Fitzgerald enterprise. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1895-1912, 1905-02-21
RAISE PLENTY OF GRAIN
Commissioner Stevens Gives
Farmers Good Advice.
100000 BALES FLEEcY 5TAPLE

100000 BALES FLEEcY STAPLE
This Is the Amount eff Cotton the
South Should Plant For-M1. Ste
vens Well Pleased Win the New
Orleans Cotton Growers Meeting
The last report issued By the Unit
| ed States Department Of Agrlc Sture,
| at Washington, D. c., and also the
| ginners report, showing the crop OF
cotton raised the year 1904. has natu'
rally attracted great deal OF atten'
! ton. The crop as shown by the re-
ports is so much larger than the
| that it calls for earnest reflection.
| The low price Of cotton since
| last November has very seriously az
| fected many Of our people financially
| So much so, that all Of the cotton
, states through their organizations and
other sources, conceived the idea that
it would be best to call a meeting OF
the farmers, bankers and merchants
at New Orleans. l was fortunate
enough to be at this meeting, and
suffice it to say that it was one OF the
most representative gatherings have
ever attended. All the cotton states
and territories producing cotton were
present with large delegations, and
every single delegate seemed
| to be Of one opinion, viz: that the
surplus cotton now on hand should be
| stored and that as far as possible
it should be kept OF the market for
the present, and that an organization
should be formed for the purpose OF
inducing every planter to reduce his
acreage % per cent in cotton and fer
tilizers accordingly, so as not to raise
cotton crop this year to exceed
100000 bales, and in this way take
care OF the surplus cotton now on
hand without selling it at a sacrifice
There were a great many plans sug
gested, but the convention, after dis
cussing all of them, finally reached
the conclusion that by united effort
the people could be induced to hold
their cotton for the present by keep
ing out of debt and trusting to the
southern bankers to tide them over
until fall.
have for several years been urs
ing upon our people OF Georgia to
raise plenty of grain and forage fol
both man and beast, and to diversity
| their crops as far as possible, keep
ing plenty of pasturage, growing the
| various grasses suited to their lOca
| ton and climate, and by that means
| raising more hogs, more cattle, more
| poultry; in fact, everything that is
| needed around the home Or farm, and
| then, il we have an overproduction OF
| cotton, we would be prepared for it
! When we are out Of debt and have
| plenty Of home supplies. the price Of
cotton does not affect us SO much. J
still urge this plan, and hope the PEG
| pie of Georgia will stop and think fol
| a moment what we might do if we
would. TIL e history Of the cotton CROP
| for the last thirty years has shown
that the smallest crops have brought
the most money to the planters. Tc
| illustrate, in 1898, when we use6
| 100000 tons OF guano, we raised q
crop of 11,250,000 bales. That cror
| brought us less than 6 cents. The
| following year, 1899, we used 100000
tons of guano and raised crop o.
1 ~ IA ,crlo4
fraction over 9 cents. During the
| year 1900 the entire surplus of 1895
! was wiped out. We took an ever
start upon the market and the crops
since that time have been kept with
| in reasonable bounds OF consumption
| Therefore we have had up to the re
cent decline fair and rea
sonable price for our cotton
since 1893. Our people ought to STOP
and think for : moment what tn
result may be If crop of 100000
or 100000 bales is made this veal
19O5). We would be so Handicapped
with surplus cotton that il would take
us years and years TO be relieved. Il
will adopt the plans suggested by the
New Orleans convention AMI give al
the aid they possibly can On that line
was very much struck With
speech delivered b. FIR. Eillycr, o.
Macon, Ga, at the New Orleans con
vention, so much so that we repro
duce it along WITH this article, tina
our people may see upon wal line:
the New Orleans convention was ii
rected, and that it was Influenced By
the best Enanciers in Our Southern
States. We also reproduce a Letter
written by Col. Etarvie Jordan, take1
from the Atlanta Journal, shown;
the kind of machinery adopted b,
which all the farmers nl2y organize
by calling mass meetings il their mi