The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-09-12
Something is wrong, and 1t must he

i tNiiS WHICH btStt uhtil5 VI iuu1IferpOf
to their condition, if they 10 nor ser,.
ously consider the present situation
with a view to their extricatfon from
it hereafter.
We are in receipt of a letter from
| Mr. A. n. Rogers, one of the most prom
inent bushes men of the city of Macon
| in which he recognizes the existing OWL
and representing that large class Of
| business men which is allied In intar
est with the cotton rasers, he calls
! for a remedy. In stirring words no
| declares that 'the principal cause for
| low-priced cotton now is that receints
| and offerings are too heavy. 1t is
| being dumped in with a rush. If this
! is corrected and controlled, cotton will
advance" Even as we write, the COT
| ton bears are telegraphng over the
country that the continuation of
heavy receipts" is an evidence Of an
overwhelming crop, when the truth lis.
as stated by Mr.. Rogers, that the dulnIp-
ing of the crop in one block upon the
market is the basis upon which such
opinions were formed. The remedy for
this state of things does not lie with
the newspapers, though they have their
duty to- perform in assisting and pro-
noting such q movement. 1t rests with
the farmers themselves, and with their
friends-the country merchants and the
bankers. These three elements must
get together if they would succeed. Di-
vided, they will rush ON pell NELL into
inevitable disaster this year and every
year to come, but united they can Gre
ate such a feeling and such a policy
that the wholesale dumping of the cot
ton product will become thing of the
past, and farmers will hold in their
barns their products to be marketed
at times and places TO suit their own
convenience.
Here is the situation: The farmers
of the Southern States, at the Begin
ming of each year, enter upon the pro-
duction of q crop which will call for
$500, 100000 That crop, III the han
guage of Mr.. Rogers, is dumped upon
the market" within from four to six
weeks, and the world is called upon to
buy it in a lump, regardless of it's needs
and regardless Of its readiness to buy it.
The result is inevitable. 1t goes begging
for purchasers, and in that condition
the speculat0r discovers a fine field Tor
investment Suppose that the iron mar
ket was restricted to selling season
of only six weeks, and that the products
lltiu ~ bC NoAIIId Wy HpttNidboAS llt bttI-
| ance of the year. What would become
of the price of iron during this short
period? The same lis true of every other
product The primal fault with the
handling of the cotton crop is THAT it is
thrown upon the market all at one time,
and that it's offerings from the farmers
does not extend over every month in
the year.
Let us take the spinner's side of the
question, and we will see where some
of the difficulty lies. A cotton factory
which uses, say fifty bales week, wants
1900 bales in the year. 1t is not to the
interest of such factory to be com
PEELED to buy a years supply Of cotton
| in advance. If it does, it has to pay
interest ON the money, warehousing and
| insurance on the cotton. To this extent
| the product must he discounted in the
hands of the farmers; but suppose the
| case was reversed, and the spinner could
| buy his cotton from week 10 week as ne
needed it. He would not be under the
necessity of investing so large sum
of money in advance, and could afford
| to pay more for it. To carry out this
idea, crop worth $300,000,000 is
picked i'm August and September. in
stead of lying in the farmers barns,
or finding it's way to convenient neigh
| boring warehouses, to be marketed grad
ually as consumers may need ii, it is
| thrown upon the market ali at once,
| and the world is compelled to expend
this S300,000,000 with a violent wrench
| which would play havoc with any other
crop just as well as cotton.
The calling of cotton convention to
consider these things fer date of Octo-
| Der 20, lin Atlanta, is the beginning OF
| most important movement In fact,
| surrounding circumstances would indi-
cate that we have reached at last the
opportunity of such an agreement as will
| bring about a better state of affairs
| in the South. Heretofore the banker
| has looked askance at the country mer-
| chant. The country merchant In turn
has been suspicious of the farmer, and
| the farmer on his part has been ready
| to fly at both. All the time the inter-
ests of these men We're one and the
same, and it was pitiable TO behold their
| quarreling With each other while tine
| spclIlator was fattening off their work
| Now, through the happy initiative or
| the bankers themselves, who were the
| first to see the error of this policy, all
| classes are called to meet together TO
| consult upon means which will be for
| the relief of all. The movements thus
| started in Georgia can be taken up by
| each Southern State, and thus a perfect
| understanding can be reached by which
we will support one another and bring
| back prosperity to the land.
Every movement which has hereto
| fore been suggested for the relief of
| the farmers has been made light of by
| the declaration that they will not stick
| together and that it is impracticable to
unite SO many men in a common under
| taking. The Constitution has already
drawn attention. to the fact that men
| just as promiscuous in character and
| just as widely scattered in territory have
| been bound together by common inter
| est for the expenditure of hundreds of
| millions of dollars. We refer to the
| work of fraternal life insurance socie-
| ties. These societies have grown in char
acter, i'll resources and in honest eX-
pendtures, until they stand side by
| side on the same solid plane with the
| old line insurance companies, just as
/ prompt in the payment of claims, just
as reliable in every way. Their sue
| cess furnishes a complete answer to the