The leader., 1905-02-04
FHE COTTON GROWERS CONVENTION.

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to write up as big a thing as the
Southern Cotton Growers Con-
vention held in New Orleans last
week, where the attendance was
all the way from two to three
Thousand at every session and al
most three-thirds Of the delegation
we're loaded to the guards with a
speech, present company always
excepted, of course. heard of q
debating society down east which
discussed the following query, to-
/ wit: Which is il the worse
shape, the man loaded with b
speech who don't get to 90 off, or
the man who goes off when be
isn't loadedg'' Tin the first IN
stance, only one man suffers; inE
the latter, the whole audience.
The most hopeful feature Of the
convention was, the farmer, the
merchant, the banker and the pol
itician were all ably represented
and were alike interested. Here-
tofore, in every effort made by
the farmers to organize, it seemed
to have been for the purpose of
making war on other classes. /
have belonged to every farmers
organization since the war except
the white caps, and always argued
that twas mistake to antagonize
other classes, but in legitimate
way, the farmers object should
simply be to take care Of himself.
But the fulness Of the time has
come when in the course of hui
man events, the above mentioned
classes are all huddled in the same
boat, and, in beautiful strains Of
reconciliation, they are singing
the old familiar song, Pull for
the Shore, " each one realizing his
dependence upon the other.
Among other distinguished
speakers at the convention, was
Gov. Jas. *. Vardaman, who
championed the large delegation
from Mississippi, and made the
Welkin ring with his eloquent
speeches. After one of Gov.
Valdaman's eloquent speeches, it
was little amusing to see an old
Georgia farmer who, judging
from the Governors general ap-
pearance that he was not much Of
a farmer, rushed to the platform,
snatched off his overcoat, dashed
it aside, and said in substance as
follows: Mr.. Chairman! Over
in Georgia there was a candidate
for Office addressing a large au-
dience of farmers, and in order to
catch their vote he said: My fel
low countrymen, / was born be-
tween two corn rows, and if am
not a farmer, what am Ig Punk
in be goshl was the quick re-
spouse from an old hay seeder in
the audience. !" His speech sim
ply brought down the house.
In an eloquent speech by Sena-
tor McLaurin, from South Caro-
lima, he said The Southern cotton
growers must begin to lay plans
to open up foreign markets for
cotton goods, and that if the teem-
ing millions in China could be
prevailed on to add one inch to
the length of their shirt that the
entire cotton crop of 1904 would
be readily consumed in that far
away country.
Richmond Pearson Hobson, the
hero of the Merrimac, said in a
speech that war in any country is
always detrimental to the price of
cotton, and that the United States
should strengthen her navy to the
extent that she can become the
worlds peacemaker, and turn her
self broadside to other nations and
say you shall not fight any more.
And if nations will 90 to war,
their battles should be fought on
the high seas and not drag the
toiling masses out to be slain like
so many cattle.
In q great speech before the
convention, Tom Watson, Of
Georgia, said that a few years
ago, because Of long drougths in
India and Russia, there was fam
inc, and the people were starving
by the thousands because of short
crops. But, he said, it appears
that foreign countries will have to
send relief to America because
they have made so much.
The convention was unanimous
in adopting resolutions advising
farmers TO curtaiI their cotton
acreage and fertilizers 25 per
cent.
It was also recommended that
farmers hold county and beat
mass meetings all over the South,
that there may be concert Of ac-
ltion throughout the entire cotton
growing region.
I sincerely hope that the far
mers in Lincoln county will act
promptly on these resolutions.
,. "a. SCARBOROUGH.
Editing d paper is q fine thing.
Il We publish jokes people say We
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