The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-10-10
Big Meeting to Plan Was
for their Own Self
Protection
JUSTICES STRONG SPEECH

Fine Address By Danville Man, Who
Has Successful Prizcry-If the To-
bacco Farmers Follow the Lead of
Stokes County Farmers in Being
Aggressive, and Yet Not Violating
the Law, They Can Put Up the
Price of Tobacco, or Better, Pre-
vent the Trust From Putting it
Down.
h tobacco farmers of North Ear
DINA. particularly in the old tobacco
section in Stokes, Surry, Forsyth and
adiacent counties who have seen their
products taken for twenty years by the
trust at about the cost of cultivation,
have come to the conclusion that
there is no hope of protection for
them by State or Fedora Govern
ment so long as the American Tobacco
Company has the influence it now has
and they are organizing in order to
try to help themselves.
A large meeting was held at DAN
bury last Saturday for the tobacco
farmers and it was an earnest n en-
rh usiastic meeting. These obaccO
farmers are engaged in building prize
houses in order to be able to hold
their tobacco and have some little
voice in its price, instead Of leaving
the fixing of the price altogether to
the tobacco trust.
AT that meeting there were strong
speeches, Mr.. Cromer, of Danviiie,
Va, the successful president Of a
Prizery Company at Danville, Va, was
present and made a good speech. He
is a successful farmer and a fine man.
a gentleman who was present at the
r1eatinp yUritoc. fIf tho fnhacon fa pm
ers follow the lead Of Stokes county
farmers in being aggressive and yet
not violating the law, they al put up
the price of tobacco, or rather prevent
the trust from putting it down. The
right sort of fight along the right line
viii win"
The meeting at Danbury was not
partisan at all. The Republican and
Democratic have suffered
alike from the robbery of the tobacco
trust and they were there to try to do
something to help themselves, since
have given them nothing but taffy and
let the trust run the tobacco business
us they pleased, up TO date.
The big speech Of the day, SO the
correspondent writes, was by Hon. E.
J. Justice, former Speaker of the
House of Representatives. He was
there at the invitation of the farm ers
to advise them about some legal mat
ters and also to make a speech. He is
recognized all over the State as the
abiest and most consistent legislator
Of a generation in h fight against
special interests, which was begun
earnestly in North Carolina while he
was Speaker of the House and which
will not terminate until the trusts are
punished and compelled to dissolve sc
that the can get a falr price
for their products and Independent
manufacturers may exist.
Below is a synopsis Of the argu'
ment by ~ex-Speaker Justice:
Synopsis of Speech by Mr.. Justice.
The organization of the farmer:
should be within the law, and within
the terms of what should be the law
against trusts, in order that you may
not be embarrassed in continuing your
efforts to enact proper legislation. l
is unfortunate that conditions are sucf
that YOU are unable to devote your
selves to questions of better farmlng
and of education, and to questions O
government in which all the peopl'
alike are interested. But both in tn
State m nation there have bee1
fought sham battles over the truS
question. until there is nothing left TO.
you to do but to organize to protec
yourselves against the organized greco
of the buyer of
No intelligent and candid man vii
deny hat the money that has peer
made out Of the tobacco raised IL
North Carolina in two decades is il
the hands of a few men who organized
the American ToEac Company. Nom
of it remains with the VIII
have done the work. Much of /
should be there.
If the Federal Government had beel
q real protection to the wax alsalns
the strong the armer would have
fair share of the profits Of the to
bacco business, and those who hav'
bbe them of the reward OF the1
labor would be in jail.
But you are here not to bewail con