The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1907-10-09
COTTON FARMERS
Urged to stand Together BY Pres.
idert {. D. Smith.
He Says the Gamblers Give the Lie't to
Their Old Excuse Of Supply and
Demand.

Hold your cotton" gr5
That has ever been the advice Of
Mr.. E. D. Smith. Now he adds: Keep
on holding"
The State says when he saw. We'd
nesday morning how the report to the
department of agriculture had veIi-
fed the claims of the Cotton associa-
ton that the crop was short and that
the price was ridiculously low, he was
wrought up to the boiling over pitch
when he saw that the gamblers on
Wall street were pushing the price
down and giving the lie to their own
excuse of, the past-"We must yield
to the law of supply and demand"
1T is robbery. 1t Is an effort TO
take the money out of the pockets Of
the people of the South just az q
pickpocket would do" said ME-.
Smith. They know that this Is debt
paying time in the South, and they
think, they have US at their mercy.
but we will give them 9 fight. which
will show them the spirit Of the
South is yet too prond to yield to
them. r.. 4
"Supply-it is short! DemRnd-
why, I am informed that the mills are
selling their product at q price which
would Be profitable If cotton were
being Purchased at Is cents per
pound.
Hold your cotton That is all
that I can say to the !faffners Of,
South Carolina. And all who will
hold are urged to let me know that
they will hold and how much they
will hold. It will require just q few
lines on a postal card addressed to
our Office, room $40, Skyscraper. Col
umbia, s. C."
"The government report, both ais
to condition and number Of bales GIN
ned, was even more bullishs ethan the
friends of higher prices really anti-
cipated, 81 on condition and practi-
cally a half million bales less ginned
to date than last year, confirming the
statement that the crop was steadily
deteriorating in condition and that
that there was not and would not be
as much to gin this year, az last ~,
possibly 100000 bales This
amount is about correct as the per
cent. of decrease in condition shows,
and the ginners report certainly con.
firms this estimate. :
"Yet the professionals takeft as
a joke and proceed in the face Of
these conditions-that should war.
rant from 8 to AGENTS. more per.
pound than 1t is bringIng-to deduct
a dollar a bale from the cotton now
going on the market. Every argu-s
ment, all statistics, the law of sup
ply and demand, all In favor now OF
higher priced cotton , the South.
through her cotton organizations de-
manding a higher price, yet these
gentlemen see At to taunt them with
this added insult today toSa;2 20 p0fnt
drop in the market.
els it possible. that the bsincss
men and farmers of the South are
going to have it provenyto ascertatnty
that the cotton gamblers cam deter
mine what the revenue otthe South,
shall be and what shall be the per-
sonal wages Of every individual fn
the South? Or will they take this
occasion to prove that they are mas
tiers Of the situation?
j "The situation would be ludicroHs;
If it did not involve so many Inter
ests vital to the South. AS said Ia
my article Of last week, theionfy pos
slble answer is-to. stop Selling. cot
ton.
1.-THE bankers and merchants Of the
South as we'll as the creditors Of the
South should cooperate now In help
ing the South to win this fight. This
is the first time when conditions were
such that we will be in a position to
prove our friends and remember
them.
"Once more let me urge every man
who has cotton to report to me on q
postal card the number of bales he Is
making and how many he will hold
from the market. Reports are coming
in now. I want them as full as posi-
BILE so that I may tabulate them and
give them to the public for the bene-
fit of all parties Interested"