The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-11-02
THE EFFECT IN RALEIGH
Capt. J. J. Thomas Believes There
May be an Advance,
SUPPLY IN N. C. UNEQUAL TO DEMAND
Capt. Thomas Says Farmers Are Slow Paying
Their Deb's ar il is Easy 10 See Why
There is so Little Money in
Circulation.

Circulation.
at is easy to see why there is so lit
tie money in circulation in Raleigh and
why the farmers are so slow in paying
their debts,' said Capt. j. ]. Thomas,
president of the Commercial and Farmers
Bank, yesterday. Capt. Thomas was in
the cotton business more than thirty
years and knows as much about it and
TIE States dependence upon it as any
man in the State. He continued
Between September 1st and October
Goth. 1900, the 1893 bales of cotton sold
on the streets of Raleigh put in the pock-
cts of the farmers $290,000. They paid
their debts, bought fall goods, and the
money went into general circulation. From
the 1st of September to the 30th of Oc-
tober this year the 2,784 bales of cotton
sold on the streets of Raleigh put in the
pockets of the farmers sol 1000, reckoning
it at present prices, showing deficit in
the cash paid this year over last year of
$500, 900, or reckoned by days, it shows a
loss of $500 per day for each of the
fifty-two days.
y Raleigh and Wake county feel the eff
feet of the short cotton crop and the low
prices more than most sections of the
State, for we raise cotton chiefly in this
county and the crop is very short have
been in the cotton business thirty three
years and have never seen anything SO
bad as this year. The small quantity of
cotton being offered here is mostly sold by
men who are not in debt The men who
are in debt are generally holding their
AIn
chants are finding the collection of debts
slow
/ asked Captain Thomas if the crop
in this section was as short as the falling
oil in the receipts would Indicate. He said
1T is about as short as the receipts in
dictate. so far as we have been able to
ascertain. The estimate of the Agricul-
Ytural Department of GA per cent is full
large.
do you think the price of cotton will
go up?" l asked.
at will be late if it does. The Ameri-
can and English spinners as we'll as the
spectators believe the crop will be large
and they will cling to that belief until
late in the cotton year. The crop is
known to be three or four weeks late, the
weather has been fine for gathering, AMI
the acreage was from 71a to 10 per cent
larger than last season. These things
! lead the spinners and spectators to be-
lieve that the cotton crop will be larger
than it was last year when it was 49,
400 900 bales"
what do you think of the crop this
year," | next enquired.
According to the acreage it should
be larger than last year, but the crop
in Texas is said to be from 100000 to
1000, 900 bales short of last year and it is
very short in the northern tier of the
cotton country. We will probably not get
mere than 300, 600 bales in North Carolina
this year as against $4,000 bales last
year North Carolina will not raise
enough cotton this year to supply the de-
mand of the cotton mills located in this
State"
s'Do you advise farmers to hold their
cotton for better price," was next
asked.
IF a man who has cotton is out of
debt and can afford Ito hold, he would
probably realize better prices, but he
should not look for these better prices
until near the end of the crop year. 1t
is natural that the spinners should think
we will have large crop and keep down
the prices, but with my information
believe it will not only be late but a
short crop
us it true that cotton goods are going
up while cotton is coming DOWN. l
asked.
Eyes" said Captain Thomas. "and' it
cannot last Cotton must go up or the
product Of the mills must come down
There is fine demand for cotton goods
at the higher prices while cot
ton drops on the market. This shows
that in spite of the old law of supply and
demand it is possible to beat down the
market for cotton while the demand for
its finished product is good
AZ Judge Fred Philips, of Tarboro. who has
been in Raleigh on business, returned
home today. He grows cotton on large
scale and is fully as successful in max
ing cotton as any man in North Carolina
While he says there is falling off in
the cotton crop, Judge Philips says there
is no such falling off as he observed in
Wake county. "ThereAis section in my
country" he said between fifteen and
twenty-five miles wide and thirty five to
forty miles long where the cotton crop
this year was not affected as in most
parts of the State. | have farm about
three miles from Tarboro which is highly
improved Upon 100 acres / always make
100 bales. l have made 105 bales. l be-
lieve the crop on that 100 acres is as good
as | have ever seen and fully expect to
get 100 bales from it this year"