The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-08-23
THE WHEAT CONVENTION.
Enthusiastic gM Getting Held at Greenwood
Last Week.
.tc"s ant tonric,.

al intensive system ~ culture. DC
made ,clf-supportiny The farmers of
/ your state must realize that every
pound If supplies which they purchase
in the open markets l., produced by
othc;n farmers in distant sections Of
/ the country who labor under greater
! difficulties thar those with which, We
have t. contend
When Southern farms were self
sustaining open accounts were the
only evidences Of indebtedness, and
the farmer word was as good a. gold
Sharp, shrcwd business men Of the
world soou saw that there were for
tune to be made in the cotton crop if
; the farmer could be induced to pro
ducc it in large quantities
The Western people saw an oppor-
! tunity for building granarics and
packing houses to supply the South
with food it VIC could be induced to
turn our attention entirely to growing
cotton. The big railroad nagnates
saw the grand opportunity to increase
di'idcnd,, multiply their rolling stock
aud otherwise fattcn on the frcights
to bc obtained BY transporting heavy
and costly supplies from the West for
the Southern cotton grower during the
spring and summer In the fall mil
lions Of cotton bales would be turned
over to them for carriage to the sea-
ports or Northern markets, second
whack had at the great Southern in
dustry.
The stock raiscrs Of kentucky and
Tennessee were pleased at the bright
prospect Of supply for the future that
beautiful Southland, where all that
was needed to make man rich was a
piece Of land planted in cotton, with a
negro and Il Kcntuckyamulc to plough
it.
Guano manufacturers saw at once
that plant foods in enormous quaint
titles would have to be supplied to
keep up the fertility of the cleanly
cultivated fields, and that the invest
mcnt would be good one. Cotton
expositions we're held all over the
country and the white staple crowned
king.
1t has taken twenty years to whip
the fight, but the intense greed of the
world has done the work, and to.day
the old king lies half dead in the
ditch, while broken and disappointed
mourners gaze upon the long trail of
q disappointed past. While the farm
er has lost in the struggle the country
at large has developed and increased
it's wealth steadily each year.
have no criticism to make of the
farmer for so largely producing cot
ton, even with the costly use of COM
nerciai fertilizers, when the business
was n lucrative one. Rutwc face con-
ditions to-day which are serious and
which make impossible the future
wholesale production Of cotton as a
means of developing future prosperity
In the rich, alluvial lands of the
Southwest, in which are embraced the
valleys of the Mississippi, the cxten-
sive plains of Texas and Southern
Oklahoma, cotton is being grown on
an average Of one bale per aero, with
out the use Of fertilizers. The farm
crs of your own State, after using an
nually hundreds of thousands Of tons
Of fertilizers, can barely average half
n bale per acre. With these heavy
odds against us and competition ar
nually increasing in the Southwest,
VIC will be forced to change our pres
cnt system Of farming. The solution
Of the problem by which we are to day
confronted must be largely determined
by the efforts of each individual who
is directly engaged in the production
of coston-and who, by reason Of q
full appreciation of his needs and conf
dlts0n, re6iiZe that he Is an important
factor in breaking the bondage under
which he rests, that the freedom and
independence Of his business may be
once more established. placing him on
that high plane Of prosperity which
was SO conspicuous in the early days
of our fathers.
Fill your granaries and smoke hous-
cs with the products of your farms,
stock your pastures with cattle, sheep
and hogs. Diversity your interests
and prepare to 60 into the markets of
your country with dozen staple pro-
ducts where you now only attempt one.
Cut down your cotton acreage and di-
versify the crops planted. We can
gradually get into the supply business
and raise enough cotton besides to
meet the demands Of the world, and