The Savannah morning news., 1904-10-09
NEARLY A THIRD
OF ALL COTTON
SHIPPED TO SAVANNAH.
FOUR HUNDRED THOUSAND BALES
UP TO YESTERDAY.

Size of Receipts and Rush With
Which the Cotton Came RESPONSE
BILE for the COngestiOn-This StiI1
Exists, Though Strenuous Efforts
Are Being Made to Relieve IT.
Farmers Also Have Their TrOu-
bIes Because of Scarcity of Labor.
Nearly one-third of the cotton re-
ceipts at all the ports of the country
for the present season, has been ship
ped to Savannah. In round figures
these receipts here foot up 100000 bales
and are by far the largest ever re-
ceived so early in the season, exceed
ing those of last season at this time
by something over 100, 900 bales.
Despite such heavy receipts the de-
mand for cotton remains undated, due
to the fact that most of that received
had already been sold during the earli-
er part of the year, and came simply
to fill contracts already made while
for current needs. only a relatively
small part of the receipts were avail
able. This explains the fact that while
the port is congested with cotton there
continues an effort to get in more cot
ton from all sections, and 1t is an ur-
gent demand at that.
Receipts Caused Congestion.
The unusually heavy increase in the
receipts explains, too, the trouble in
which the railroads, the congresses
and every concern engaged in handling
the staple find themselves. They have
simply been swamped by the cotton,
and the rush came so quickly and so
Unexpectedly they were not prepared
for it and are still unable to see their
way out of the muddle.
From the best information Ito be
secured, little Roadway has been made
in Strengthening out the trouble for the
receipts continue to average well around
$4,000 day and are more than likely
to increase in size as the month ad-
vances. This is the more probable as
it is understood that the October ship
ments will be fully as large if not larg-
er than those of September, which
were a record breaker, and, as is nat
ural the great rush will come we'll to-
wards the end of the month.
Railroad Rescinds Guarantees.
If any further evidence that the tan
gle still exists were needed it can be
found in the action of one of the rail-
roads which, yesterday, notified a
cotton firm that it could give no fur
Their guarantees on cotton for any spec
flied dates. This means that the road
will deliver the cotton when it. can,
and that the consignee will have to
wait until that time.
Work day and night is being done
| by all interests, however, in the effort
| to set things straight, and in railroad
| offices, on the Wharves and in the Of
fees of the cotton, men and ship brok-
ers, Sunday will bear a close resem-
blance to week days, for everybody will
| be busy trying to get in shape for
| the rush of business that will begin
| again tomorrow. when the buying and
selling will begin again.
In all the trade no part of it will
| be buster to-day than the draymen.
The man chiefly interested in this part
| of the work yesterday secured the city
securing drays and other vehicles suit
able for handling cotton, and to-day
will have enough. it is believed to en-
| able him to do two ordinary days
work in one.
Planters Need Hands.
The Savannah cotton men are not
| alone in their troubles, if that be any
| not all that could be desired at some
| of the other ports, and even the farm
err is confronted with a condition prob
ably quite new to him and one that
is giving him much trouble, as we'll.
This is a shortage of labor for gath
ering the crop. The weather condi-
tons of the belt have been almost ideal
for weeks, the cotton has matured and
| opened more rapidly than the normal
supply of hands could gather it and so
the planter has been driven to the
necessity of getting hands from a wide
radius and by any inducements that
he could offer.
A gentleman who has just return
I'D to Savannah from the northern
part of the state reports that in some
sections visited by him planters are
now in the habit of hauling hands
sometimes from a distance of twenty
miles, uses his own teams to collect
them and bring them to the fields and
yet has to pay the standard rate of
wages. The same conditions are prev
alent, he says in certain counties of
South Carolina also. In certain other
sections of South Carolina village
homes have been depleted of household
help, servants leaving their former
places in order to get the benefit of
the more attractive wages to be had
in the cotton fields.