The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1911-10-20
THE FARMERS ARE SIAMPEDED.

The farmers of the South, says
the Clarion Ledger, seem to have
been stampeded. The bear inter-
est has been assiduously circulat-
ing the report that there will be
Is or is million bales Of cotton
raised this season and have con-
WINGED a large number Of farmers
that this is a fact.
The past summer has been an
unusual one on account Of condl-
tons it threw about the cotton
crop. The weather itself, hot and
dry, was ideal for early maturity,
the army worm stripped the plant
in many fields of every vestlge OF
foliage, destroying the late crop
and forcing the older bolls to ripen
and burst much earlier than they
would otherwise have done. Cot
ton was picked as fast as it
opened, and ginred as fast as 1t
was picked, SO that now the entire
crop is practically gathered, and a
large part of it has been ginned
and packed. During a usual year
at this time Of the season picking
is about at its height. All these
! things have combined to place a
large amount Of cotton on the
market, and make plausible the
argument of the bear that a
bumper crop has been raised.
They have not been slow to take
advantage of these conditions,
which favored their purpose, and
have so persistently kept them to
the front in their big crop predic-
tons, that the farmers have taken
fright, become stampoded, and
are rushing their cotton to market,
helping the bears to force down
the price, and defrauding tier
own selves out of the legitimate
profits of their labor.
It is the BEARS business to get
cotton as cheap as he can. That
is the way he makes his living.
and he is attending strictly to
business, never overlooking a
chance to hammer the price just a
little bit lower. It should be the
farmers business to get all he can
: for his cotton crop, out Of which
he must provide for the wants OF
: himself and family, but he does
r not seem to be even a second rate
l competitor of the bear, for instead
of fighting him for all he is worth
he is working right into his lands
and helping him to take from
himself the reward that should b
r his by right of labor vel. ane
faithfully done.
The difference betWeenthe beal
S and the farmer is that the bear i:
q a man who makes his living by
taking chances and is willing tt
5 back his judgment with his money
If he loses he has the satisfaction
? of not having done SO WltnOu
S having made an effort to win. Th'
: farmer on the other hand ha
& never been able to withstand tn
s pressure Of low prices. Whel
cotton begins to drop he become
panicky, stampedes and rushe
what he has to market, oversup
plying the demand at that time
and still further crushing out tn
) life of the market. This is suicida
r. and the quicker the farmer real
q ICES that fact the better it will b
e for him. The Southern farmer
y" too great a believer in mass meet
ings, platform speeches and Ion
drawn out resolutions, which h
. helps to pass only to violate, an
places too little reliance on hi
e individual effort. Want OF conf
dence never gained anything bu
it has lost some of the mos
important battles in the world
history. Unless the cotton plante
: makes up his mind to to at lea:
x help fight his own battles, an
quit aiding the bear by playing i
y, to his hands, he might just as we
ii give up all hopes of Is or even
. cent cotton, and content himse
with getting 8 or 9 cents.
III The Progressive Farmer give
III this advice: Every cotton farme
should go through his field an
nick ont the StoIkS that msko tf