The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1902-10-01
THERE WILL BE A HOT TINE.

THERE WILL Be A AU1 LINE.
There is certainly something
doing in the cotton seed oil in
dustry, which we fear portends
harm to the toilers of the earth,
and while it may bring smiles to
those who never sweat now, they
too, will learn that they have
sown the wind and reaped the
whirlwind. The cotton seed oil
trust has recently made a dicker
with Hallgarten & Co. and Blair
& Co., by which it has made a
sale of 100000 of bonds, thus
putting it in possession of funds
to increase its resources. 1t will
be remembered that last summer
the trust bought control of pot
ash in Germany, and now by in
creasing its resources with the
issuance of 81, 900, 900 will enable
it to buy more mills, put up new
ones where it cannot buy, and
then dictate prices. We feel
sure the stwill sooner or later
take in every mill in the coun-
try, even to the smaller trust,
sailing under the deceptive name
of "association." The whole bus
mess is a trust and nothing
more, and it's purpose is to make
all the money that conditions
will permit, and as rapidly as
possible regardless of the effect
upon those whom this money is
made out of.
It is a source of qualification
to hear that many of the white
farmers are hauling their seed
back from the gins and are not
being cajoled into selling by the
q cents per bushel offer. They
reason the matter sensibly, the
more paid for the seed the more
will the meal cost, and if the
mills can make a profit out OF
the seed after undergoing the
enormous expense, then it surely
must be equally as profitable to
the farmer to keep it, especially,
since it is known that the mills
do not add anything, but on the
other hand they take away a
good portion of the fertilizing
properties Of the seed. Our in
formation is that most of the
seed sold come from negro ten
ants, and if we are correct in our
conclusions, this can be remedied
another year by the land owners
stipulating in their rent agree
ments that the seed shall be re-
turned to the land.
If the big trust has issued the
100000 bonds to crush out
the associations" and other
trusts in their way, it looks to
US as if cotton seed meal will be
cheaper a little latter on. We
can rest assured Of one thing,
and that is, the ''association"
will not sell any lower than the
trust, and the ''association" will
not lower its prices unless forced
to do so by the trust. We be-
lieve however, the indications
are that a cotton seed meal war
is on, and we base our susplc-
ions, not upon any definite IN
formation we have, but from the
anxiety to get contracts for meal
closed for future delivery.
Whenever we see in any line OF
business an anxiety to push
sales for future delivery, in nine
cases out of ten, it means that
trouble is looked for, and those
who are loaded are uneasy and
want to unload, before they get
crushed under the heavy weight.
Whether there is anything in
our surmises or not, the farmers
are in position to resist any
thing like imposition and rob-
berry; if they will hold their seed,
and the trusts push prices up on
them, they can let the trusts
keep their yellow dust, while
they utilize the seed on their
lands. The result will be that
the trusts will be cautious in
the future, how it tries to throt-
tie the farmer. In our opinion,
it would be a blessing to the
farmers of the country if cotton
seed meal was to jump up to
$50 per ton, then they would let
the mills keep it, and it would
not take much persuasion there
after to save the farmers from
these destroying enticements.