The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-09-07
UT TTON CROP WAS IO,O1t,374 BALES Secretary Hes CT Issues His
 Annual Report HAD GREAT MONEY VALUE The Crop, While Smaller by Over 7oo,- 900 Bales. Showed Increase of
 s1ss,ooo,ooo In Amount
 Received.
HAD GREAT MONEY VALUE

Hester s ailllQdl icpOlb NeS h9autu III AuiA today. He puts. the cotton crop of 19o8-O4 at 1O,011, STA bales, a decrease of 16,1S5 under that of 19O2-0s of 9,sO6 under that of 19O1-02 and s72,O4s bales under that Of 19Oo-0l.
 He says that compared with last year, in round figures, Texas including Indian Territory, has increased 45.0O0 bales. The group known as other gulf states, eonsist- ing of Louisiana, Arkansas. Mississippi. Tennessee, Oklahoma, Utah and Kasas, has lost 4S0000 and the group of Atlantic states. Alabama. Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia has fallen off s52 GOO.
 Mir Hester's report on the cotton crop of the different states is given as fol- lows in thousands of bales:
 Alabama 1000, against 1050 last year.
 Arkansas 7o5, against 10e0.
 Georgia 1925. against 147O.
 Florida 55, against 55.
 Louisiana SPA, against SS4.
 Mississippi 1887, against 14o4.
 North Carolina 563. against 575.
 South Carolina S25, against $50.
 Tennessee, etc., 451, against 509.
 Texas and Indian Territory 2S76, against 2S31.
 Total crop 1o,011 against 1o,72S.
 He makes the actual production of h. dian Territory 266 555 bales against S69, ,251 last year; of Oklahoma 17,055 against 1s6.0O0 last year, and of Missouri 34367 against 3O,905 last year, the two last being included under the head of Tennessee, etc.
 Average Commercial Value $61.68.
 He puts the average commercial value of this crop at $6l 6S against $44.52 last year, $f.01 the year before and S47 63 in 19ee01 and the total value Of the corn crop at $6175Ol ,54s against SiS0 77o,2S2 last year and s4ss. .Ol4 6S7 the year before.
 In reference to the total value Mr He's ter says that while the crop Is smaller by 700 and odd thousand bales than last year and is less by 1,263,000 bale< than the crop of 1s9s-99, which was the largest ever marketed, 1t has brought a better return in money value than any ever produced In the south. Referring to the increase in values over last year, he gives details as to prices, showing rhta while the low est range of last season was from Sep tember to January inclusive, this year the high scale of values was during the pellOu Ol liic bhif OI ilic NloP and goes on to say the reason was that farmers obtained more of the advantage of the rise instead of it's coming as usual after the cotton had passed out of the farmers hands.
 In other words, there were marketed up to January 31 of this year In round fig- ures S010.000 which sold for $447, 7100O0 while up to the same period last season the amount marketed was 7,9S5,000 which !. nj m 2500O bales, and an increase in the amount received of over $13S,0000O0.
 Superiority In Quality.
 Another important feature of this years crop, he says, which aided values, was its superiority in quality and staple, the difference averaging from a quarter to half grade over last year on the entire yield. The crop was singularly free from exterme grades with a very small proportion of the poorer qualities.
 Further referring to crop values, MT. Hester says that. when it is considered that the combined values of the past three crops resulted in payment of farm CTS, common carriers, merchants and other handlers of over $1,536O00,000, their importance as great factor in the prosperity of the south and of the en- tire country may be fully appreciated.
 
 over-estimate the values of both this and the last crop by many millions of dollars, and contends that the real Facts in con- nection with this years crop are of them selves sufficiently gratifying.
 He makes the actual growth for this season 10,032000 bales, with the remark that the commercial crops of the past two years more nearly approximated the growth than ever before.
 367,o94 More splndIes.
 He puts the spindles in the south at B. 615,369 ,an increase of 367, ,094. These in- clude 6S5,268 In new mills not yet com pleted. me net gain in the number of southern mills over last year has been twenty-two, making the total now 762 Of these 671 have been in operation dur ing the year, 57 are idle and 34 in course of erection.
 The consumption has been divided as follows:
 Alabama 22. .398 increase of 594
 Arkansas 1444, decrease of 1471.
 Georgia 419,561, decrease of 613S.
 Kentucky 20,341, decrease of 1925.
 Louisiana 16121. decrease of 1882.
 Mississippi S1, ,S44, decrease of 1882.
 Mississippi 3l,SH, decrease of 6137.
 Missouri 4341, decrease of 382.
 North Carolina 530.S14, decrease of 2O,- 9S8.
 South Carolina 5sasso. decrease of 4s,- 2a5
 Tennessee 44.7ss, decrease or 277s.
 Texas 16736, decrease of 6871.
 Virginia 56939, increase of 14,S91.
 Total consumption of the south 1919, ,252 a decrease under last year of 1s1. AT, and under the year before of 18,719.
 Bad Year for MilIers.
 In reference to the general manufactur- ing industry of the country. MT. Hester says that while the financial results of this crop have proven so highly bene- ficial to the planting interests of the south, they have been the reverse of the milling industry. American mills, north The difference between the cost of raw most unsatisfactory seasons on record. The difference between the cost off raw material and prices of the manufactured article have been such as to render many of the mills unable to make new dollar for an old one.
 There have been exceptions to the rule both north and south. principally in the latter. but even where mills have con- stunned as much as last year they have