The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-01-13
Convention Recommends Rsduc- tion by Classification of Crops
HARDING SPOKE YESTERDAY
Birmingham Banker Tells of the Close Relations Between the Banker, Farmer and Warehouse
 man at New Orleans.

New Orleans, January E--Many of tho delegates were busily engaged with com mittee work today when President Jor- dan called the Southern Cotton Growers convention to order for the second days session. The committees were disposed to give most serious attention to the matter before them by reason of an appeal which President Jordan made to them to make their resolutions clear and un- equivoeal.
 Mir. Jordan said the eyes of the world were on the convention. and that tele- grams had passed between New York and New Orleans ntimating that the conven- ton would not have the manhood to as- sert itself. He asked the convention to let the people who are dealing in paper contracts and hot air" understand that the south will live up to what she has said.
 Texas Delegation Is Small.
 The attendance of delegates from Texas is not as large as at the convention last year. In some quarters the opinion is ex- pressed that the controversy between Vice President Peters and President Jordan Is responsible for the absenteelsm of the Texans. Colonel Peters, who was sus- pended from office by President Jordan. Is not In attendance, and 1t Is under stood that a successor to him will be elected when the new executive committee is organized. The sentiment of the conven- ton Is overwhelmingly in favor of the re- tentlon of both President Jordan and Sec retary cheatham. Every reference to the connection of the latter with the crop reporting scandal in Washington last year has been wildly cheered by the con vention.
 The convention today was slow in reas. sembling, but when President Jordans gavel. fell, the large hall was crowded to the doors
 State Senator Marlborough of Como, Miss, offered to the convention a copy of the bill which he had already intro- duced in the legislature to enable cotton growers to build factories and oil mills and manufacture, cotton into fabrics and cotton seed into oil It provides for cleo tions In counties or political subdivisions for or against an assessment tax on cot ton produced to create a fund to build factories. The bill was referred.
 Glnner Addresses Convention.
 By invitation Secretary Blackwell of the National Ginners' association made an address to the convention.
 There are not 3O0000 bales of cotton yet to gin in the entire south" he said. More than 50 per cent of the gins every where are closed. Many of the others have only five to seven bales to gin. Dry goods have been constantly advancing In price during the year past, and we have only to stand together to get the reasonable price the association has asked for cot ton"
 When Mir. Blackwell concluded E. D. Smith of South Carolina delivered an ad- dress on Cotton the Basis of Southern Prosperity" At the conclusion of MT. Smiths address the convention took a recess until this afternoon.
 Declare for 15c Cotton.
 That the sum of the work of the South ern Cotton association was to be a declar- alton for 15-cent cotton with reduction in the form of diyersihcation was practically settled at the afternoon session of the convention when Chairman Dancy of the committee on holding. in advance of the present action of It's report announced that the committee had unaniomusly de- cided favorably on that proposition. The announcement put the convention into a whlrlwind of cheers.
 The premature announcement of the conclusions of the committee was forced by advices from New York to the effect that newspaper dispatches and Wall street reports printed and circulated there indl- cated a lack of harmony among the ele- ments making up the convention and dis. sensions over the 15-cent proposition.
 President Jordan brought the matter be- fore the convention. He referred to these reports, which he said he was informed appeared today in all the New York pa pers. as bear dope" evidently manufac- tured by agents of the speculators who were sent to mingle with the delegates of the convention. The reports that ths convention did not have in its purposes. plans and work, the hearty support, sym pathy and cooperation of every bank and merchant present he declared to be abso- lutely without foundation.
 Alexander H. Smith of Greene county. Georgia, urged the sending of a telegram announcing that the south needed no money from Wall street, but had 1t to lend He said the five banks in his county were pledged to absolute support of the farmers and that not another bale there would be sold under 15 cents.
 T. E. Massengale of Georgia moved that the president be instructed to send statement through the Associated Press that the bankers, merchants and farmers were in perfect unison of thought and that he correct the statements to the contrary circulated by Wall street bear operators who were doing all in their pow CT to break up the Cotton Growers asso- ciation The motion was adopted.
 Goodwin Causes Amusement.
 Mir. Goodwin of Georgia said 1t was evi- dent that New York was beginning to anticipate from the construction of the Panama canal the transfer to New Or leans. Galveston and Mobile. of supremacy in the rich trade of the Orient
 When these people find they can no longer control us." said MT Goodwin. they will try to secede from this gov ernment. and I pray to God that I will live long enough to help whip them back into It." a sentiment which provoked the convention to amusement and cheers.
 MT R. Dancy. chairman of the hold ing committee then said that in view of the reports which had been circulated In the east of dissension in the convention. he desired to announce in advance of it's report that the committee was unani- nous in it's decision to ask the conven-