Times-promoter., 1909-04-22

"The inevitable result Is that the
market price says, congestion ensues
and the individual who cannot afford
to hold off his creditors sells his cot
ton at loss.
Unbusinesslike and Unnecessary. :
"This procedure is unbusinesslike,
unnecessary and ruinously expensive
to southern industry. The cotton crop,
like every other crop, should be mar
keted only as it is needed. No manu-
facturer would think of selling his out
put in short two or three months.
"The farmer SHOULD be on an equal
business plane with the manufacturer
and every other producer Until he is,
he will lose himself and lose to the
south, hundreds of millions of dollars
unnecessarily each year.
"Now go back to the individual
farmer we were using for purposes Of
illustration. He deposits his bale in a
warehouse that is bonded and abso-
lutely as responsible to the COM
LhNASAoA WI Io oo 10 a oulOIJ NOihp"AJ
or an insurance corporation.
HE accepts for this bale a certifi-
cate certifying to his ownership of the
cotton.
"The backing of a reserve of mil
lions Of dollars, and of all the stock
holders, is back Of that certificate.
TT will be as full protected as
United States currency.
TT represents the highest possible
class of collateral for loans.
with the security thus outlined
supporting it, he will have no trouble
whatever in borrowing enough from
his banker to meet his pressing in.
debtedness, holding his cotton in the
warehouse until such time as it can
be marketed at price commensurate
with its ultimate value to the business
world.
Farmer Owns the Equity.
In borrowing this money, he does
not surrender the equity in his cotton.
1t is his, to sell whenever he pleases,
with the plain business exception that
the certificate he may have used as
collateral for the loan is a prior lien
upon the bale which must be satisfied
when that elimination Is reached.
'"Thus the banker, or loaner, is safe
guarded equally with the farmer
know of many banks and lenders of
money putting out large sums to-day
upon less reliable security.
"The amount the farmer can borrow
on his certificate will, of course, vary
with localities. 1t will be determined
automatically by the amount of cotton
his certificate represents and ruling
market conditions.
Certificates underwritten in the
iron-clad manner l have described
would eagerly be accepted by the fl
nanciers both in this country and in
Europe, and by mill operators both
in this country and in Europe. They
could be subjected to rediscounting
without affecting their value to or pro-
lection of the original holder"
Warehouses Must Be Erected.
'It will be essential, of course, to
provide sufficient warehouses for the
housing of this tremendous quantity Of
cotton. Already the south owns almost
enough of them. 1t will be compara-
lively inexpensive to erect enough to
completet the quota The surplus remain.
ing will go into the guarantee fund,
making absolutely secure these GER
tificates.
sThe transformation would work
benefit to the southern warehouses al
ready in operation. 1t would throw
more business their way at the same
rates, and create absolutely new busi-
ness.
"Crudely estimated, the cotton crop,
as marketed in the present haphaz-
ard fashion, brings into the south be-.
tween $55O,O0O,OO and $60O0O0,O00 q
year.
'Is it worth while to the south to
increase this sum by $150,000,000 to
$3.50, 900, 900?
"That is what the plan contem.
plates, and it is simply question of
arithmetic, as you can see with a pa.
per and pencil in one minute.
"The price such additional wealth
would cost would be but a nominal
fraction Of the gain, The profit of
the project for good and all. 1t is only
one year, would several times finance
amazing that the thing, considering
it's purely business aspects, has not
been done long ago.
Turning loose this tremendous sum
into the south annually would not only