The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1905-11-03

PARcHAAN. Miss. Nov. l, 1905.
Enrrou Wrrrrv-

Sottoh OrOWeIs ASSOCIATION, WIN
an accepted opinion that it would
fail. for the reason that many. per-
haps a majority, of farmers were
not able to hold their cotton for any
fixed price: and many had no con-
fidence in its ability to accomplish
much, and therefore would not be
governed by its suggestions; while
the Spectator will cite you to the
Grange and Alliance, and with the
air Of a prophet shrug his shoulders
and say the Southern Cotton Grow
ers Association will soon follow suit
and be heard of no more forever.
That the movement has hard fight
before il will not be questioned, even
by its best friends, but beyond doubt
this association has done more for
the cotton producer in one year than
the two former movements ever
dreamed Of. Indeed, my opinion
l. that the Alliance did the South
great financial injury. but not so
with the Cotton Growers. i remem-
Der when, in 1898, il was known we
had "A crop Of eleven and half mil
lion bales prices quickly fell from
! II To ic.. and very much of the
late picking sold "a low as 3 lie.
| remember in May, 1899 to have
sold 22OO bales of this crop at 40.
There was no Cotton Association
then. Our friends, the bulls, be-
came demoralizcd and sought shell
ter, and with the field in the hands
Of the unmerciful Bear and his
friends the manufacturers the South
with the best crop in her history
fell PROSTATE at the feet of these
manipulators, and became bank
r,ipt in the lap of her own prosper
ity.
When the government ginners'
report (the best and most reliable
system yet inaugurated) indicated a
thirteen million crop for 1904,
prices quickly fell from 9 To &c. +,
again indicating financial ruin for
the South. This WAS in Novem Der.
with mt least eight million bales in
bales in the hands Of the producer.
Our only friends, the Bulls, again
sought shelter and Bear predicted
&C.. cotton and at once demoraliza-
ton extended from the Atlantic to
the Rio Grande. 1t was this state
of affairs that suggested To the minds
of planters all over the South the
necessity for action, and immediate
action at that. On this chaotic con-
dition of things the Cotton Growers
Association was born. The babe
came in the midst of depression and
decentralization. Many, indeed a
majority of local buyers all over the
South, were caught loaded down
with : and &c. cotton, 80 that at
the birth of this babe the producer
and local buyer were confronted
with like conditions and both fell
PROSTATE in the lap of the infant.
For a body of men inexperienced in
wrestling with such conditions to
meet in convention and undertake
to save the South from financial
death, was an apparent impossible
ty: To the minds of the bears, a
huge Joke Nevertheless, they or
ganized and the fight was on. Act
ing on the advice Of this convention
cotton was promptly withdrawn
from the market. and although the
bear battle whanged the market and
advised the spinner To wait, and
predicted that the producers must
turn loose his cotton, still he held
on, and for the first time i'm my rec
election a crop was intelllgently
marketed 1t i all wrong to rush
cotton crop of any size to market
in three months.
But again, it was this Association
that detected corruption in the gov
eminent acreage report and brought
shame and disgrace, and / trust in
end, honesty, To its management.
But will the Association surrender?
This depends of course as to wheth-
er the people will support it. If by
acting on its advice and supporting
its management fourteen milton
crop can he marketed at an average
Of lie. instead of 4c., as predict
ed by the bears, then, in my judg-
ment, it is worthy of all confidence
and should bc loyalty supported,
and easily secure lie. for nine
million crnn Rut will the. ln.oDle