The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-07-18
COTTON PROSPECTS
Chief Justice CIark's Trip
Through the South.
Tells of Probable Small Crop, and that
Prices Based on Supply and De-
mand Must Rise---Visits Battle
fields Also.

Chief Justice Clark has just return
ed from visit on private business
to Texas and to Florida in the course
of which he Travelled through all the
cotton growing states.
In the course of his tour he passed
through Alabama from Chattanooga
TO Meridian, through Mississippi from
Meridian TO Nicksburg, through Loui-
siana from Vicksburg to Shreveport
through Texas from Shreveport to
Henrietta in northwest Texas. Re
turning through Texas TO Shreveport
he passed down the Valley of the
Red River to New Orleans thence
through Mississippi and Alabama via
Mobile 10 Pensacola thence through
Florida to Jacksonville, thence
through Georgia to South Carolina to
his home here.
In the course of his travels he saw
several hundred miles of cotton acre
age for himself and met numbers of
drummers, travelling men. merchants
and lawyers and business men who
were fully conversant with the condi-
tons of the growing cotton.
Being asked by a reporter of this
paper as to the result of the informa-
ton thus obtained, he said that in
Mississippi Louisiana and Texas 1t
had rained almost continuously for the
last sixty days. in the rich bottoms
Of the Mississippi and other rivers
cotton has been submerged by freShets
and on the higher lands the grass had
taken possession of the crops and
many thousand acres had been turned
out The tenants who worked on
shares, finding there was nothing in
the crop for them had in many cases
abandoned their crops and gone to
lumber mills and railroad cOnstruc-
ton work, and in addition. in Texas,
the ravages of the boil weevil threat
en- to be worse than in any previous
year the Guatamelan aunts, imported
by the government, having failed TO
make an impression
In the lower half of Arkansas the
condition was similar. In the other
half Of Arkansas, in Oklahoma, Ala
bama. North and South Carolina the
condition was better, and in Georgia
the crop was very good, but in all
the last five named states there has
been more or less damage done by
the wet weather and freshets In
Tenn essee and Florida the crop is
small and is a negligible quantity.
Throughout the South there was a
decreased acreage planted, probably
of Is TO 20 per cent Altogether il
production than for some years past.
When asked as to the quantity of
cotton held over from last year he
replied that the government report
shows only sore half million bales
in sight in this country as against
a quarter of a million bales this time
last year, most of the surplus in sight
having been wisely bought up by the
British manufacturers last spring
when the cotton WI lower, the be-
ing an excess in sight i'm Great Britain
of over a million bales over that in
sight at the same time last year.
Chief Justice Clark at Chattanooga,
", z'ted tht Chickamagua Hattie
Field in company with Judge a. G.
Avery, Chairman of the State Chick
amauga Commission and Chief Justice
Hill. of Arkansas, son of General D.
Fl. Hill. General Hill, it will be re-
mem bered, as Lieut.. General COM
manded an army corps in that battle
and many hundreds of monuments.
some of them exceedingly costly. are
erected on the battle field by the diff
ferent States, both North and South.
Among the Southern states, Georgia
and South Carolina, have each a mon
ument more costly and imposing than
that on the Capitol square at Raleigh,
North Carolina, has not yet placed a
single stone though her troops there
went the farthest on that historic bat
tie field. An appropriation made by