The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-01-18

| the manufacturer or producer eApecls
large consumption of his goods, the price
! should be such as 10 be within the
| reach of a large number of consumers,
! for any article which Is luxury Is
i limited to a comparatively small NUMBER
of consumers. Now. aside from these
causes. which should naturally apply In
all cases affecting the price of manu-
featured goods what other causes are
there which are likely to affect and do
affect the price of cotton from year to
YEAR, While the minds of the producer
and manufacturer of cotton should be
at one-as II is best for both That falr
and reasonable price-one that would be
considered profitable TO the farmer should
be obtained-such, unfortunately is nor
the case.
Disposition to Depress Price.
Since the production of cotton, and
its manufacture into goods began there
has appeared a disposition on the part
of the manufacturer to depress the price
of cotton below what was reasonable
and fair-and for many, many years he
has been able to do this with the power
full influence attending the large capital
Invested in cotton mills, and between
him and the producer has been the
buyers, or the mill mans commission
men, who have used every persuasion
and force to depress the prices to please
called Cotton Exchanges, that deal
chiefly in air, and more frequently hot
air" are engaged in depressing the prices
of cotton and in the end always over
come the minority generally called 'bulls,
unless there is some unusual shortage III
the crop-which forces up the price
against all opposing obstacles Thus the
manufacturer not only has the advan-
tage of the great power in his possession,
hut he has as his coadiutors the dealers
and specuators-and with these COM
bined forces the poor farmer has gen
orally had his nose held to the grind
stone These influences and pressures for
low prices are not confined to the Eng
ish mill owners and the 4nglish and
continental mill owners, but they are
strongly seconded by the New England
mill men-and so far as | have been
able to observe. l have not found that
the southern mill men have ever COOP
Grated with a view of sustaining or ad-
vancing the price of cotton, however low
il may have gone. Ii is a most remark
able fact that cotton Is the only great
monopoly In the world that the pro-
Queer does not to some, reasonable OK
tent, control the price T<is is due cl1Aefy
to the fact that farmers do not cooperate
in maintaining prices, but are COMPETE
tors with each other. In my judgment,
there is but little hope for maintaining
the price of cotton through the hberality
of the cotton mill men, for 1t is quite
: natural that they should desire to make
all that they ean-and it Is well under
, stood that at this particular time they
are making enormous profits. 1t has
been repeatedly stated, without denial,
that cotton goods today are being sold,
| for present delivery, and for delivery
many months in the future, and in some
| cases a year, at a fair and reasonable
profit based upon IA cent cotton-and II
this is true, then the manufacturer Is
making the difference between IA cents
-, and the market price of cotton as an
| extra profit-and apparently Is unceasing
| In his efforts to press the price still
| lower.
Control BY Supply and Demand.
In the matter of control of price of
cotton by supply and demand, it is a re-
| markable fact that even with an est.
i mated increase of to 10 per cent over
the requirements of the world for cotton,
as estimated largely by the manufae-
| turers themselves or their agents, there is
a great cry for lower prices, the manu-
facturer apparently being unwilling to
have any surplus carried over that might
| be needed for deficiency for another
crop The fact is, he is more than ready
argument for the purpose of depressing
| prices. 1t is "A matter of history that
| some time about the year 1852 or 1883 a
commission was appointed by the English
| parliament to look into the question of
| securing a supply of cotton independent
of American cotton and this commas