The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-09-02
THE PROBABLE PRICE OF COTTON

The farmers will set high price for
their cotton If the demand is as great as
is generally believed. The Brown specu-
lators could put Il up during the summer
when there is little cotton in the ooun-
try, but that did not benefit the farmers.
If cotton stays up when the crop is at its
height it will be due to the large demand
and not to any combination, for no combs
nation has yet existed big enough to con.
troll the cotton crop
What is the outlook? In the New York
Commercial, Mr.. j. NJ. Aver, formerly of
Raleigh, of the firm of j. M. Aver & Co.,
cotton brokers, gives his views at length,
reviewing the opinions of Secretary Will
son and Mr.. Butler, concluding with the
following:
THE high level reached has acted as a
check on the consumption of the supply
OF cotton in existence, and this has result
ed, as Mr.. Wilson says, in the closing OF
many MS and the shortening of time by
many others, etc, but as has been pointed
outfit every known bale of cotton had been
in the hands of the manufacturers and all
of it had been consumed, this condition
would have necessarily prevailed some
time during the season just closing. 1t
is. therefore. clear that the so-called corner
in cotton cannot be held responsible for
the inconvenience and hardships imposed
on employees by the closing of the factor
les
THE amount of available cotton that
has been or can be marketed from the
past crop and old supplies at prices above
9l5 cents is comparatively small, and tax
ing into consideration the price at which
the greater part of the old crop has been
sold. the actual average paid for it by
manufacturers would not exceed a price
at which it could be consumed at some
profit. Of course, the spot prices OF to-
day could never have been paid for all the
old crop without ruin to the factories I'M
less there had been corresponding IN
crease in prices of the manufactured pro-
ducts. Hence, it follows that unless the
price of such products can materially be
advanced during the coming year, the quo
tations of today cannot profitably be paid
for the coming crop.
Mr.. Butler takes occasion to call at
tention to the quotations of a certain
date. ranging around ten cents for Deem
Der, January, etc, and says that on that
day every planter in the South could have
sold the cotton he expects to produce at
those prices for future delivery, and that
if the planter has failed to do so, it is his
own fault. Now, the sale of every bale
of cotton made on the exchanges presup-
poses actual delivery and whenever more
cotton is offered than is desired at the
time, a sale cannot be effected without
some sacri.-ce in price. For illustration,
let us say the next crop will be IL OOO,O 900
bales Then let US suppose that all the
planters had offered their product
amounting to this 100000 bales) for
sale on that day. and had kept offering
it until all of it was sold. The conse-
uuence would have been nothing less than
a disastrous panic and the crash IN quo
tations that would have resulted can hard
w be uessed. In this particular, Mr..
Butler seems to have been as unfortunate
in his supposition as Mr.. Wilson was in
the use of terms.
THE SITUATION NOW IS ONE IN
WHICH THE PLANTERS COLD, IF
THEY WOULD, PUT THEMSELVES
IN ABSOLUTE CONTROL. THERE
is NO COTTON IN THE COUNTRY,
AND LITTLE IS AVAILABLE FROM
ANY SOURCE. SUPPLIES MUST BE
PROCURED FROM THE COMING
CROP, AND IF THIS CROP COULD
BE MOVED To MARKET ONLY AS
rACu, &C C,ONcJTNJEpS WOITT ID PAY
1OC OR MORE FOR 1T, THAT PRICE
MIGHT BE REALIZED FOR PRACT1-
CAII.Y EVERY BALE OF COTTON
PRODUCED DURING THE COMING
YEAR.
1.-THE operations of such an economic
plan as this can hardly be hoped for, and
there will surely be periods in which the
rush of cotton to market will be in excess