The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1911-09-21
CO COTTON PRICES
FARMERS IN SEVERAL COUNTIES
URGED TO ACT.

UlS1CO ~ 6SAs
. a Cpnyen tion Called to Meet in Co
Iu1nbia t., Consider the Matter Next
Week.
Pointing out that an accurate es-
innate OF. ghe cotton crop will have
no effect On the price unless the. farm
lers hold the staple and force the
market up, Commissioner E. J.
Watson ind E. w. Dabbs, president
of the State Farmers union, have
addressed letters to all bankers, mer-.
chants, farmers, boards of trade and
the local unions of the State, asking
to discuss the situation.
The lccsl meetings to be held in
several hundred places, IN the State
will be followed by a large cotton
congress, to be held in Columbia ON
September, %. Commissioner Wat.
son is tn, president of ,rhe permanent
cotton, cxsngress OF the South, which,
was orgs n,zed in Montgomery.
".You are doubtless fully inform
ed,,'s Jsayls che letter, of our efforts
during the past six weeks to secure
reliable reports of the crop condi-
r-4ions, ami chat Gus Investigations and
the LEGATIONS Of all the commits
-sioners t'f agriculture OF the cotton
States, presidents of farmers unions
the Natioral Farmers union meet
ing at Shawnee, Okla, and the great
Montgon cry Cotton congress all
agree that the cotton crop of 1911
will be about tine same a the crop
oe 1910. The Montgomery congress
added tc the most careful compila-
ton seve rs.l hundred thousand bales
to cover Cur natural disposition to
underest!na with the result that
we consi1er 12,500,00o bales liber-
al estimate for this crop.
"But vl,at effect does it have on
1.-The marl:e@? None at all. Nor can
it have any as long as our people al
most fight to see who can be first at
the weig hers platform and we find
interior markets making new records
for September cotton sales. There
lore this. has ceased to be a battle
of the leaders with statistics, crop
-conditiolls, trade reports, ETC.. but
dt is .ab sotutely one of receipts
fight all along the line by the indi-
-viduals ,yi.oalhave toiled all the year
to grow tie cotton, and it rests with
them, the grower Of one bale as we'll
as the planter or the merchant who
qgrows or, controls his hundreds of
Bales, to call a halt, otherwise we
warn you that the price Of cotton will
be so low that business will be par
alyzed and bankruptcy will stare us
in tho face.
"That something may be done at
once, we call upon you to meet at
your respective centres Of trade, not
only at your county seats, but at
every poi1.t where cotton is market
ed, on next Monday, the 25th, at
any hour Of the day most convenient
ITO your people, there to assemble and
discuss Ch.s momentous question and
devise wars and means to put into eff
feet the advice of the, Farmers un-
ion and tie Montgomery Cotton con-
gress. Your leaders have done all
that they can do. We have gathered
the information, and we have, with
the aid o.. the press, that has most
ably seconded our efforts, sent it to
every harriet on every. rural route in
the State.
The p'osk rests with you the grow
ers Of tho cotton, and with you the
part owners of the cotton-the bank
ers, the merchants, the professional
men-y>u whose prosperity is meas
ured by the price Of cotton, to get
together and stop this loss, Of mill
Hons. You alone can do it. It is
idle to sid down and say that Brown,
Hayne, S,tlly or any bull clique will
raise the price of cotton or can raise
It so long as our people put it on
the market. It is no less idle to say
that wo can do nothing until the
Farmeri' union trustees and the
French English syndicate get togeth-
er and furnish us with foreign capi-
tai.
All this is well enough and we be-
Yieve that the money will be forth
coming, hut before it can leach the
local banks there will be no cotton
then to finance at the present rate Of
sales. We do implore our fellow cit
izens to give heed to our call. Meet
next Monday and meet for business.
We will send speakers to every point
we can, but there should be meetings
where every one can feel free to eX-
press his views, and let there be no
adjourn m ent until you have decided
on a pan of united action. Do not
wait fer our speakers, for we may
not be able to secure them, and We
could act possibly secure one for
every meeting that we hope will be
held in tae State.
"On Thursday, the 2Sth, at p.
m, in Columbia in the hall Of the
house 81 representatives we trust
that we will have delegates from each
one of these local meetings. After