The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-09-05

~ANSAA oNuplC IOI 81 IIdHN XeuES lIldl
they have but 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 owe but little
money before October, and when their
obligations fall due, the banks stand
ready and willing to advance money
on cotton in storage, which will en-
| 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.
ut is rather singular that 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 next 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 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.
"Theif machinery cannot remain
idle, nor can the hundreds of thou
sands of employees submit to shut
down simply to olive the mills an OPP
portunity to depress prices of the raw
material, in order that their usual
fabulous dividends may be declared.
The Southern mills will come to our
rescue as far as possible, but the
South can only spin up two million
bales within the next twelve months,
and our fight must be principally with
the Eastern and European spinners,
who will come into the market as
purchasers of the other fOur-ffths of
the crop, and from whom we need eX-
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 raw 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 year before. Yarns have
cnIlinm of nOIInH
when the cotton was purchased at 6
cents. -
"A bale of cotton cost the mills $50
in the open market, add $40 more for
spinning and the yarns, spun from
the bale at a cost of $40 to manufac-
turer have been selling at 500, a profit
of $50 on each bale. Six and half
yards of checked homespun are made
from one pound of 6 cent cotton, and
the manufacturers price has been
four and a half cents per. pound. or
| nearly thirty cents, an advance of
500 per cent over original cost of the
raw material. The mills can well af-
ford to reduce prices and still have a
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 on hand, while using
the plan as lever to hammer down
prices of spot cotton, and after their
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 mill
products will take place. If the farm
ers allow themselves to be caught and
unload heavily this month the mills
will buy two or three months sup
plies, retire actively from the market
| and prices will be depressed in Octo-
Der. Knowing the situation if every
farmer will determine to market his
crop slowly and thus check heavy
rush creating an oversupply during a
short period of time high prices can
be maintained throughout the season.
Pricing the present crop is in the
hands of the producers this year,
where it should always be, and it re-
mains to be seen whether or not they
have sufficient confidence in them
selves to measure up to the require
ments of the situation. The specula-
tors on Wall street criticise as an alb
surd proposition the idea of the cot
ton growers of the South pretending
to interfere with the time-honored
custom of Liverpool and Wall streets
pricing the staple grown on Southern
farms