The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-12-07

4 Y sbEd1ls VI w ttRAFf H. M 1AGWltT. J4
| Chatham; Il. e. Beasley, of South Bos-
toll, Va; r. A. +. Cooley, Of Nash,
ard others.
| All OF them discussed the value of or
ganization and recounted the fact that
| less tobacco was raised now than ten
years ago and vet the price was much
! lower. And all along the demand has
increased.
Mr.. Olive said: Il once thought the
remedy was to quit raising SO much to-
bacco. But / find that will do no good.
In fact it seems that the less we RAISE
the smaller the price we get"
Mr. Ragsdale: 1--WE are cursed by
trusts. That's the truth. They have
a monopoly of the market and give
what they please That's why we get
nothing for it, If YOU want to find the
cause Of Your poverty. look to the Amer
lean Tobacco Company"
Mr. Gates I've been raising tobac-
co far forty-seven years and it's lower
now than I've ever known before. I've
studied the conaltions ana I'm convinced
that the trust is the cause Of our trou-
BILE"
Mr.. Philips: 1T is very evident. gen
tlemen, that we are being oppressed
and il we don't enter a protest We will
continue to be ground down."
Mr.. Darden: Il began to grow to-
bacco in 1890 and ! got some very good
prices at first, for | do say it.
have the reputation of being a right
good tobacco grower. Now if | get l.
cents a pound think ! ann doing pretty
well. Yet my tobacco is better than
eyer before
Mr.. Cozart: 1--WE must organize. We
are the rolling wheel Of this world. If
ven only stick wen get what we want.
Every lawyer. doctor and every thing
else sticks. We must do it too. Now I'm
done We must get more for our to-
bacco or we are gone goslins."
Mr. Lewter: IF prices OF tobacco
don't get better we Chatham farmers
will have to go hack to our old trade Of
catching rabbits. Tobacco's so low we
can't afford to produce it."
Mr.. Beasley: I'm here representing
Virginia, and I'm glad 20 find such a
sentiment among the farmers oil North
Carolina. / shall be glad TO take back
TO my people in Virginia the news that
North Carolina is with them in this
fight"
Mr.. Ragsdale: Eve must form this
organization on business principles. We
cuss the American Tobacco Company,
and / guess it deserves t. 1t is respon-
sible for the low price OF tobacco, no
doubt about that. But it's a business
proposition with them. We've got to
fight them and fight them in an open
field. We've GOT wnat the trust wants.
Haven't we got the sense not to let them
have it until we get what we want? But
that's what we are doing every day.
Ten years ago the tobacco raiser was
making money Now these same men
have mortgages on their farms that they
cannot raise. If we sit still the trusts
and combines will have lis bound hand
and foot. tell you the thing that makes
me sad is the Indifference Of the farm
ers themselves | tried to get some of
them to come here, but they said, No,
Vel only get in a worse TX. Yes, the
trust grinds us down and the man who
takes our labor without due return rolls
in wealth and gives his thousands to the
colleges. That's alright. but its not all.
right the way he gof it. Mr.. Duke
has endowed Trinity College and now
he's offered $4,000 to the female college
in my town. l honor him for it. but
I'm tired contributing my money to such
purposes through Mr., Duke We've got
the power and the brains to stop it.
Lets organize in Il business way. Let
every tobacco county send delegate
men Of brains and experience here and
we can handle Mr.. Duke ! know he's
GOT brains, but he hasn't got them all
Mr. Cooley 1T seems to me the most
serious question before this convention
is that of organization. There Is no use
discussing the cause Of low prices. We
know it's the American Tobacco Com
pany. Let us get thoroughly organized
and then We can defend ourselves. Some
body says the solution Is to stop raising
tobacco and raise something to- eat. IN,
we can raise something to eat, plenty
Of it but my country is wrapped UP
with debt. Something TO eat doesn't
pay taxes or debts. We are compelled
to raise tobacco, but when we do raise
it we don't want to be compelled to give
it away to the man who needs il at his
own price. Let MS organize and when
we organize let us stick together. II
we don't mean business, then we'd bet
fer go back home. Why lets manufac-
ture our own tobacco rather than give it
away. You've already been told how
you can take so cents worth Of stuff
tobacco, taxes and all-and make $3.50
bacco is worth $1,25 pound. There
are plenty of ways to fight this trust.
Just let us stick together"
President James Dinwiddie, Of Peace
Institute, once a tobacco farmer in Vir
ginia made speech by request Of sew
eral delegates. He suspected that the
low price was due as much to over
production as to the trust. Then he dis
cussed the difficulty in getting the farm
ers to stand to any agreement.
Mr.. W. G. Smith: II just want to say
now let rs all 90 home. not to fight the
rllis. let us all 20 home, not to fight the
American Tobacco Company or anybody
else, but to try to raise the price of tobac
co. We don't want to fight anybody
When the question of the number OF
delegates came up Mr.. Smith thought
there ought by 70 means to be more than
three delegates from each county. The
other delegates thought the larger the
| delegations sent, the better. They wanted
five, ten or even twelve.
| Mr.. Smith spoke against this on the
ground that it cost too much.
Mr. Sykes: "Well it don't come out