The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-08-05

~
mate success all the grander for the
presence and assistance of the wo-
men.
Colonel Jordan spoke of the farmers
institute he had been attending in Geor-
pia which had an average of 800 many
of whom were ladies'
cit is a splendid indication" said
Colonel Jordan, The surest and best
way to build up the country is to make
the homes OF the farm HE In the coun-
try attractive.
The speaker announced that he would
devote but a part of his remarks to
the subject OF production. There were
subjects of far more Importance to the
farmer than production. The problem
of production, he said, had been solved
land there was no present necessity for
an increase in production.
Marketing of staple.
THE important question before you,"
said Colonel Jordan is the question of
marketing your staple. The question
of how your crop should be marketed
after it is made 1t yet to be solved.
What does it profit farmer IL he pro-
/ duces twenty bales of cotton and dis
poses of 1t for what 1t cost him? He
is no better off than he was when he
started"
The question of selling cotton seed.
he said, was another problem which
was before the farmer for solution. In
Georgia the policy was, and he sup
| posed II was the same in Alabama, to
depend upon whatever price the buyer
offered for the seed. -
| He gave some interesting and start
ling figures upon the cotton seed ques-
tion. Last. season he said a ton Of
cotton seed brought $12. His hearers
| probaly did not realize what there was
in a ton of cotton seed for the mill
man. In ton of cotton seed there
are &C and 2-3 bushels. This yields
AZ gallons of oil, 725 pounds of meal,
$50 pounds of bulls and 40 pounds of
linters. AT last years figures these
by-products of one ton of seed. he said.
brought $50. 1t cost to manufacture
the by-products $3.50 and the freight
on them would be $3.50. Allowing the
mill man a clear profit of SIS. he said. no
| ton of seed should have sold for less
than $50.
If cotton mill men were not made
to understand by the farmers that they
could not get the seed except for fair
figure the farmers would only get IS
ton in the coming season for their
seed.
Commercial Fertilizers.
The question of commercial ferti-
lizers was another that Colonel Jordan
said demanded the serious considera-
tion of the farmers. In Alabama be-
tween three and three and a half mil
lion tons of fertilizers were used each
year. 1t was of the utmost import
ance for the farmer to know the nature
and condition of his soil and what 1t
needed for plant life before he bought
fertilizer for his land A low grade
fertilizer was often better than a high
grade fertilizer Fertilizer manu-
facturers had been known to grind
| slate and railroad material into high
| grade fertilizer to increase it's weight
and reduce II to low grade fertilizers
without loss. He advised his hearers
to demand high grade fertilizers and
get II. 1t was not economy to buy
cheap fertilizer. He advised his farm
er hearers to mix their own fertilizer.
The ingredients could be purchased
from the manufacturers and he had
| with him n formula for the mixingn of
] fertilizers, q Hes would distribute that
| formula which was printed In pamphlet
form. The fertilizer could be mixed
on rainy days. 1t would be a distinct
economy, he said.
Every dollar that you pay out to
these corporations over what you
family of that much money" said Colo
mel Jordan.
The Tare on Cotton. ~,
The spea1Sers tiien took up the tare
| on cotton. The subject he said was
| one about which the farmers knew but
| little. yet 1t was of vital Importance
to them. 1t affected the sale of every
bale of cotton disposed of in the South.
The bagging and ties which went on a
bale of cotton. he said were handled at
a distinct loss to the farmers The
| hIt he II \
4 ties. He illustrated by comparing the
sale of a bale of cotton to the sale OF
a coop full of chickens. If a farmer
was offered 10 cents a pound for chick
| ems I'm the coop the merchant
put the coop full of chickens on the
scales and then later weighed the coop
deducting II from the total weight. He
then threw the coop in the back yard
and the farmer received no pay for It,
The ginners put on bagging and ties
weighing about 90 pounds for the
farmer. The spinners in buying cot
ton always knocked off per cent for
| tare. This meant that 80 pounds were
knocked off for the bagging and ties.
The farmer in this operation sustained
a clear loss of ten pounds of cotton.
He called the attention of his hear
ers to the recent meeting of the South
ern Cotton Buyers Association IN At
| ithh'h at WHICH IL WAS ueCtdeu TO assess
each bale OF cotton so cents If 1t had
more than twenty-five pounds of bag
ging and ties upon 1t. He enlarged
upon tho injustice that was done the
farmer in thus marketing the cotton.
he sustained all the loss and running
| all the risk.
Rushing Cotton to Market
For forty years he said the farmers
of the South had been accustomed TO
rush their cotton to market and dis
pose Of the whole crop inside of ninety
days. This of course flooded the mar
ket and reduced the price. A flooded
market would reduce the price of any
| commodity, Under that system. the
spinncre had made money and the
| farmers had been barely ablo to exc
out livelihood. New England had
abandoned its farming interests years
| ago. but through its manufacturing in
forests the money had accumulated in
the manufacturing district of that sec
| ton until it amounted to the total
wealth Of the South. All that money
was made out Of the great staple OF
| tho South.
when cotton was as low as six cents n
| pound had been able to declare divi-
dends of from 60 to 10 per cent. The
| spinners wanted one thing above all
else. a surplus cotton crop.
The speaker was distinctly opposed
| to wholesale Immigration foreign
ownership of cotton lands and orga-
nized attempts to increase the amount