The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-12-21
FARLEY DOES NOT
 ENTIRELY AGREE Wants Nothing in the Nature
 of Speculation WILLING TO LEND MONEY Montgomery Banker Will Go to At lanta to Discuss Feasibility of Banks Coming to Rescue
 of Planters.

of Planters.
 Montgomery. December 2O-(special)- MT. Lewis B. Farley. president of the Alabama State -Jankerz' association. will go to Atlanta on January 24, to attend the meeting of the Southern bankers to dis euss the idea of the money institutions coming to the aid of the farmers in the present cotton price condition and help ing them carry what cottton yet remains ia their hands untl the remuneration has reached more profitable level.
 He does not agree with all of the sug- gestions made recently for the relief need- ed; neither does he believe practical all the plans made public by Banker w. s. Witham of Georgia. MT. Farley would avoid anything of the speculative in whatever may be done, feeling that this feature of the trade is largely responsl- ble for the troubles that do come. He says also that the banks of Alabama are able and willing to take care of farmers who have cotton and desire to hold it.
 When seen by the Montgomery corres- pondent of The Age-Herald today MT. Farley was busy passing on cotton &C., counts as they came into the Merchants and Planters Farley National bank, of which he is cashier Some features of the Witham plan for holding and storing cotton are very good,' said MT. Farley, as he dug up a couple of fragrant Ha- vanas and scratched match on the heel Of his shoe, but others are not practical. The proposition to have the farmers take the cotton to the banks and they hold it and try in this way to force the price to ten cents, regardless of the market, is not good business. Especially so is the idea of the banks selling it only at ten cents, fixing the arbitrary and unchange- able price at that figure. bad and spec ulative in dangerous way.
 Farmers Get Money.
 "The bonded warehouse idea is weak, in that few banks, if any, would be willing to go into a scheme that would build up so strong a competition with their best customers. True the farmer might be given in this way what money he needed at low rate of interest, but he can and does get it just as well under present conditions. l have letter here
 
 association suggesting that I call a meet ing of the association to discuss the con ditions and outline a policy for the bank CTS of the state. but I did not see the reason for it. This man said that he was willing to loan to farmers on a low rate of interest, which Is so all over the state. Every bank in Alabama, or the cotton section, for that matter, not all ready loaded up, is not only willing but anxious to make loans to farmers on cotton properly margined at very low rate of interest. We have just today made some loans of this class in good- sized sums and will be glad to take care of any reasonable amount of the same line of business.
 q am very anxious to see the price of the staple go up and believe it will. I do not think the figures now being paid are nearly up to what they should be and I feel sure that after the holidays there will be a rise as is frequently the case. The good that will come to the section from a higher range of prices is apparent. Though they are in the best fix of years the farmers would be able to further strengthen their position, pay off all they owe and let the merchants close up all past due or held over busi- ness for the year. which, happily is small in volume as compare to other seasons. IL would lafBely increase the direct deposits of the banks and give more money for circulation and cause practically all mortgages that are left on the court house books to oe lifted"
 Statistical Plan Bad.
 The plans for gathering statistics and distributing them and the issuing of such statistical reports. is not approved by Mir. Farley nor the Alabama bankers as whole. T agree with Congressman Livingston of Georgia" said MT. Far ley that there should be a thorough investigation of the ways and means of gathering these figures and the reason ings by which conclusions are reached ahead of time about the crop. I do not think the principle of reporting this way on the cotton crop is a good one viewed from its several standpoints, and believe it has a tendency to control the market along speculative lines rather than by the good and safe law of supply and demand
 why gather and send out the figures on cotton and not of many other com modities? Why not send out each week or month the number of hogs killed that the meat market would be effected. or on clothing that man might have to turn to the financial pages of the papers to find out how many suits are to be made by the end of the suit-making sea son? There is just as much sense in this as in undertaking to guess at the cotton crop several months before it is har- vested and marketed. It is true that If wrong estimate is made 1t can be cor rected later on, but this does not put back into the pockets of the farmers and merchants the money they lost in selling at the low range brought about by such incorrect estimate. Let us adopt sensible means in handling the cotton and not allow statistical speculations, no mat ter how honest they may be. to influence the returns from our largest and most remunerative product. The banks of the state, repeat. have plenty of money to take care of all the accounts of farmers who desire to hold their cotton and will be glad to do so."
 More Corn, Less Cotton.
 In a letter to a local paper NJ. F. Smith of Marion Junction submits a plan to hold the cotton crop down to 10000, GOO bales. He says: T have on hand 240 l bales of cotton worth at present prices $S40O. I propose to entail or make over | to N. Waller X Co. of Selma, Ala, forty bales of cotton by gilt edge deed, to be sold for my account not earlier than September 15 1905 This ratio of all cot 1 ton now on hand would practically make | this crop ten million bales, and we would | have on hand two million bales to start on next years crop. This would enable us to eurtail our next years crop four acres to the blow and add four acres of corn, which would insure us enough corn and meat to make the crop of 1906, which l is the bulk of expense of raising a cot