The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1905-02-25
Up TO THE SOUTH.
Executive Committeeman Potts Urges the
Farmers to Curtaii the Cot
tom Acreage.

tom Acreage.
[ am in receipt OF a circular letter
from Mr.. Theodore Price, of New
York, in which he says the south
raised la, 900, 900 bales of cotton last
year and that we carried 4s5, ZOO bales
over from the crop Of 1913, which, ac-
cording to his statement, gives a sup
ply to date of IA, 485, 900 bales.
If Mr.. Price is correct in his figures
We have a surplus OF practically :, 000,-
600 bales OF cotton. This means ruin to
the south unless we reduce our cotton
acreage and fertilizer Is per cent or
more, and we indeed have grave sit
uation to face unless we stand together
and meet it. The solid south has stood
together on many grave questions and
it can be depended upon to stand as a
unit on the cotton situation.
Every man in the south should join
the Southern Cotton Association and
help keep the price of cotton up to
where it will pay a legitimate profit
over the cost of production and keep
the south in a prosperous condition.
Il makes no difference whether you
are banker, merchant, lawyer, doc
tor, mechanic or laborer, your busi-
ness suffers when the price of cotton
goes below the cost of production. It
il up to the whole south to stand to-
gether as one man in this fight. Use
all the influence you have to induce all
of your farmer friends to raise more
corn and food crops and less cotton.
You have the best of the argument.
They cannot be hurt by it, but they
can be hurt, and you can, too, if they
help raise another ID, 900, 0O0-bale crop
of cotton, and put the price down to 2
or 3 cents per pound.
I am a farmer myself and want to
say to my farmer friends that at least
90 per cent of the people in my part of
the country have signed pledges to
plant rs per cent less cotton this
year. Mr.. Theodore Price, of New
York, in his circular letter that he has
just sent me and no doubt he b as sent
them to many thousands of others)
suggests that we are not going to be
true to ourselves and TO one another,
but that each of us will think that the
other is going to plant less cotton
and acting on this belief each Of US
will plant more, thereby causing a
crop of Is, 900, 900 bales of cotton to be
raised in 1908.
Now we all know If Mr.. Price is cor
rect in his suggestions that at least
5000, 900 bales of what we raise in 1905
will have no value at all and that we
will be forced to burn or destroy It il
some way to be able to sell the other
1900, 900 at 3 or cents per pound. The
surplus that Mr.. Price tells you about
OF 1900, 600 bales being carried over
from last year will also weigh heavily
on the market and you readily see what
a sad predicament we are going TO be
placed in according to Mr.. Prices
figures and his opinion of us. To
suggest that the farmers of the south
are going TO plant more cotton after
having signed an agreement to plant
less is to suggest that they are ali dis
honest, and this do not believe. I
believe that every man who signed the
agreement to reduce his acreage in
tends to do so and will do so even if
the price of cotton reached 10 cents
per pound before planting time. We
have had lesson that We cannot soon
forget and many of you are going to
have to buy 81 per bushel corn to farm
with this year when you could have
raised the corn much cheaper and
thereby have received more money for
your cotton.
A farmer cannot hurt himself rails
ing plenty OF corn and food crops, but
he can hurt himself if he helps to raise
another Is, 900, 600 bale cotton crop.
Plant less cotton, my brother, and
more corn. It will surely bring you
prosperity and we will have the salts
faction of knowing at the end of the
year that we have disappointed MIR.
Price and his friends who believe we
are going to cheat each other and raise
another big cotton crop. Above all
We must bear in mind that we are
aot raising cotton to please Mr.. Price
Dr. his friends, but we are working for
he benefit Of ourselves and families;
and MIR. Price's criticism and funmak-
ng of our New Orleans convention |
should stir the blood in every one of |
IS as il has never been stirred before |
ind make US determine th at we will win |
he fight.
Hold what cotton you have on hand, /
ny friends, and plant less cotton this
ear and you are sure to win in this |
light. We cannot afford to raise cot
on to burn: besides we are all op-
,osed TO such drastic measures.
PAUL NJ. PORTS,
Member Executive Committee for |
Louisiana, Southern Cotton AS
sociaation.
Civil Service Examinations.
l.