The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-29

that complaints against these arbitra-
 tions were not conclusively sustained, and this was true of the other specific h. stances brought to the attention of the bureau.
 It is not contended, however, that ar bitrations in New Orleans have invariably
 been fair In fact, in view of local jeal-
 ousies and particularly in view of the fact that in times of squeezes and cor ners there is great temptation for re-
 ceivers to attempt to influence ar
 bitra tors improperly, and that ar bitrators themselves might be uncon- sciously influenced by local sentiment, it would not be surprising If abuses of this. sort had ocurred Furthermore, as already stated, southern merchants them- selves very generally assert that New Orleans arbitrations are unduly severe. The fact. however, that the arbitration of
 cotton in New Orleans is left to men
 drawn by lot, and that both buyers and sellers have the right of appeal to other arbitrators similarly chosen, is reasonable protection against any general abuse of power It should be borne in mind that
 the tendency of a shipper naturally Is to l force cotton through which Is hardly up ! to the mark, and that complaints of ship pers may thus naturally be overdrawn.
 Difference Between Contracts.
 Moreover. 1t seems probable that dis l satisfaction over the classification of cot ! ton is either New York or New Orleans l Is partly chargeable to the inherent inn possibility of securing absolute accuracy ! In grading, even with the best or lhteh- tions on the part of those performing the work Furthermore, it is probable that
 many complaints by New York interests regarding New Orleans classihcations have been due to a failure to appreciate the
 material difference between the rules Of i the two exchanges. In particular, the pro- | vision of the New Orleans contract that
 nc cotton below the value of good ordi-
 nary, fair color, shall be deliverable IS ! exceedingly important, since it tends to ex- | clude a great deal of cotton which under | the rules of the New York cotton ex- | change is deliverable, or at least has been
 deliverable until very recently. Moreover, since the value of good ordinary cotton or | fair color may change from season to season, and even during a given season, ! this provision results in variable limit l for the classification of irregular cotton,
 such as the tinged and stained grades.
 As a result of this provision, cotton which
 may properly be tenderable at one time | iE New Orleans may as properly be ex-
 cluded few months later. This fact has
 probably been overlooked in many dis
 putes over classification Tn New Orleans
 market. In the same way some com
 plaints against the New YorlS classification
 may have been due to misunderstanding | Of the rules of that exchange.
 Conclusions.
 From the facts presented it is clear l that the classification of cotton at New
 York in recent years has at times been
 very faulty, and that on the whole there l has been a tendency to overgrade cotton. l lai a.
 tions have been unduly severe are not
 equally well sustained It IS not unlikely,
 however, that at times the arbitrations i in New Orleans have been too rigid. The 1 most important suggestion to be made in | connection with classification in either
 market is that greater care be exercised
 by those who perform the actual work 1 of classification. It is reasonably certain
 that many of the complaints against grad
 ing in either market are due more to a
 careless or improper application of the
 system than to the system itself, although
 in the case of New York it has been
 shown that the system is, in some re-
 spects, fundamentally wrong. Many dis
 putes over classification are undoubtedly
 due in part to the absence of common
 basis of classification. The adoption of a
 uniform standard, of course, should g. | far to reduce the number of such contro- l verses and at the same time to secure
 greater uniformity in the quotation of
 spota prices of cotton, the beneficial ef- fects of which would be far-reaching. 1 Aside from securing greater care in the work of grading, it Is desirable that both l the New York and New Orleans cotton | exchanges adopt more specific definitions i of the character of cotton which shall be l tenderable on contract and more specific rules for the guidance of classers and arbi- 1 trators. Such improvements are particu- weak staple The proposition that the value of tinged and stained cotton ten 1 dered on coptract in New York be de- | term,ned by arbitration instead of by the l use of arbitrary types for such grades, | even with the omnercial-diiTerence sys- i tenn also appears to contain some merit, , although there are practical difficulties in 1 thus modifying the certificate system ] Suggestions that appeals and reclassifica- i tons In the New York market invariably : be referred to an independent committee ! appear to be of doubtful value; 1t is, however. altogether desirable that appeals | at New Orleans be referred to larger 1 body of arbtrators than that wiich makes | the original examination. The ident.fica- l ton of individual bales Of cotton if New | York is imperativey dernauded, and this { improvement should be adopted at once. i The uncertainties which confront the buy 1 CT of future contract are necessarily great. and the failure to identify indi- vidual bales by grade can not be excused l At the same time 1t is desirable to in- crease the efficiency, so far as possible. of