Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-05-04
PRODUCER AND SPINNER.
In Washington to Reach an
Understanding on the Cotton Cues

question. The meeting was composed
of representatives of the two great
branches of the worlds greatest in
dustry-the producers and manufac-
turers of cotton. The producers were
represented by the executive commit
tee of the Southern Cotton association
+, and the manufacturers were repre-
sented by a number Of spinners from
New England, Great Britain. Germany
| and France. Mr.. ]. c. MacColl Of the
New England Spinners' association was
chosen to preside and Mr.. Harvie. Jor-
dan, president Of the Southern Cotton
association was chosen vice president.
Mr.. MacColl explained that the object
of the meeting was to see what could
be done about increasing the supply of
raw cotton which, he said was not
keeping up with the increase in spin
dleage, and this started some Of the
southern men to talking along the line
that If the spinners would only pay a
fair price there would be no trouble
about raising all the cotton that might
be required.
Representatives Of the producers
claimed that the price Of cotton has
all along been too low and that the
principal difficulties have been the
middle men and the Wall street gamb-
lers The spinners professed agree
ment as to the gambler proposition;
but were not yet willing to lay down
on middleman until the producers were
able to give some guarantee that they
could do business direct. There was
an effort to agree upon the desirability
and utility of the statistical reports Of
the government; but there were almost
as many views on this question as
there were members of the meeting
and the whole matter was laid on the
table. One spinner entered complaint
as to the manner in which the south
ern cotton crop was handled and baled.
He spoke of recent trip through the
south during which he saw twenty
bales out in the weather against one
in the house. He thought that the
southern farmers should adopt the
Egyptian system Of baling. But the
feature of the meeting was the talk
that Mr.. E. D. Smith handed out to
the spinners. 1t was about the same
talk that he made in the court house
at Yorkville. and 1t was defiant enough
to suit anybody.
After speaking Of labor conditions,
Mr.. Smith said: you need not bother
about that we will produce all the cot
ton that the world wants, but we will
produce 1t at a fair price. There Is
no need for you to go into Africa, to
Australia or the Argentine and make
costly experiments in cotton planting.
Take the money that you sink in these
experiments and add 1t to the price
which you pay for southern cotton, and
we will give the world all the cotton
it needs. We already grow In the
south one third Of the food supply that
the south needs. We will grow more
southern cotton grower Is never again
placed at the mercy of cotton spec
ulator. -. e. .
I'VE do not propose to stand a fluc-
tuation of from a cent to a cent and
half a pound, at the dictates of half a
dozen New York gamblers. We cah
grow the grades Of cotton that you
want, and all you want. If we know
that we are going to receive fair
price for it we can make contracts
with you for a year or two years ahead,
and we will deliver the cotton to you
direct.
why cannot the mills that need the
cotton come into the field and deal
with us who grow it? We are willing
to meet you half way. We know what
1t costs to grow cotton. You know
what ii costs to mill and sell 1t. Why
can we not get together and say here
is fair division of the profits for both
Of us. and cut out the middleman alto
gether? 1t will have to come to this,
for II you do not deal with. us fairly we
will take the southern cotton, put 1t In
southern warehouse turn southern
key on 1t, backed by southern money,
and hold it until the market is in such
a condition as to give us a fair return
for our crop"
Mr.. Smiths speech produced kind
of a frost among the spinners. They
did not seem to relish 1t and for time
1t looked as if the meeting was to
break up with bad feeling: but later on
the spinners got right, and there were
further deliberations and more talk.
Another topic of discussion was the
marketing of the product which en-
braced the questions OF warehousing,
stability of price and relations between
growers and manufacturers.
A. E. Calvin. president Of the Farm
ers' Educational and Cooperative
union. declared that 1t long had been
the dream of the cotton grower to
abolish all intermediate agents who
levy toll unnecessarily on the product
on its journey. from the field to the
factory.
The grower, he said. is the constant
and persistent foe of all forms and
methods of cotton gambling. Violent
fluctuations Of the market, he con-
tended, are quite as disturbing and un-
profitable to the grower as to the spin
ncr. He voiced what he said was the
unanimous sentiment of the southern
growers to join in any movement which
| promises to eliminate the gambler from
| the cotton market, to reduce the mar
keting expense, to expedite the de-
| livery Of cotton to the spinner and to
give reasonable stability to the market
price He declared that the south was
so completely able to supply the world
with cotton that with a proper under
standing with the manufacturers there
would be no necessity for conducting
experiments in Africa and elsewhere.
| Direct relations between the growers
and manufacturers was strongly urged.
President MacColl declared that the
prosperity Of the grower was mat
| ter of interest to the manufacturer
who would like to be able to eliminate
|
however, If the plan of constructing
warehouses and giving contracts would
do anything toward eliminating specu-
lation and also If, after storing the
cotton in the warehouses the product
for any reason went up. would the
growers be wiling to deliver 1t at the
regulation price they had fixed.
Several growers insisted that they
would live up to their contracts, and
Mr.. MacColl said he had no doubt of
that. but wanted to know what would
be done after the contracts expired
He thought. though. that as in all
probability the period of the contracts
would be about year 1t would be suf
fcient to kill speculation In the mean
time
In the discussion which followed the
proposition was laid down by the spin
| ners and manufacturers that If the
farmers and business interests of the
south will build warehouses. store cot
ton, finance 1t and put the product In
] charge of expert cotton men to handle
1t and practically be the medium Of
buving and selling between the manu-
facturer and producer. they will do
business on that basis.