The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-01-22
HOW COTTON GROWERS LOSE.
Damage and Diminution for the
Staple from Farm TO Factory.

Editor Manufacturers Record:
AS you are keenly interested in the
developing Of the South and the saw
ing of its resources, please allow me
space in your valuable paper to call
attention To the needs Of reform in
our methods Of ginning and market
Ing our cotton crops. To make my
Views clear, l will state one Of many
cases, for all Of them are alike.
Farmer brings a bale Of seed cot
ton to the local ginnery, grading mid
ding. At the ginnery he is preceded
by farmer b, whose cotton grades low
middling. Now, all Of our gins are
SO arranged as to leave enough Of
BIS cotton on the rolls Of the three
gins that cut his cotton to form hat
about three inches thick on one side
Of AS bale. When f. rmer A takes
his bale Of cotton to the local buyer
he samples both sides, taking out lib
eral samples. One side is middling,
the other is low middling. To pro-
tect himself the buyer buys the bale
at low middling price, when it only
has about three inches Of low mid
ding on one side of the bale. This
causes about 1915 loss to farmer A.
We will follow the bale until it
reaches it's destination in some for
eign mill. After having two liberal
samples taken out and sold at a loss
TO A Of 1915, the export buyer takes
out two more liberal samples, finding
it middling on one side and low mid
ding on the other. He also buys it
as low middling cotton. On it's arrival
at the compress sheds it is sampled
again and graded by the worst side.
After all of the samples have been
taken out it is weighed. Then it is
taken to the compress, where the ties
and bagging are refft and adjusted
to the diminished size. Then it is load
ed on the steamer, and by the time it
reaches the foreign mill it has been
robbed Of the major part Of its COW
ering and it looks as if it had been
rolled in mud and water. In its final
analysis the foreign spinner bases
reaches his mill. SO the loss of the
samples, the effect OF the bad hand
ling and the degrading and the bad
appearance at the foreign mill all
fall back on farmer A.
Now, what is the remedy for all of
this loss on farmer A? My plan is
the application Of business methods
to the proposition.
First compel, by law if necessary,
every ginnery to conform to some
regular plan. My .isa j. that sinner
les should be equip vith cotton
press of sufficient prv,r &C. Iut ol
bales to the dens.tv required - cz-
have a grader and weigher, and when
farmer brings his cotton to the gin
the grader is on the spot and sees the
cotton that goes into the bale. He
grades and weighs the bale, marking
it with the grade and weight. The
local buyer does not sample it, but
buys it according to the grade and
weight that the grader marked it.
This plan would save farmer A 1878
on his bale, not counting the saving
of the samples. Under this plan
farmer y has his bale we'll wrapped
up and compressed, SO he gets one
eighth Of a cent more for it on ac-
count of better freight rates. No
samples are taken out en- route to the
foreign mills. 1t arrives there in the
original package, the bale not having
been sampled, no lost weight is to be
allowed for. no waste cotton; hence a
better price allowed on that account,
and in the final analysis farmer A gets
the direct benefit of the condition that
it is in when it reaches the foreign
mills
If the 100000 bales Of cotton
made this year could have been hand
led as ! have stated above, the saw
ing would have been a kings ransom.
or more than anyone could figure out
Can we make the reforms required
that will bring about the desired re-
suits? 1t is big job, but the South
ern people are capable Of surmount-
ing the greatest difficulties when once
aroused or fully alarmed.
Help US. We need to exchange
ideas with ca y other
+. e. Thomas
Manning, :. c.
In postponed bowling match the