Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-11-19
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neeTeu Dy meSSrS. brO"H anu f1dyho
four years ago, It would not be the
case now. And also this very fact is,
in our opinion, one sufficient reason
why our friends in the east would pre-
fer that ss6;OO0,O0O referred to above
should remain In Europe rather than
come south.
We would not be understood as say
ing that this panic was brought about
solely for the purpose of depressing the
price of cotton. Nor would we be un-
derstood as conceding that the move
ment of the cotton crop in no way fig
ures in the situation. Judge Landiss
$29, ,O00 900 fine, Mr.. Roosevelt's speech
against rich criminals" the teleg-
raphers' strike, the attempted copper
corner and the Knickerbocker bank
failure all stand out conspicuously In
the sequence of contributing events.
It was freely predicted that Standard
Oil, Hartman and others would hit
back at Roosevelt by throwing the
country into a state of panic. In what
1t has said, the State shows that IL
understands very clearly how Ameri-
cas- balance Of trade depends so abso-
lutely upon the cotton crop, and also
how essential that balance Of trade Is
to the commercial prosperity OF this
country as a whole. In fact 1t would
not dare dispute that the whole COM
mercial structure of this country has
been built on the cotton crop. Not
only that the commercial health and
life of this country still depends abso-
lutely upon this crop. Except for cot
ton it would be possible for the balance
Of the world to cut America entirely
out Of it's calculations. This might be
somewhat inconvenient; but still it
would be possible. And who UNDER
stands this better than the kings or
finance? Now, then II there Is reason
able ground to suppose that the kings
Of finance would get even with the
president because of his attitude to-
ward them, and their object was to
bring about panic, how else would they
accomplish that object except by at
tacking the principal source Of Ameri-
can prosperity, and what more formi-
dable method Of attack could they re-
sort to than the bringing about of
this currency striker" We do not be-
lieve such a condition Of affairs could
have possibly been brought about in
any other way. If our great financial
kings had been willing to preach that
under all recognized principles Of fair
ness and justice, sanctioned by the
laws Of supply and demand, the cotton
farmers are entitled to fifteen cents a
pound for their product, then fifteen
cents it would have been, and the COM
bined financial power Of the. balance
of the world could not have made 1t
any different. There would have been
no bank runs in New York; but in
the wind up the south would have been
free from all possibility Of another
such a squeeze during years to come.
But however all this may be, the
farmers of the south are in a fairly
good way to win out. Although pos
sibly not quite strong enough yet they
are in better position than they have
ever been in before. Their organiza-
ton has already shown greater
strength than was generally believed
possible either north or south. AS the
situation now stands, 1t appears to be
only a question as to whether there is
too much debt. If it shall develop
that there is too much debt, then it
should be their policy to get closer
down to their knitting in raising their
own supplies to the extent that. their
cotton will be surplus and absolutely
their own. When they have reached
that point neither Liverpool or Wall
street can say anything further about
the price.