The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-11-08
Letters to The Editor
WHAT ALFALFA GAN DO.
Some Interesting Farming Notes from
 Good Farmer.

Some Interesting Farming Notes from
 a Good Farmer.
 Ansley. Ala, Nov. 5, 1907. Editor The Advertiser:
 A well iRformed writer in The South ern Ruralist says that land that will grow alfalfa is worth $100 per acre, no matter how much less it Is now selling for" 1 have at least 200 acres that will grow alfalfa all right. planted about an acNe in alfalfa on the first of May withkut any extra prepar- ation and with out any fertilizer. andS1 am pleased with the experiment. have long delayed trying to STOW al- ject declared it to be absolutely nec- essary to inocculate the land before 1t could be grown. l have proven the faliacy of this contention. My land has been growing wild or Japan clover for a long time and I concluded that this plant had already inoeulated the, soil and the result proved the cor- another year to thoroughly prepare and fertilize ten or fifteen acres and put in alfalfa during March and pas ture hogs on it. At present prices of pork there, is more money in hogs than cotton and much less worry. neigh Dor recently sold a lot of hogs fat tened on peanuts tor cents gross. which cost him not exceeding cents per pound. Now with an affalfa pas- ture and plenty of peanuts pork can county @ @f of Pike % for e less m money @ Una than in in Ohio or any other Western State. A Mfr. Benton residing near Banks, Pike County, has grown on old sandy land over S16 fJrsfIeis~ Of 5eTn-ess fifteen acres of land by using little over $lo worth of fertilizer per tcre. The fer tilizer was. all applied during the cul- toua tSat4n but of fese ths HHa pSGRe w in our grasp! We gre held down by letters forged by king cotton. As the price of cc..on has advanced ptne cost and our assets remain the same. For one, I am going to get out of the old rut. Of course. cotton must ever re- main our chief money crop. but 1t Is
 There has been a great slump in the price of cotton seed recently. From $20 per ton to $14 is enough to jar the average horny handed son of toll. It will be remembered that at the begiJ.- ming of the cotton season last year the oil mill men held a meeting and per- fected a closer organization than they had had before. and. 1t is further re- membered, that lotion seed could only be sold for SIP per ton in all sections of the State. We simple minded farm-l oil magnates agreed not to give more than the price fixed. The fact that the price was uniform throughout the State seemed to prove that there had
 
 price to be paid for seed.N It is true that little mill at Faunsdale gave S15 per ton for seed. but 1t was not in the supposed trust. and 1t Is also true that Georgia mills bought seed in this State paying as high as SIS per ton. These and other facts seemed to prove that the oil mills of Alabama had arbitrar:: fly fixed the price of cotton seed. and we so believed until the officials of some of the mills swore before the Legislative Committee last winter that They were all honorable, Christian gentlemen and would scorn to even evade the truth. However. the pres ident of a certain mill in South Ala over the phone to a party having seed and offering more than SIP per ton. It so happehed that the president of another oil mill having his ear to his 'phoTie overh card the parties. It Is needless to add that the official first referred to had a little trouble of his the purpose of insinus ting that the oil mill officials perjured tn emselves in the testimony before the investigating committee last spring. Rut this last indeed. The price of seed had advanced to S20 per ton. and then there was Q meeting of these same Christian gem rlemeng and presto. cotton seed went ford to pay more than $14. Reader, try to buy some stock in one of these mills. The price will stagger you. No other business in Alabama pays such enormous dividends If did not know that the directors and other officials of the mills were Christian gentlemen. many of whom hold high positions in their respective churches. wolhd say that they are no better thar set of highway robbers. When they swear that they have not fixed price to be paid for seed they deceive no one ex- cept themselves Without such an agreement if would be impossible to hold seed down at an uniform price all over the State.
 concede to the oil men the right to fix the price of their products but when they fix price for seed and that far below their intrinsic worth, in the name of fairness and justice I protest.
 J. NJ. Carter.