The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-07-13
M R. JORDAN DISCUSSES
THE USE OF COTTON
BAGGING

Since the lays of the Farmers Al
lance when such a heroic effort was
made to displace jute bagging with
the use of cotton bagging, southern
farmers have prayed that the time
might come when cotton bales could
be satisfactorily and economically
covered with cotton cloth. Seventeen
wears have passed since the legions
Of the Farmers Alliance Waged war
with the jute trust, were defeated and
had to surrender again to the pow
erful control of the jute bagging mo-
nOpOly. In looking back over the diff
fculties with which the cottont grow
ers had to contend in that memorable
contest to ascertain the Weak points
in the armor of the farmers which led
to their defeat, it is now openly adj
mitted that the trouble was with the
bale and the arbitrary tare assessed
against it's covering, which gave the
victory to the jute trust. The con-
tinued use of the large, cumbersome
plantation bale, which must necessa-
rily be roughly handled with hooks
in transporting it from the glnnery to
the spinner and the deduction by the
cotton trade of 6 per cent, or 80
pounds from the gross weight of the
bales for tare, has made it practically
and economically impossible for the
farmers to use a bagging which could
not stand rough usage and was heavy
in weight.
With the Introduction and adoption
of local gin compression, which With
IN the past year or two has been rem
uered practicable through the lnVen-
zion Of modern machinery, the use OF
cotton bagging as q covering Tor the
new style bales. will be made not only
possible but preferable by both grow
ers and spinners. In addition to this
the Liverpool and Manchester Cotton
Associations have recently passed res
olutions lifting the embargo arbitrary
six per cent deduction for tare, IN SO
far as it relate to gin compressed cot
ton, and have agreed to buy all Sucn
cotton by actual net weight.
The New England spinners nave
not only agreed to the action OF the
foreign association, but will pay an
extra premium to the farmers tor gin
compressed bales in order to offer ad-
Gitional inducements to reform the
present primitive and Wasteful meth
DDS of baling and handling American
cotton. The twentieth century new
style pale. which is now beng com
pressed at many gins IN the South' Is
2 neat 500 pound bale of the cotton or
+he square type, carrying a density Of
zoo pounds to the cubic foot, ABOUT
one-third the size of the ordinary
Diantation bale. and which will load
2 car to it's carrying capaclly at the
initial point of shipment, to be pllled
direct to the manufactures without
loss of time or IN
transit.
All domstic and foreign spinners are
unanimous in their objections to the
use of jute bagging as a covering LOT
American cotton. No other cotton III
the world is covered with Jute paSSihS
.,ceDt the cotton raised in this coun-
try. Jute bagging is not only heavy
IN weight. makes the tare n freight
on same unnecessarily hlgh ana eH-
pcns.ye to the but IN taxing
such bagging off the bales at the mills
y considerable noun of the lint is
detached from the bales, which is
either lost or sold as waste at two
cents per pound. In addition to this
he iute fibre mixes with the lint flDre
and causes no end OF trouble ana ma
Crial losses to S%pinnerS of fine yarns.
t is now admitted by spinners gen
rally that cotton bagging can be tax
IN off at the mills without any loss
.t lint; that the bagging can be de-
:crticated with modern machinery
nCw in use at the mills,
nt0 lint and woven back into yarns
md cloth. This would give an ad-
.,itiGnal value to cotton bagging which
"ouId enable the spinners to pay a re-
ate to the farmers for using cotton
'agging and thereby greatly reduce
he cost of bagging to the cotton grow
IS. A satisfactory bagglng can be
! AIDE from the cheap, low grade
staples of cotton, and experiments are
7oW being conducted along that line
y some Of the largest cotton mills in
his country. The use of cotton bag
ing, therefore, as a covering for
--'rerican cotton will increase the de-
and ~ our cotton by home mills;
'educe the present heavy tare and
11GA freight rates; satisfy the demand
~ the cotton growers, and meet the
YiShcs of the sDinners. With the
speedy adoption Of the local gin COM
session all of those reforms advo-
'ated by the growers, %spinners, trans
'Hftaton companies and the cotton
:ade generally will be made possible,
aod the expensive and primitive meth
""s today employed in the baling and
handling of American cotton will be