The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-04-16
NEXT COTTON cRoP.
AnI t Be . Large or small ones

Shall it Be . Large or Small Onef To the Ginners and Planters: The cotton planting season is now
 beginning in the South and I feel it my duty to sound note of warning against
 a large acreage in cotton. The old
 maxim" As we SOW so shall we reap" will be fulfilled this season If you plant as large an acreage as last year. | With late planting. poor seed and a very poor stand last year and an un- usually early frost we made 11.361. 900 bales. including linters. this yield indi- cates that with the same acreage plant
 ed as last year and favorable condi
 tions we will probably make 1s.ooo.ooo | and possibly 1f000,0O0. What will be
 the result of such crop this season with the poor trade conditions due to | the panic of last year and the infu- ence of the Presidential election,
 which always has a tendency to delay development in many lines of indus | try.
 | It Is up to you as to what we will l be paid for the next crop. A large
 acreage means cents or even less, which will mean a Joss of many mill lions to the South. While reduced | acreage means good prices and gives you the opportunity of being inde-
 pendent of Wall Street influences in the market.
 Why plant an acreage that will pro-
 duce 100000 and will sell for only
 about $50 per bale or $s5o.oo6.oo0 for the crop. when an acreage that will
 produce 100000 will sell for $72o,- 100000 or with even a smaller acre. age that will produce only 100000 that would sell for $70 per bale or s770 900, 900 for the crop. To do this the acreage should be reduced about IS per cent. or nearly 5,000.000 on this acreage at least $50,000.000 worth of feed crops can be grown at much less labor than 1t would take to cultivate 1t Tn cotton.
 Why let the North dictate the price of our feed crops as well as the price of our cotton? They will do both if you continue planting for large crops. There is a vast area In Western Texas and Oklahoma that can produce half bale of cotton per acre at much less cost of cultivation than in the balance of the cotton belt. This section will continue to increase their acreage due to new people settling and opening up new lands. Some of these western counties this year produce twice as much cotton as in 1906, with the wealth CT conditions not so favorable.
 Do you want 12 cents and above for your cotton this year or will you go ahead bHndly and plant all you can
  you want to be independent of Wall Street plant forty acres in cotton where you planted fifty last year. Don't think that every one will reduce ex- cept you and a few other selfish ones and you will get the benefit of their common sense and judgment. This can only be brought about by every cotton planter doing his part Corn is sell ing throughout the South at from 70 cents to $1 per bushel and at least 75 per cent. of the planters are buying in place of having it to sell as they should each year.
 It is not too late yet to prevent a | large acreage being planted. l suggest 1 that Monday, April 20, be made day | of holding general meetings in every | school house in the South so that the | situation can be talked over and every | one act in. concert in this matter. At | these meetings should be appointed to secure pledges from ev- cry planter in the district that he will | reduce so that the reduction will be the same with all.
 I predict that if this movement is taken up in earnest cotton will be | selling for S10 per bale higher by | June 1. and the holders of the balance | of the crop will get good price for | the unsold portion of the crop. This alone will mean $1S,0oo,00o added to I the wealth of the South on the balance of this crop. Hohrs truiM
 President National Ginners Associa-
 tion.