The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1908-12-11

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Our readers will remember when the
Society Of Equity was being organized
in this state Col. Joel T. Fort, "a silver
tongued orator from the Black Patch, !"
was imported to tell the farmers what
wonderful things the Society had ac-
complished in his country, and how Bit
terly he denounced everybody that did
not admit his panacea was the only sal
walton of the tobacco grower Hence
we are surprised to read in dispatch
from Paducah, KY, that the climax to
the general dissatisfaction among the
members of the Planters Protective
association, Of which COL Fort was a
prime mover and officer, was the filing
of a suit in the circuit court for a re-
ceiver and an accounting of the associa-
ton The plaintiffs In the petition rep
resent 5, 200 members of the association
whose chief purpose is to prevent the
the enforcement Of the 1908 pledges on
the grourJ hat the association has
failed in l..s purpose. 1t is claimed in
the petition that the defendants are
guilty of gross negligence and fraud in
the management Of the business affairs
of the defendant association, first in
taking and converting to the use and
benefit of the defendant association
large quantities of tobacco, which was
the individual property Of these plain
tiffs, to the amount of at least so
<l1 l1a fn co
association during the years 1906-1907,
or A, 100000 pounds, worth 10 cents q
pound, or $3.50, 600, which has been sold
and the. proceeds wrongfully held out
by the defendant association. That the
defendants charged planters 8 per cent,
on money advanced, while they secured
! the loans from banks at per cent. s,
| The petition recites In detail numerous
other grievances, all asserting negli-
gence and carlessness on the part of
officials Of the association. 1t is claim
ed that with proper management all OF
the 1906 and 1907 crops could have been
sold at a satisfactory price. 1t IS
claimed that the officers are holding
! more than $50, 900 derived from the sale
OF tobacco belonging to the plalntlffs
and that they refuse to distribute, with
C1lG HlCSilClOils sOI COllV SIGl1lS IL W CllOll
own use upon the dissolution of the as
sociation, and that the officers have and
are diverting large sums of money
| under the guise Of paying salaries and
expenses to themselves. It's claimed
that large quantities of tobacco and
fully 500, 200 in money are in danger of
being lost to the plaintiffs. Upon the
charges as herein specified a receiver is
asked for by the plaintiffs to take
charge of the business of the asSocla-
| tion and conduct it according to the
best interests of the members at large.
| We shall not undertake to say how
much of these allegations is true and
can be established in court, but when
5, 900 members unite in asking an inves-
tigation it is enough to put people on
their guard against these agitators who
are farming the farmers. It is al
ways well to look into what personal
interest they may have in the move
ment. How would it do to have Col.
Fort return and telkus how it's done?
There are probably few people in the
tobacco industry who have an accurate
conception of the Importance and mag
nitude of the tobacco growing industry
of Florida, which tobacco raising belt
also includes a portion of Georgia. In
Gadsden county alone the industry has
assumed mammoth proportions. Hun
dreds of plantations have been equipped
for tobacco raising, large number of
u