The farmer and mechanic., 1911-11-07

who reduces his cotton crop % per
cent, judging the future by the past,
would be getting more money for his
crop than If he planted as many acres
as he planted this year and made as
good a crop on it.
Now il would have been very great
folly if this Conference had advised
the farmers to reduce their crop 25
per cent and let their lands lie idle.
Nothing like this was proposed. The
proposition is to put 25 per cent less
land in cotton and then grow other
products on their other land so that
they would make on their farm
everything they needed for consump-
ton, leaving their cotton crop as their
surplus crop. This is an eminently
wise proposition, and there are not
a few farmers in the South who have
followed this with marked success
before the Conference advised it. Not
only will the farmers be more pros
porous by carrying out this plan, but
the lands will be greatly improved by
growing grass and peas and wheat
and oats and the other crops. thus
improving lands as well as furnishing
an abundant supply Of food for man
and beast.
Every sort Of meat has climbed
mountain high, and the man who has
chickens or butter. or beef or pork
or mutton, or any other sort of meat
e. E.
The influx of population in the cities
has greatly increased the demand for
something to eat, and the oppor
tunity now comes to the farmer to
meet this demand at higher prices by
reducing his crops Of cotton and to-
bacco. that have gone down in price,
and grow the things that are in
creasing in price.
The action of the Cotton Growers
Convention at New Orleans must meet
with the approval Of thoughtful men
in all parts OF the South. The whole
prosperity Of the South is wrapped
up in what the farmers will do. If
the present crop and hold it. and re-
duce their crop next year 25 per
cent, they can obtain good prices for
this crop and the next, but it will
do little good to warehouse this crop
and then go ahead next spring and
plant the whole face Of the earth in
cotton. The foreign spinners who, in
the last analysis. fix the price OF cot
ton will laugh at the resolutions in
Of
age They will say: ''We have heard
that before. The farmers are always
talking about decreasing the acreage
but whenever they talk about it many
Of them go ahead and increase their
acreage, thinking that all the balance
will decrease and that it will pay
them to increase" That feeling is
so prevalent that all the buyers OF
cotton will take into consideration is
the acreage next spring. The farm
ers must warehouse their cotton TINS
fall and winter. selling none until II
reaches q price that gives tnefn
fair profit, and then next spring re-
duce the acreage When it is flashed
all over the world that the Souths
acreage in cotton is reduced 20 per
cent, and that fact is eStablIshed,
then the spinners will pay a good
price for the 1911 crop, because they
will need it in the summer, but IL
the farmers warehouse the 1911 crop
and hold it, and then plant big
acreage next spring. the spinners will
nav then, no more for the cotton next
cnr;no than they are paying now.
warehousins and holding cotton may
be worth something. and It IS, out IL
i worth very little unless it is coupled
with the reduction of the acreage next
wear You cannot fool the spinners.