The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-08-04
The American Cotton Company
(Planter and Ginner.)

The manner of the organization of
the American Cotton Company is
enough to cast suspicion upon it's every
act, to impeach forever the honesty Of
its motives, to make men avoid it as
dangerous to every interest but that of
managers and promoters. There was
an organization known as the Besson-
cite Company, formed for the purpose
of controlling and operating the inven-
lions and patents of Mr.. Bessonette,
of Texas, who had for years been ex-
perimenting with the round bale and
trying to perfect machinery that would
make it satisfactory. Finally, some
enterprising st. Louis gentleman, sup
posed to have more money than the
Bessonette Company, founded the Anne
rlcan Cotton Bale improvement Com
pany, which leased the Bessonette pat
ents and proposed to introduce the
round bale system throughout the cot
ton section. This company, it is gen.
orally understood, went broke in it's eff
forts to exploit the round bale, but in
stead of giving up the fight, went to
work to organize a company with am
pie capital to win success where it had
only accomplished failure. What it
needed was a head that knew how to
organize a big thing and a name that
could raise money for a great enter
prise. These were found in possession
of the manager of the Sugar Trust, of
New York. 1t needed a name hOnOred
in the south, to offset among those
who had to be worked the bad in1u-
ence of the name associated with the
great Sugar Trust, and a Senator, of
Arkansas, was found. Then the Amer
lean Cotton Company was formed. The
capital stock wa made Sc, 1000, 900, of
which SO, 900, 600 was to be preferred,
and S. 5000, 900 common stock. The
preferred was to be sold for cash only,
the common to be used in taking up
the stock of the various companies
taken into the new deal, and for pur-
chasing new patents. Then came the
prorating of the stock. The Bessonette
Company, which owned the patents on
which the whole thing was based, was
allotted $460,O00 of the stock, the St.
Louis company, which had only it's
lease of the Bessonette patents, and had
gone broke trying to operate them, got
$40, 900; Searles, who was in some sort
of company which claimed some sort
Of machinery, got $3.50. 000-with his
associates and Senator Jones, who also
figured in a company claiming a pat
emit, got-with his associates-$I850,-
900.
Summary-Bessonette Company,
owner sof the patents, 100000; st.
Louis Company, lessee Of BessOnette
Company's patents, $4,000 Searles'
Company, owner of Sugar Trust mana
gers organizing ability, $3.50, 600; Jones
Company, owner of Jones influence in
the south, $3.50, 000. What better evil
dence could be desired to show that
more dependence is put by the promo
tiers of the American Cotton Company
in the ability of the manager to Or
ganize and carry on a great trust than
In the merits Of the baling system
which is the alleged basis of the Or.
~ganization? The actual merits of the
round bale system in the race fo- sue
cess are considered by the bers
of the company to be, as compared to
the power of money we'll handledy>and
combined with influence, as $780, 200 is
to So, 240,0 600.
Are the people of the south going to
turn their chief product over to the
domination OF an organization such as
that?
There is an old saying to the effect
that when thieves fall out honest men
get their dues" which we may para
phrase into when monopolists fall
out simple toilers get at inside facts"
The facts given here as to the organi-
zation of the American Cotton Company
are secured from the records in a suit
brought against the company by a far
sAmer stockholder in the Bessonette
Company. They are, therefore, au-
thentic.