Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-07-19
a}listellanepus 8eading.
ROUND BALE AND SQUARE.
Three Round Bales Presses On the Mar
ket-The Question of Monopoly.

ROUND BALE AND SQUARE.
Three Round Bales Presses On the Mar.
ket-The Question of Monopoly.
The following letter to Mr.. c. c.
Hanson, of Savannah, Ca, from az
experienced ginner in Alabama, will
be read with interest in connection
with the present controversy over the
round and square bale methods o.
packing cotton:
OPELIKA, Ala, June 80, 1899.
Mr.. c. G. Hanson, Savannah, Ga:
Dear Sir: My press box measures
26 by 81 inches. However, will
change it this summer to the "a by 50
standard, as am in favor of a uniform
bale of cotton in size, and practically
uniform bale of cotton in weight
say $50 to 500 pounds.
In connection with your inquiry, an
swered above, 1 beg leave to say that
I am opposed to the round bale meth
ods of handling cotton on account OF
their apparent monopolistic features
The round bale people tell us that
there are three round bale presses in
the market, therefore there is no pos
sibility of a monopoly of the cotton or
ginning business.
Now, what are these three round
bale presses? What are their rela
tions and what is the competition be-
tween them?
have heard no one deny, except
the American Cotton Company and its
employees, that that company is en-
deavoring to place their machines on
the market upon monopolistic lines,
thereby driving the small ginners out
of the business, etc.
The American Cotton company,
which is working largely in the west.
ern cotton states, come out openly and
make a market for the products oi
their presses.
The Lowery Round Bale company
are making a market for the products
of their presses in South Carolina,
Georgia and Alabama, through Messrs.
Inman & Co., cotton buyers and ex'
porters of Augusta, Ca, which firm,
it appears they would have you be-
lieve, is different firm from Messrs
Inman & Co., who are handling their
presses throughout these states, al
though the two firms, as understand
it, are composed of the identical mem
hers, the only difference being that the
accounts, ETC., are kept separate.
When we tell the first two above
mentioned round bale people that we
do not care for their presses on roy
atty basis they wish to know if we are
prepared to buy, and if so refer us to
Ginners' Compress company, of Chica'
90, III, which company sell their
machine outright. Upon inquiry Of
the Ginner's Compress company, o1
Chicago, Ill.,, we find the price of their
presses beyond the reach of an aver
age 1900 to 1000 bale ginner and they,
in writing to some ginners, send them
the American Cotton company's round
bale literature, in explanation of the
merits of the Ginners' Compress com,
pany's methods of baling cotton.
Most ginners will doubtless tell you
that all of the round bale people are
doing all they possibly can to make
the "a by 81 standard square bale
movement failure. This I construe
as an admission on their part and the
"a by 81 packed bale of cotton will
meet all the requirements of the COM
mercial world, and if universally adopt
ed that it will greatly retard any
further progress on the part of the
round bale promoters; otherwise they
certainly would not be spending any
time or money to prevent ginners from
changing their boxes to the standard
dimensions.
We ask the travelling representatives
of the first two above mentioned round
bale presses, who are going through
the cotton states, and posing as the
farmers friend. why they do not sell
their machines, as most other invent
ors or manufacturers do, at a price
that will allow them a reasonable in'
terest upon the actual investment,
which l estimate to be about $3.50 per
machine, and they smilingly answer
you, in effect, why should we sell our
machines? No, we have a good thing,
which is fully protected by the United
States government patent office stamp,
and we propose to keep it, and operate
it on a basis that will net US from
81 500 to So 900 per machine per year.
Does not this now look like mo-
nopoly?
As yet am unable TO see any com
petition between these round bale
presses. On the other hand there ap'
pears TO be a strong combination be-
tween the three round bale companies
TO knock out the old methods of baling
cotton, so that the matter will be left
wholly in their hands. Yours truly,
J. #. PLUNKETT.