The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1900-03-08
THE JORDAN PLAN.
An Explanatory Communication From
the Originator.
HOW TO BEAT THE IRUS1
nr. J. T. jordsn Eiaborates His Plan
To Down the Tobacco Trust and Sc
cure Better Prices For Tobacco.

Much has been said and written
tobacco trust, that the following ex-
PLANTATION from Mr.. Jordan himself is
both timely and interesting:
am in receipt of SO many Inquiries
concerning the details of my plan
adopted by the State Tobacco Growers
Association that | have concluded to
ask space in your columns to give the
public more of the plan in detail than
/ have yet been able to do.
The plan provides for the organiza
ton of company sufficiently strong
financially to buy the entire crop OF
tobacco grown in North Carolina, Vir-
ginia, South Carolina and East Ten
nessee for term of five years. 1t was
impossible for the State convention at
Raleigh to work out and establish all
the details for the management of
gigantic organization of this kind. All
that the convention could do was 10
get starting point or rather a
foundation upon which to build the
structure, and hence the adoption OF
the agreement whereby the farmers
are to receive not less than fifteen per
cent. more for the crops to be raised
by them during the next five years
than they have received for the last
five years crops, the farmers agreeing
to take fifteen per cent. Of their crop
in stock Of this company. This means
that tobaccOs are to be priced accord
ing to grades, and not according to
crops. 1t would be mlanifestly unfair
to give the man who raises meal
crop the same price the man who raises
a good crop would receive.
Should the farmers agree to go into
this arrangement and have organized
themselves in every county when the
time arrives for permanent Organiza-
ton Of the company and the signing of
iron clad agreements, | do not under
take to say that said agreements Will
be drawn in strict accordance with tie
agreement adopted in Raleigh. When
negotiations have reached this stage
the plan contemplates that large
board, consisting of as many farmers
from all over the tobacco raising dis
tricts as the farmers themselves see
proper to appoint to represent them
will meet like board appointed by the
parties who furnish the money. It
will be the duty of these joint boards
to mutually agree on all the details for
the management of this organization.
This means that this board is to pre-
pare the iron-clad agreement for the
individual farmers to sign, and to fix
the price the company is to pay for
each grade of tobacco bought during
the first years business, a similar
board to meet each succeeding year to
fix the prices for that year. When all
this has been done and ninety per cent.
of the farmers, Or enough to control
ninety per cent. Of the tobacco, have
signed the iron clad agreement, then
the company will Ibe organized and
ready for business.
AS it takes all the warehouses, leaf
factories, storage warehouses, ETC., on
the different markets to handle the
crop now, it will be much cheaper fol-
the organization to arrange with the
owners Of the said warehouses, fac
tories, ETC., to run them than it would
to buy them Or build others. This be-
ing true, and good business policy, we
will take the warehouse first: The
farmer will take the tobacco to the
warehouse just as he has always done.
The warehouseman will weigh it and
Then instead of selling it at auction
four graders, consisting of two farmers
and two expert tobacco men, will say
where each grade belongs. Fer in
stance, if the big board above men
toned has fixed the best grade oil
wrappers at so cents, the second al
40 cents, the third at 80 cents, and the
best grade of cutters at 25 cents, !he
! next at 20 cents, the next at Is CENTS
and so on down through the variou:
grades, it will be for these graders tt
say where each grade of each farmer
belongs. In order that the graders
may be prevented from showing any
| partially, the warehouseman viii
write and number the owners name il
his book, and put a corresponding
number on the ticket on each grade, 81
thar the graders can never tell whose
| tobacco they are grading.
| After the tobacco has been placed Oh
! the floors and graded as above &c
scfibed, then it is necessary to proyid
for the leaf dealer, or any one wh'
can redry the tobacco Very well. :
certain portion will be turned over tt
| A, a leaf dealer, a certain portion Il
C, a leaf dealer, another portion 10
D, a manufacturer, or to anyone els
who has the means for redrying tn
tobacco so that it will keep. Thes
dealers will recorder the tobacco. pac
it in hcgsheads and turn it back to tn
company, which will pay them thei
commissions. Thus the company
having paid the farmer Cor the Tobacco
and the warehousemeu and dealer
their commissions, the tobacco be
comes the absolute property of tn
company, and is placed in storag
warehouses with each hogsheads plain
ly marked as to grade.
AS soon as the company begin
operations under this plan it is read
tc deal with the manufacturers.
can then sell to all the manufacturer
in the world, on any term it may dec
proper and best. 1t will be in a pos
ton to favor the weak independel
manufacturer without tarming tt
strong, and thus enable the indepel
dent manufacturer to resume bushes
II no satisfactory arrangement can
made with the trust, which now owl
almost all the large manufacture
plants in the country, the company ca
, supply all the Independent factori
with material and build either factors
of capacity sufficient to manufactu
the entire crop. This company will,
course, supply all foreign demands Il
leaf tobacco. Thus it win readily |
seen that wareh ousemen, leaf dealer
manufa cturers and all breaches of Il
tobacco business will be taken care c
+ and no one will be cut out.
) The farmer who takes stock in tn
{ company, whether he pays for it
, cash or tobacco, will stand on the idel
teal footing with the capitalist WI
. pays cash for his stock, and both wi
= share exactly alike in profits, wheth,
they arise from the sale or from IL
manufacture of the tobacco.
: This is my plan, given as simply
! possible, and of course subject
: change by the big board referred to
. | The cnltSef whose dirty IL will he