Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-06-08
Farmers of South Now Wasting
Between $25,OOO,OOO and
$7O,O0O,OOO Annually.
STORAGE IS RECOMMENDED
General Warehouse System,
Gradual Marketing of Crop and
Official Grading Necessary,
BY HUGH S. MILLER.


cotton growers of Georgia, the sec
ond largest producing State, and OF
the other cotton growing sections OF
the South, must adopt if they hope
to check the annual loss of S25,000,000
to $4,000 600 which they now suffer
according to Charles J. Brand. of the
Bureau of Plant Industry. in charge
of Farmers Cooperative Cotton
Handling and Marketing:
Farm storage of seed cotton for
two to five weeks.
Proper shelter for all bales re-
tanned on the farm.
Drying cotton before delivery
for ginning.
Better cleaning Of cotton.
Use of modern equipment.
Establishment of general ware
house system.
Gradual marketing of crop.
Adoption of official grades.
Better COMPRISING, and use of
gin compress.
Complete new system of assess
ing tare and making fare oalou-
lations.
Enactment and enforcement of
uniform laws covering weights
and measures.
Lint Improved by Storage.
The Iuster and strength of the lint
is greatly improved by farm storage,
according TO Mr. Brand. In some ex-
periments conducted by the office OF
Cotton Standardization, an increase
of several per cent in strength was
noted in the case Of cotton stored IN
the barns compared with the same
growth Of cotton ginned Immediately
That the luster Of the fiber is i'm
proved by a sweating out process is
not surprising, and 1t is possible that
both of these beneficial results may
be due to the slight diffusion Of the
soil in the seed through the mass OF
the cotton"
other benefits to be obtained are
a reduction in the time wasted by
men and teams in hauling the seed
cotton to the ginnery and standing IN
line awaiting their turn, and In the
maintenance of uniformity of the in
dividual farmers cotton, As GIN
ming is done at present, farmer
with a good grade Of cotton who
follows a farmer with poor grade
may get a plate Of the poorer cotton,
varying from a few to 20 pounds IN
weight, on his good bale. As a re-
suit of this careless method, the buy
er, sampling both sides Of the bale,
calls Il a "mixed" bale and refuses
to pay what it is really worth.
Seed Kept Pure.
Furthermore. farm storage enables
the farmer 10 keep his seed pure, anu
it insures a more even distribution OF
nf
cotton
While many bad practices at the
gin can be blamed on the ginner, there
are some for which he is not response
bic. and which must be brought home
to the farmer The worst of these Is
the delivery Of cotton for ginning
which is too damp to gin properly.
Another is an excess of dirt in the
cotton. MIR Brand says IL is regret
able that a great deal Of sand and
earth is considered perfectly legiti-
mate. as the grade OF the cotton and
hence the price given for il depend TO
some extent on the presence of this
waste.
The most important step 10 be
taken in the direction Of permanent
Improvement in cotton marketing
conditions is the establishment OF a
general warehouse system. and grad
ual marketing Of the crop says Mr..
Brand.
Banks Must Support Growers.
Growers must have the interest
and support Of their local banks in a
far greater measure than is now the
case Negotiable warehouse receipts,
covering adequately insured cotton
that has been graded, stapled and
properly certified. should command
their confidence and furnish a tangi-
bic opportunity for cooperation be-
tween the producer and the banker.
The latter Graves active accounts.
the frequent turning over Of money,
collections, exchange and other reve-
nue. producing forms of banking ac-
tivity. The interior buyers account
mas greater earning capacity for the
bank than has the farmers; hence its
preference. a uniform and efficient
warehouse system would not reduce
the amount of banking business in the
interior. but would spread it over a
longer period
Neither would il prevent legit-
mate middlemen handling the crop.
and their functions are necessary and
must be performed by someone. The
support of the banking interest could
be so handled as to attract a large
short time loan business TO insured
warehouse cotton at reasonable rates
Southern bankers handling cotton ac-
counts can do more for the cotton in
dustrv than almost any other ele-
ment'
Ginning Changes Necessary.
In conclusion Mr. Brand says:
The most desirable and far reach
ing reforms and improvements must
be based upon changes In ginning
practice and must involve laying an
increased responsibility upon the
ginner
Water packed and plated bales
are wholly pravenJabie, and IL should
be a misdemeanor TO produce such
a package The ginner should also
be liable in damages 10 the owner Of
the cotton thus injured Gin cut
cotton results either from operating
defective equipment, which Compe-
tent gin inspection could remedy or
condemn. or from ginning cotton
when TOO damp
The Einner can readily detect the
latter conditions and should not be