The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-09-11

bales. IN that event. ,-e price od2ll
to 90 10 twelve cents. Mr.. Harris
Jordan. president OF the Cotton Grow
| crs Protective Association. has writ
| ten an article relative TO the price OF
cotton tina ought 10 be read and care
| fully considered by every grower of
| the staple. Mr.. Jordan writes:
Every Imaginable argument \ now
being advanced by the export BUY
| ers and ~spinners TO induce the pro-
ducerS TO hurry their cotton on the
market Al present low prices. pre-
dieting that if the crop i held BACK
prices VIII go still lower. | contend
that present prices. while unusually
high as compared with the fall mar
kets during the past few years. are
, vet far below the true value OF the
stape. considering the short crop
the enormous demand for cotton
| goods and the high prices OF the
finished fabric. When. 90 days ago.
conditions pointed TO an average yield
felt that the demand for u staple
i'm all parts of the world during the
| next u months. in the absence Of
any surplus from the last crop. war
ran4ed a price Of not less than 10 cents
| Der pound at all local markets. Since
that time unfayOrable weather condl-
| tions have largely cut off the crop,
| and 4hr general CONSENSUS Of opinion
throughout the cotton belt is that the
| crop this season viii be no larger
thar the short crop harvested last
| season. This being true. with no eVl-
| dence at hand showing any check III
consumption OF cotton goods during
| the next wear. as compared With that
of the past II months. and 4 shortage
of at least 10000 0 bales Of American
and Indian cotton. the price for our
staple should be in the neighborhood
of - cents per pound. The great
trouble now in the way Of obtaining
high prices is to convert every farmer
to a full appreciation Of the situation.
oct him to realize the true value OF
the staple and then market the crop
slowly. so as to force the mills to pay
fair prices this season. The farmers
have depended on the buyers TO price
their staple for so many years that
they have bat little confidence in their
own ability TO control the situation.
There is certainly no good reason
why the producers should depress
prices this month by rushing cotton
on the market. They W but little
| money before October. and when their
obligations fall due. the banks stand
| ready and willing to advance money
i'll toitoh III 'oN' -
able most farmers to pay their debts,
and gradually sell off the crop at good
prices. Letters received from farm
ers in Alabama inform me that the
cotton buyers there are urging them
to sell their cotton at present prices,
as the market will soon fall to seven
cents.
1T is rather singular hat buyers.
representing SpinnerS. should be so
anxious to pay high prices for cotton
now. when they assert. in the same
breath. that the market Will be much
lower within the mex two weeks. The
fact of the business is that the mills.
both in this country and in Europe,
are out OF raw cotton. and desperate
| measures are being resOrted TO TO Sc
cure even a short supply AT present
prices. because if they cannot buy at
existing figures. they Will be forced to
bid higher for the staple in the near
future. The mills cannot afford to
shut down.
"Their machinery cannot remain
idle. nor can the hundreds Of thon-
sands of employees submit to a shut
down simply to Give the mills an OPP
~pOrtunitN TO depress prices of the raw
material. in order that their usual
fabulous dividends may be declared.
The Southern mills will come 10 our
rescue as far as possible, but the
South can only spin up two million
bales within the mex twelve months.
ard our fight nus be principally with
the Eastern and European spinners.
who will come into the market as
| purchasers of the other fOur-tifths of
| the crop. and from whom we need eN-
pect no concession, except that which
is forced.
Being checked at every point
which has been usually advanced
heretofore to depress through the OPP
GRAFTON of the Cotton Growers Asso-
citation. the active work Of the South
ern Commissioners of Agriculture
and the Southern press in posting the
farmers on the situation. the mills
are now reducing the price of their
cotton goods in order TO temporarily
depress the price of the ray material.
Cotton goods have commanded unuSu-
ally high prices in comparison with
the prices at which the bulk of the
raw cotton was purchased last sea-
son and the wear before. Yarns have
been selling at Is cents per pound
when the cotton was purchased at 6
cents.
~ bale of cotton cost the mills $50
IN the open Market. 400 $40 more TOT
spinning and the yarns, spun from
the bale at q cost of $40 to manufac-
turer have been selling at 500. a profit
of $50 on each bale. Six and a half
yards of checked homespun are made
from one pound Of 6 cont cotton, and
the manufacturers price has been
four and a half cents per pound, or
nearly thirty cents, an advance OF
800 per cent over original cost of the
raw material. The mills can well af-
ford to reduce prices and still have q
good profit. paying 10 cents per pound
for their cotton.
The scheme. however. is to reduce
prices on made up goods somewhat
sell off supplies or hand. while using
the plan as a lever to hammer dowI
prices of spot cotton. and after then
supplies are bought wake up to the
fact that the demand for cotton goods
warranted better prices and a steady
advance in the value of their mil
products will take place. If the farm
ers allow themselves to be caught ant
unload heavily this month the mill.
Will buy two or three months sup