The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-01-22
AgriCultu1
,oBACCo GROWERS MUS UNITE.

Soma Plan of Warfare Against the Trust
and Standing as One Man I'M Executing 1t.
correspondence of The Progressive Farmer.
Heartily agree with The Progress
i've Farmer that the organization of
tbe North Carolina Tobacco Grow
srs' Association should be pushed
until a much stronger and more
somplete organization is effected.
Now that the election is. over and
the minds of the people can be
reached, it seems to me that we
farmers should be up and doing. We
are certainly confronted with four
more wears of trusts and with nearly
every article of commerce already
controlled by trust, is it not the duty
that producers owe themselves and
their children to try to place them
selves in position not to be robbed
Of the fruits of their toll?
We know that farmers can rule
their products if they would. 1t is
evidenced on all sides that capital is
now ready to assist in all honorable
ways to help the producers to OBJ
tain living prices for their products.
Recently a fifteen million dollar Or
Ranization has been formed to con-
troll the rice crop, embracing dealers
and rice producers for the purpose OF
raising the price of rice. In several
Northern States the fruit growers
have united with dealers to control
the price of fruits. The cotton plant
ors are organizing and seem to be in
fair way to control the price OF
cotton.
Then with three-fourths of our
tobacco crop already controlled by
the tobacco trust, is it not time that
we should use every effort to get to-
pether upon some plan to protect
ourselves against this gigantic mo-
nopoly?
Ny last paper brings the news OF
the sale of the P. II. Hanes and B.
T. Hanes tobacco factories of Win
ston. n. c., to the r. ]. Reynolds
branch of the Continental Tobacco
Co. thus cutting off another strong
bidder in the field for our tobacco.
In my Judgment there is no way
On earth to fight this trust business
except to get up a farmers trust and
control our tobacco, put it into one
organization and dictate the prices
it should be sold at.
/ have always been an advocate OF
the Jordan plan it may not be quite
perfect. but it can be made so, and
framed so as TO give farmers justice
m it is now intended. 1t only re-
pains with the farmers to complete
i and frame it 80 as TO give equal
iustice to all. Mr. Jordan believes
ruficient capital caR be secured to
handle the entire crop of the bright
belt, viz: Virginia, part of Tennes-
ase. North Carolina and South Caro-
lima.
The advantage we have is that no
ether section produces our kind of
tobacco and the farmers of such a
small scope of country, it does seem
to me, might get together and CON
troll our product so as to reap some
thing for our labor.
If it goes on few more years as
in the past, what will become OF US
ALP We are now confronted with
povertv and will in the next genera
Hon be confronted with ignorance.
We cannot educate our children.
1t is a mystery to my mind why
farmers are so hard to get to act to-
gether for mutual protection. Every
mercantile branch of business has its
boards Of trade and associations for
mutual protection, and their ten
Sencv is to walk hand in hand with
the trusts, and still farmers stand
and look on, and are robbed in
silence. l say it is time to wake up
and get a move on US and come to-
Rether like men and fight every
trust that is rObbing us.
You may ask any tobacco man and
the first thing he will say is that
YOU cannot get the farmers together
They say if you could unite them,
that thev could carry out any plan
they might adopt. So the verdict is
that it remains with the farmers to
protect their interests, and we might
a. we'll get at it now and make a
pull together to place ourselves in
position to better our condition.
helieue if the Jordan plan were