The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-09-24
THE COTTON SEED OIL TRUST.

vie Jordan, OF en6 SOu6n0ru OO66OA
Growers Protective Association,
writes the Atlanta Journal as fol-
lows:
For the benefit of our readers,
especially those interested in the pro-
duction of cotton, I cali attention to
the following special dispatch re
GENTLY sent out from New Orleans,
which will throw some light upon
one of the problems we are likely to
face this fall and winter:
"NEw ORLEANS, Sept. 5.-The lead
ing cotton seed men of Louisiana and
Mississippi met here last night to fix
the price they would pay the farm
ers for cotton seed this season. The
meeting was strictly private, but it
is known that most of the leading
members of the National Oil Com
pany, which controls the price of
cotton seed and cotton seed products,
were present. The price agreed on
was 10 cents free on board river with
the usual rebate of one cent per sack,
equal to a rate of IL cents free of
board rail. This is a much lower
figure than the farmers received for
their seed last year"
Less than 80 days ago I wrote an
article on "Cotton Seed Products,
in which l expressed apprehension
that the recent wholesale purchase
of Southern oil mills by a syndicate
organized for that purpose, would
result in an early attempt to reduce
the price of cotton seed. If the oil
mill people, in accordance with the
information in the above dispatch,
are making an effort to put down the
price of seed to IL cents net per
bushel to the farmer, there is but one
| course for the farmer to pursue, and
that is to keep his seed at home.
Cotton seed at ID cents per bushel
means only So per ton, which is 81
cheaper than the oil is worth in a
ton of seed at present market prices.
In the old States east Of the Missis-
sippi a ton of cotton seed is worth
$12 to $40 per ton as a fertilizer on
land. West of the river, where the
farmers do not need the seed for fer
tilizing purposes, they are worth
equally as much for fattening beef
cattle. Beeves can be fattened for
a short period of time with cotton
seed and on as profitable a basis as
by feeding she meal and hulls. The
mills should give some good reason
why cotton seed should be a hundred
per cent. cheaper this season than
last, other than their ultimatum,
that they only intend to pay IL cents
per bushel.
EVIL OF MONOPOLY.
The great evil of a monopoly of
any kind is that it's power may be
used to the injury of the producer
or the consumer. A trust, as we
understand it's meaning in the com
meroial world, is a combination Of
capital in the hands of a few men
for the express purpose of securing
absolute control of certain commodi-
ties, break down competition, die
tate prices either as purchasers or
sellers and force the producer and
consumer to aocede to whatever
terms the trust proposes to make.
The producer of an important and
valuable article of commerce can
keep posted on the true value of bis
products and by the introduction of
good business methods and co-opera
ton become largely independent #
the dominating influence Of any kind
of trust, no matter how Pc werfUl it
may be financially. The consumer,
on the other hand, is more helpless
and to a certain extent at least must
bear the additional burdens Of higher
prices. Capital, whether it be in the
hands of few or many, when con
c~entrated, becomes the most power.
full factor in the world and Can be
used successfully as the agent of
either good or bad influences. The
combination of capital has come to
be one of the most popular methods
of the day in shaping the purse of
nearly all business interests in the
commercial and industrial lines of
trade. The organization Of the 6rust
is getting to be as common in fnan
cial oenters as it was a few years ago
to organize a country bank with
small capital. Both Federal and