The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-11-21
Spirit of the Press.
THE COTTON SITUATION.

Atlanta Constitution.
If the South will but hold out this
year, the planters will have established
the fact that no market can be rum with
out sellers as well as buyers.
The Hester statement, showing q
shortage Of S42, 600 bales in sight, main
tains the contention of short crop
Perhaps better way to put it, would
be that bogus receipts had more to do i'm
previous years in building up count
than 1t has been possible to make this
year, under the strong scrutiny which
has been fixed upon it. The intricacies
OF bale-counting, catching it at the sell
ing point, then at the cotton press, and
again at port is as favo1ite Il trick as
running up press register ON newspa-
per circulation. Whatever the cause.
the country has been pretty well watch
ed this year, and Il new game will have
to be sprung by the bears next YEAR
1t must be of interest TO learn that the
people themselves are entitled to much
OF the credit of upsetting the control of
the market. One market report, ON this
point, says:
1.-THE conditions i'm the South are quite
out of the common; in fact, unprecedent-
ed in the history of the cotton trade
there, and particularly mt this season.
when the movement of the crop is AZ
ways heavy, with financial inability on
the part of planter or merchant to hold
his cotton.
The early shippers of this season so
largely liquidated their obligations on
account of prices, even in September
last, Of 50 to 81 per babe more than had
been expected two months previous, as
to put everybody identified directly with
the cotton trade in that section in the POI
sition of comparative if mot actual indie
pendence. This is where the whole
strength lies.
Out of debt and upon his feet the
Southern farmer has learned what he
could do. When he drives into town
with his cotton bale, and can afford to
carry it back if prices are not TO his
liking, it makes a wonderful difference ia.
trading. mo, thank you" ne may say
to the cotton buyer, ''when you want to
see me again you can drive out and find
me- | am too busy to come back again.
That sort of independence means two or
three dollars more on the trade. and can
buy Christmas things for Sallie and the
children. This same authority, Speculat-
ing ON the future, with the Lancashire
spinner and the Georgia cotton planter in
view, continues:
THE longer European mill interests re-
main ont of the American markets, sup
plying their needs only from hand to
mouth and showing a disposition to fight
the producer, just to that extent are they
antagonizing the people who alone have
what the world needs and will continue
TO need for some months to come. Every
week several hundred Thousand bales of
cotton are being sold, AND 1T FORTH
iFIES THE SOUTH TO THE EN-
TENT IN HOLDING THE BAL
ANCE OF THE UNSOLD CROP, TO
WHAT EXTENT spinners shall or
shall not stay out of the market, or what
will govern the course of prices in the
near future"
The Southern answer to this situation
is very well summed UP in the New Or
leans progn0stication, which says:
sAdyices from crop centers show de-
termination on the part of spo1 holders
to persistently hold out regardless of the
course of Liverpool, with operators ON
the other side awaiting a decline before
purchasing further, claiming the South
is holding above a shipping parity. The
South has fixed its idea ON a smaller
crop than spinners are inclined to favor,
besides realizing that American and for
eign spinnars are short of the raw ma
terial and heavily oversold i'm manmfac-
tured goods, HENCE THE PRO
DUCER FEELS SECURE in TIIH
POLICY THAT HE is PURSUING.
So the position of cotton still hinges ON
the attitude of the spot department, and
il the producer can only maintain his po-
sition a few weeks longer, the results of
this struggle will be told i'm a very pre-
else manner"
In addition to the assured shortage of
the count of the present year as against
that of last, the bogus ''hold-over" crop
of stuff unfit to go into a loom has been
well punetured. Well informed authori-
ties show that spinners in Great Britain
now hold only $4,000 bales-less than
four days supply ahead. The consump-
ton in Great Britain is $4,000 bales a
week, on the continent $4,000 per week,
5000 per week more than last year. The
English spinneIs are consuming II. 800
bales day, so when they buy less than
this they are simply encroaching upon
their stock. With this showing they are
in a poor plight to be running a bear
campaign in cotton. Hence it as that if
the holders of spot cotton III the South
will stand firm for short time they can
probably get eight cents for the remand
er Of this crop.
Ordinarily the spinners might meet
such a situation with working short
hours or closing down. BUT THEY
ARE CHECKED UP WITH FUTURE
ORDERS WHICH THEY MUST
FILL AS indicating the cotton goods
market of the world, Dunn's report for
this week says;
'sCotton goods continue to advance
with a strong demand and with belief in
a short crop, so that some have been