The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-01-09
COMMISSIONER STEVENS LETTER..

NNtNlA1HAONAsh ~ FMS III A4hN
Commissioner Of Agriculture o. b. Ste
vens has issued a New Years letter to
the farmers of Georgia which is full of
"hors- sense" and good advice. While
the commissioner is sensible Of the hard
times with the farmers which have re-
suited from the extremely low price of
cotton, he is not in the least Respondent
on the other hand he is hopeful, and sees
bright future ahead OF the energetic and
careful farmer who win make the most Of
his opportunities. The majority of the
farmers of Georgia, he thinks, viii this
winter not be able to pay the debts which
they contracted last spring and summer
for the purpose Of raising the years cot
ton crop. MANY of them" says the
commissioner. have unpaid accounts
against them for guano, corn. meat or
goods of other kinds" II is very poor
policy for them to be in debt for corn and
meat, or other provisions. These things
they ought to raise themselves. Since the
Confederate war the cotton raising states
have paid out hundreds OF Millions Of dol
lars for corn, meat and other provisions.
and this money has gone into the pockets
of Northern and Western farmers mer-
chants and others And there isn't any
valid reason in the world why every
pound of meat and every bushe of corn
used ia the South should not be raised in
the South. Suppose all of the millions
paid out for these articles had been kept
would not the cotton belt have been a
great deal better off? And there is only
one answer which can be made to the
query.
Many of the Georgia farmers this win
ter, according TO the commissioner, find
themselves not only without home raised
provisions for themselves, but have not
corn oats, hay, fodder and other feed for
their cattle, swine and poultry. They
must depend upon their credit and their
fvc-cent cotton to tide them over the win
ter; and in many cases the cotton cost
more than it is worth Their ready cap
ital, therefore, is on the minus side of notn-
ing.
The idea Of the commissioner is precise
ly in line with that of the Morning News
Cotton should not be abandoned. but IT
should be made a surplus crop; IAN abso-
lutte surplus crop" is the way the commits
sioner expresses 1t. Don't delude your
self with the idea" says he, chat your
neighbors viii diminish their cotton acre
age and therefore you may increase yours
with the prospect of getting good price
for it. There could be no greater mis-
take of judgment than this, as the SCI
fish farmer so acting viii find at the end
of the season." The truth of this asser-
ton has been seen at the end of great
many seasons. The correct thing for the
farmer to do is, first to make sure of pro-
vision supplies for his household and
grain and forage for his stock. Having
done this, he should plant some cotton as
a money crop. Commissioner Stevens
says it would be a good rule to plant about
twenty-five acres TO the pillow, fifteen acres
of this being in food crops and ten in cot
ton.
The commissioner embraces in his letter
some good maxims, one of the best of
which is this: Never go to town with an
empty wagon but always carry something
to sell, If only a load of wood"