The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-11-01
Letters to The Editor
A MENACE THAT FoREBODEs EVIL.
Editor The Advertiser:

Editor The Advertiser:
An interview was recently publish
ed in several Southern papers given
out by Harvie Jordan; president OF
the Southern Cotton Association. In
which ne states that the South Is
confronted with the immediate men
ace Of night riders among the cotton
raisers Of this section and uses this
as one reason why the Memphis Con-
vention that Is to be held early in No
vembeE should have a large attend
I desire to urge. likewise. a large
gathering of the representative men
OF the South on that occasion, for 1t
Is my convtion that the South needs
the counsel and service of dts best
any other period IN It's history, not
only to produce a remedy for the
evil to which Mr.. Jordan refers. but
for many others as well, among them
being some of the policies for which
that gentleman himself stands pre-
eminent. ,..-
In the interview TO which I have re-
fered Mr.: Jordan speaks Of the pres.
that leaves an inference of direct per-
sonal wrong inflicted by some one
whom he does not name against those
high prices for that product. ignoring
or ignorant of the fact that 1t Is that
very spirit he IL evinctns which is
the origin and Inspiration Of night
In an editorial that published In
The Tradesman when Mr.. Jordan be-
gan his campaign for fifteen cent cot
ton / stated that night riding might
ers as the logical result of that move
mant and I besought the aid OF the
Southern press to save this section
from such an evil as I then fore
dan now admits that 1t exists and
refer TO this fact as evidence to indi-
cate which OF us was at that time the
wiser adviser of the cotton raisers
Mr.. Jordan was also Informed by
one Of the visiting English Cotton
Spinners who came 20 the United
States in 1906 that his movement for
fixed by the cotton raisers would not
prove for the benefit Of that class, ami
In verihcation of that statement one
can point to the loss Of about $500.
00O, 600 that occurred on the. crop. Of
1867 as the difference in the prices
that prevailed al, the beginning Of that
s create danger that was infiIcted on
the Southern Cotton raisers by that
movement came From the stimulus it
gave to cotton raising in foreign ma
lions. There were produced In tnat
year something like three million bales
by countri q outside the United States
which was more than all the. mills in
the South consumed and which largely
low prices At from ten to twelve
cents the South cannot be successful
iy competed with in cotton raising.
but beyond that 1t cannot hold the
markets OF the world exclusively for
its cotton.
The product is one that can only
reach these markets through the chan
mel Of the manufacturer as il cannot
be eaten or otherwise used in its raw
state, 30 that 1t is worse than folly
to drive manufacturers from markets
that they can only hold through mid1,
crate values. II the Southern cottoI
money for their product. and the de
sire for that L. only a natural one
they can come nearer obtaining thi
through cooperative manufacturing
than is possible by hghting manu-
facturers and causing them. to curtai
their product from inability to secure
prohts on arbitrary prices.
But the main point that / desire