The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1909-01-21
FARMERS UNION RESULTS.
Survey of the Work in the Recent
Convention.

Farmers Union, which came to a
close last week, shows that
every important and almost every
unimportant recommendation made
by President Hightower in his an
nual report was crrried out with as
much precision as if that official had
done all the work himself. Here
are some of the most important ac-
tions and recommendations
Plans were laid for the immediate
organization of a gigantic produce
exchange with smaller local ex-
changes as feeders for the purpose
OF enlarging the markets, bringing
them closer to the farmer and thus
assisting the efforts to promote a
more general diversification of the
crops of the state.
| The organization of negroes as
union farmers, in any way to be
connected with the white organiza-
ton, or in any manner encouraged
by white men was severely con-
| demned. There was no objection
to the negroes organizing among
! themselves, and this will be rather
encouraged in spirit but not in oc-
tual practice.
| Managers of all Farmers Union
warehouses were required to take
a course in cotton grading at once,
in order to make them more compe.
tent in the handling of cotton stored
in the warehouses they manage.
The plan for the federation Of the
seventy warehouses in the state
and Incorporating them all in one
big concern, being stllsin the en-
bryo stage, was withheld from the
public, so far as Its details are con-
cerned.
A resolution adopted urged the
utilization of all available home
fertilizers, including cotton seed,
and that the members hereafter re-
fraln from the use of any ready
mixed fertilizer whatsoever, buying
only the ingredients and mixing
them as careful study of the re-
quirementS of their soils shows to
be besl suited.
The difficulty heretofore encoun-
tered in the use of cotton bagging
because of its lack of strength is be-
lleved to have been overcome by
the promise of mill representative
who was present that hereafter it
would be made stronger. The COM
!. mittee appointed to confer with the
mercantile interests to encourage
the use of cotton bags instead of
jute for sacking grain and other
sackable goods was instructed to
take the matter up with the Retail
Merchants Association, which is
said to be in sympathy with the
plan. This is in furtherance of the
general plan to increase the con-
sumption of cotton.
The committee on the eonserva-
ton of the natural resources of the
state was given sixty days in which
; to formulate a report.
The only proposed change in the
constitution of any importance was
that of increasing the annual dues
from 6S cents to $l.OO, mainly for
the purpose of establishing paper
to be the official organ of the organ
ization and to be sent free to every
\ member of the Union.
Il
This, as we'll as several proposed
minor changes, will be submitted to
the membership in a referendum
vote within the next sixty days,
days, and cannot become effective
earlier.
The proposed memorial to the
legislature asking for an increase
of quarter of a million dollars in
the public school appropriations an
nually, the abolshment Of the pre-
paratory department. of the A. &
M. College and the increasing Of the
annual appropriation for the sup
port Of county agricultural high
schools, was all along the lines of