The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-03-06

Nine and q Half Cents Reached Here
Yesterday.

terday morning opened up Fifteen points
higher than it closed N Thursday after
noon Then it lost ten ~ IL hfrcvu z
points advance. bat later re-aincJ Eve
points. closing ten r~auts higher than
OH THURSDAY.
Spot cotton on the streets here soki
readily for ~ cents. or J, of a cent high
or than On Thursday. Ii fact there
were some transactions higher even THAI.
3l2 cents. I
This il the highest figure touched since
the sensational advance of four years
ago. The high level of that time was.
moreover. more speculative than other
wise. and not soiidiy backed by the act
ual facts OF supply and demand as = the
present improvement.
Cotton i now worth about $50 per bale,
as compared with 50 fs.r bale during
the greater part of last year. Their
has. therefore. been an advance Within
less than Il year Of four aud a half cents
Der pound. or over so Icr bale. an APP
probation in value II 80 per cent. When
cotton touched Z cents. some months ago
operators asked themselves. Has no
the advance eliminated: With cotton az
y cents. the impression II now strong
tLat there will bc a further advance. To-
cause it * held. On the one hans that
supplies on plantations are practically
exhausted. and. on The other. that the
co~tton-goodS trade was never better, both
ut home and abroad.
The present situation in cotton ! the
legitimate and to-~be~eXpectei result OF
q short crop coupled with the policy OF
holding OFF by foreign Spinners during
the early part of The season. RelleN-
ing firmly III the predictions Of Il crop OF
: 11.0OU.o q bales minimum, foreign buy
ers held out of the market. permitting
american spinnerS to absorb the lion :
share Of the offerings. Now that il has
! become apparent that the crop Will be
at least 1000 ~ bales short of early eN
pectations. foreign SpinnerS lind them
selves with dangerously small stocks.
both on hand and available; hence they
are compelled to compete actively III
Z American markets for the remnant of the
crop. and, consequently, are compelled
to pay the producers prices for II.
As to the future of prices. much Will
depend upon the continuance OF the pros
perity III the manufacture goods trade
and the prospects for the next crop.
whether or not the acreage Will be IN
creased. Even with the large purchases
Of cotton III American markets OF late,
Europe is still short Of her normal sup
ply Of cotton; hence even Il materially
! large acreage for 1900 could not be cX-
pectel to immediately offset the strength
of the actual statistical position OF the
staple.
As a result of the steady and material
advance AN the price Of cotton this sea
son. the South has enjoyed a perlod OF
nroSperity. The advance has melted
large points, the more particularly as the
crop was produced on q most economical
basis and practically without advances
The farmer has received something Ike
the worth OF his product and millions OF
dollars have been poured into the pockets
of Southern spectators.
II is freely predicted that the higher
prices for cotton will cause the South
to materially increase acreage. Ihere
will no doubt be some increase III acre
age: hut it is to be hoped that the South
ern cotton producers are not 50 bllnt
as to imagine that II much larger croI
could sell at anything like the price
which have been realized this year
Southern Farmers, let us believe, have
learned the advantages OF dIvers1fyln&
crops and intensified farming, and they
are not likely to increase their cottol
acreage at the sacrifice of other usefu
crOps.
Here's an interesting cotton stors thar
comes from &U;tIIotlt. o1ic Ia 'hiE
week q M~ecklenburg county farmer sold
!, TO a Charlotte buyer 20 bales Of cotton
Of the crop of 1879, which he had had
stored in Il barn ever since. he recelv-
Cd nine cents per pound for the staple,
the total aggregating about $50.
( This transaction furnishes Il basis foI
an interesting calculation on the cotton
, line. If the farmer had marketed his
20 bales as soon as ginned IN 1870 ne
would have received II cents per pound
, for it. or about $3.50. us the pr1ce II
1878 ranged from 13 1-16 to lie cents
had he invested his $3.50 1T SIN pei
cent interest and saved the proceeds h'
would now have something likV S3.)Ot
us the net result of marketing 20 bales
Of cotton. Thus it is seen that in thu
: ease it did not pay to mold cotton ever
though 10 loss had been sustained II
weight which. however. would amount
; to considerable in 4 period Of - years
The farmers actual loss is about 81,
800.