
and why shouldn't they They have
it ell their own way, weigh as they like
and pay what they please. If the to
bacco is forthcoming, all that remains
for them to do is to help themselves.
| Aud they are no ways bashfuI to do so.
| Nest all OF the warehouse psople had
little or nothing ia the beginning but
cheek unmitigased and an India rub
Der conscience. Now they have fine
horses. carriages, bicycles, elegantly
furnished homes and plenty money to
lend out, on chattel or real estate mort
cages (tor an extortionate bonus) to the
very people from whom they flched
all their gains.
1t is no secret that the warehouse
men in this and adjoining counties
control the happiness Of hundreds of
hom 8 and the ownership of thousands
of acres of land. Some eight or ten
years ago, when the Farmers Alliance
was in it's heydays and the ever. recur
ring mistakes in weighing tobacco Gin
variably in favor OF the buyers) became
III nbearable, the Legislature was applied
to for redress, being asked to compel
tobacco men to employ 8 worn weighers
in their warehouses. Well, if. there
were no hidden tricks of the trade and
everything conducted right, it seems
reasonable to suppose that no opposi
ton would have been made to so fair
and equitable demand. But nothing
came of it, The tobacco men be came
furious and the citz91s Of the town al 4
most without exception took sides with
them. Petitions against the measure
were circulated and freely signed by
the town and a vast number of country
people, Many of the latter were ALI
ancemen. Able counsel were employed
to appear in Raleigh before the legisIa-
tive committee, make right appear
wrong and help defeat the mee sure.
It is strange, but nevertheless true,
that the average well dressed, smoothly
tonguei townsman exercises PECULIAR