Sharp County record., 1901-10-18

the pamphlet issued by the American
Cotton Company on "Roundlap Bale
Savings and Who Gets Them.
quote some extracts from this
pamphlet issued by the American Cot.
ton Company on "Roundlap Bale Saw
ings. and Who Gets Them" The PAM
phlet is issued by the company to the
public, and anybody interested in the
matter can get copies by writing for
them.
After setting out at some length
the saving effected by this system,
this pamphlet takes up the question,
why presses are leased, and says ::
Having perfected press for the pro-
duction of cotton bales capable of
such economies as these, the American
Cotton Companys next problem was
how to introduce it. To induce gin
ners to purchase this expensive piece
of machinery until its merit had been
demonstrated was out of the question.
The only alternatives, then, were for
the company to either build its own
gin plants. and to handle their out
turn, or to lease its presses to com
petent and responsible ginners. There
were objections to the first mentioned
course, of sufficient weight to make it
undesirable. If, on the other hand,
presses were leased, who was to buy
the cotton packed on them? Bales OF
cotton will not sell themselves, and
in it's early history cotton buyers
would have nothing to do with the
new bale. 1t was idle to expect gin
ners to put in presses for whose out
turn there was no sale There was
nothing then for the company to do
but to enter the market for cotton
baled by its process.
"The American Cotton Company ac'
cordingly adopted a system of leases,
offering it's presses on liberal terms
to the owners of modern gin plants
in good cotton districts, or to compe-
tent ginners who we're willing to estab-
lish such modern plants, and agree
ing to buy any prOperly-made round
lap bales at premium.
"Its cotton agreement does not re-
ouire that a single bale of cotton be
sold to the American Cotton Company.
1T places no obligation on the gin
ner to sell a pound Of cotton to the
American Cotton Company, but it binds
the company to buy every bale he Of,
fers."
Upon the question Of the sale of
these presses, from the same pamphlet
DID. 5 and g. quote as follows:
There never has been time when
any responsible cotton buyer, willing
TO paw what they are worth, could not
buy roundlap bales, and handle then
with profit The fact has been widely
advertised that roundlap presses are
for sale to ginners who prefer pur
chase to lease. Yet months afterwards
the representatives of these, the com
press interests in public state
ments, in public speeches before
compress associations and elsewhere
continue to assert, contrary to the
known facts, that the presses are moi
purchasable, and the bales are not fol
sale except through the American Cot
ton Company.
"The company's aims are simple, ant
easily comprehended by all who are
willing to understand.
'The American Cotton Company in
tends that the presses it makes shal
bale as much of the southern cottor
crop as possible.
"And it is determined that cottor
baled on them shall sell at the pre-
MUM to which it is entitled, anc
which is paid for it by the mills.
Further than this the company does
not 90. Ginners are free to buy OF
lease presses, and every round-lal
bale with all its advantages can Dc
bought in open competition by any re
sponsible buyer and handled through
TO the mills with all Of the resultant
saving but whenever and wherever the
ordinary cotton buyer declines tt
purchase roundlap bales on this basis
then and there the American Cottor
Company stands pledged to buy It,
From all of which it will be seen
as is already known to everybody Wht
desires to know the truth, that the
American Cotton Company does lease
it's presses for money consideration
and does offer to sell them. l.
does obligate itself to every lessee o
a press, that it will buy from him al
of the cotton packed on the press a
its full market value, and does no
obligate any lessee Of any press to sci
it one ounce of cotton. The purpose
of all this is clearly to guarantee
market for cotton packed on the press
and to prevent its being boycotted b,
cotton buyers refusing to buy tn
round bale.
A very bitter partisan Of Gov
Clarke's has said recently that "Ther
is no mistaking the fact that tn
American Cotton Company owns tn
best ginning and baling devices eve
invented" and the Governor practlt
ally says the same thin
himself today. Then ther
must be some reason 10
the fierce and bitter war made agains
its introduction. The question natur
ally presents itself-Who is interested
in preventing it's introduction? Doe
anybody make money by keeping tn
old barbarous methods in use? VIII